It’s almost a bit silly that the M.2 expansion slot cannot be used even more than six months after the launch of the PS5, but now there is finally a streak of light on the SSD horizon.
A new version of the system software for the PS5 has now been sent to the testers as part of the beta program. Said update now finally enables access to the M.2 SSD slot of the console, so that you can soon push your storage space properly.
However, there seem to be some technical conditions that make things less easy, especially for laypeople. On the one hand, M.2 SSDs cannot simply be installed; they must support PCIe 4.0 and handle data transfers of at least 5,500 MB / s. After all, you can use SSDs with a capacity of up to 4 TB, provided that the requirements are met.
Attention must also be paid to the form factor and module width. Only SSDs of the types M.2 types 2230, 2242, 2260, 2280 and 22110 can be used, the 25 mm models do not fit into the slot. The total size including the heat sink must not exceed 110 mm (L) x 25 mm (W) x 11.25 mm (H).
But not only that. The operation of an M.2 SSD in the PS5 obviously requires cooling of the SSD, apparently in the form of a heat sink that is mounted on the SSD. In addition, Sony cannot guarantee that all M.2 SSDs that meet the specifications will actually work. It is also possible that games from the M.2 SSD do not deliver the same performance as from the console’s internal SSD.
Further information on the requirements and installation of M.2 SSDs in the PS5 can be found on the PlayStation-Supportseite.
The colleagues from TrippyLeaks have already found some suitable models along with heat sinks:
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Seagate FireCuda 530 (version with heat sink available)
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Western Digital Black SN850 (version with heat sink available)
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Patriot Viper VP4300
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Samsung 980 Pro (requires separate heat sink)
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Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus (requires separate heat sink)
Suitable heat sinks:
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Eluteng M.2 cooling
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Glotrends M.2 cooling
So a whole lot of unsightly question marks when it comes to expanding the storage space. Another component of the update is to be the support of 3D audio for internal TV speakers. Their measurement for the room acoustics should run via the DualSense controller.