A quick investigation by DF into the improvements on the PS4 and PS4 Pro
Seagate Firecuda 2TB Review: The Ultimate PS4 Upgrade? (YouTube)
General Info
Eurogamer Article
Battlefield 1: "Over The Top"
Battlefield 1: "Cape Helles"
Skyrim: New Game
Skyrim: Helgen Save Game
Seagate Firecuda 2TB Review: The Ultimate PS4 Upgrade? (YouTube)
General Info
- Tested offline to avoid potential issues with network connection playing a part.
- Used a fresh install of Battlefield 1
- Loading on Fircuda get's progressively faster with each load as data is moved from HDD to NAND, this seems to plateau with the 5th load.
- A couple of seconds variation between the Firecuda in a PS4 & PS4 Pro but it does vary between one or the other. No clear benefits with one machine.
- Loaded up Skyrim between loads and returning to Battlefield 1 still loaded it at the quickest recorded time. No data given on the following. My assumption = Returning to Skyrim, or other games, will mean the new games data replaces the Battlefield 1 data on the NAND. How quickly? The "5 loads" metric mentioned previously would likely hold true here. You load Skyrim 5 times then you'll need to start again with Battlefield.
Eurogamer Article
Thomas Morgan (Eurogamer not DF) said:Overall, as an option for upgrading either PS4 or PS4 Pro, the Firecuda makes a lot of sense. Even though it possesses a significant price premium over the standard 2TB Seagate upgrade, hybrid technology ties into the way we play games to achieve an effective speed boost over time. Doubling or quadrupling space gives a decent amount of breathing room in the age of the 50GB game install, but with patience, but the shortened load screens are a big bonus. Once cached to the NAND partition, the results put this hybrid into a similar league to SSDs, where equivalent-sized 2TB solid state drives cost a small fortune.
The first time using the Firecuda, it's fair to say you will be underwhelmed at the speeds. Initially, these times are essentially no better than PS4's stock offering in many cases, but keep using it to load your favourite games and you should see palpable speed increases the more you play. If your budget rules out a £500+ SSD of the same size, and you have an aversion to SATA cables dangling out of the rear of your PS4 to a more spacious 3.5" desktop drive, this option strikes the right balance. Between convenience, price, size and speed, right now this is the one to get.
Battlefield 1: "Over The Top"
- Stock (500GB) HDD - 109:38
- Samsung (2TB) HDD - 114:49
- Seagate Firecuda (2TB) SSHD - (1st Load) 112:49 // (5th Load) 50:27 (Quicker with each load 112:49 / 79:40 / 76:30 / ? / 50:27)
- OCZ Trion (480GB) SSD - 47:50
Battlefield 1: "Cape Helles"
- Stock (500GB) HDD - 70:12
- Samsung (2TB) HDD - 79:11
- Seagate Firecuda (2TB) SSHD - (1st Load) 67:50 // (5th Load) 33:30 (Quicker with each load 67:50 / 59:70 / 45:20 / 34:30 / 33:33)
- OCZ Trion (480GB) SSD - 31:50
Skyrim: New Game
- Stock (500GB) HDD - 22:1
- Samsung (2TB) HDD - 21:4
- Seagate Firecuda (2TB) SSHD - (1st Load) 22:5 // (5th Load) 18:6
- OCZ Trion (480GB) SSD - 16:7
Skyrim: Helgen Save Game
- Stock (500GB) HDD - 27:9
- Samsung (2TB) HDD - 21:8
- Seagate Firecuda (2TB) SSHD - (1st Load) 23:6 // (5th Load) 22:8
- OCZ Trion (480GB) SSD - 20:9