• Hey Guest. Check out your NeoGAF Wrapped 2025 results here!

How to Install a Hard Drive in a Playstation 4, HDD vs SSD (Video)

neorej said:
I'll just wait and see how much difference a SSD makes in the games themselves before I decide on dropping as much on a SSD as I spent on the console itself.

Why couldn't they equip the console with SSD from the get-go? Surely, ordering a couple of million SSD-drives would net you SOME discount from your prefered manufacturer?
Click to expand...

No it would still be way to expensive to equip it with SSD from the getgo and as the price would come out of consumers pockets, it would be a really bad idea.

Either they should sell it without an HDD or stick with their bundles.
 
I think I'm comfortable waiting until our friends in the US have done lots of testing. All of my launch games are physical, and there isn't much after that until February. So if I don't upgrade day one, it won't be the end of the world to redownload a few PSN titles, and the games on disc install pretty seamlessly (even preinstalling as soon as you put the disc in and before you launch it, to save time)
 
People should keep in mind to at least check their PS4 for pre-loaded software before swapping out the HDD. I think I read somewhere that all PS4's are shipping with one or two smallish games pre-installed.
 
Those SSHD are really making me considering do this replacement on day one. I hope those prices lower further until March next year when I plan to buy my PS4. Fingers crossed.
 
sono said:
NO - The PS4 caddy needs drives < 9.5 mm thick, that one is listed as 15mm

see my prior post for a cheaper and faster hybrid SSD drive
Click to expand...

thanks. I saw your post after I posted. It looks better, cheaper too! I've bookmarked it and i'll most likely pick it up.

If PS+ on PS4 is anything like PS+ on PS3 i'll need a big HDD. I'm still trying to find space for MG Rising...
 
Corto said:
Those SSHD are really making me considering do this replacement on day one. I hope those prices lower further until March next year when I plan to buy my PS4. Fingers crossed.
Click to expand...

Western Digital should be releasing their own SSHD in 16gb - 24gb configurations soon. I would expect Seagate to respond at release, or shortly after. Having competition in the segment should drive down prices, even if it only has two players.

I recently installed the Seagate ST1000DX001 in my girlfriend's setup. It's super quiet, and it definitely gave a nice speed boost in some areas. The 2.5 version is definitely going into my PS4 when I eventually purchase one in 2014.
 
I'd have liked Sony to leave a tiny bit of room in the box for an optional mSSD which we could put in to cache whatever game we're currently playing. something small like a 32-64GB mSSD is tiny and affordable
 
I knew SSD would improve capability on PS4. Many peeps were saying it was pointless to go SSD. So I guess this vid gives us an idea of how much more SSD can improve performance on gamers' games.
 
SSD >>> SSHD 7200RPM >>>7200RPM>>> SSHD 5400RPM >>> 5400RPM

For gaming.

Bare in mind the SSD/nand in the sshds are typically only 8gb...requiring repeat loading to see benifit (and a 50gb game cannot be repeat loaded onto 8gb)
 
Vizzeh said:
SSD >>> SSHD 7200RPM >>>7200RPM>>> SSHD 5400RPM >>> 5400RPM

For gaming.

Bare in mind the SSD/nand in the sshds are typically only 8gb...requiring repeat loading to see benifit (and a 50gb game cannot be repeat loaded onto 8gb)
Click to expand...

Yeah but if you play one or two online games a lot it could load engine files and levels you like to play the most.
 
sono said:
Personally I would go for this 1TB hybrid SSD.

Get a cost effective speed AND a capacity upgrade.
Click to expand...

How much performance gain would you get though, as it only has 8GB SSD and most games come with an installation much bigger than that. I would wager that loading the game-executable would go much faster, but loading the assets would take as long as with a traditional HDD, and they usually make up for most of the game-loadingtime.
 
TheLegendOfMart said:
Yeah but if you play one or two online games a lot it could load engine files and levels you like to play the most.
Click to expand...

Yeah for sure. But generally people on these boards wouldn't only play COD/bf4 and no single player. I guess you could make a performance spec priority HD list and a value/practical/capacity list.
 
Noisepurge said:
yeah, now to find a cheap 1TB SSD drive... :D

I predict i need the space more than the speed.

Does the PS4 support 2TB Sata drives?
Click to expand...

yes, but it needs to be 2.5" and no more than 9.5mm thick. And there is no such thing as a cheap 1TB SSD-drive ;P
 
twl said:
yes, but it needs to be 2.5" and no more than 9.5mm thick. And there is no such thing as a cheap 1TB SSD-drive ;P
Click to expand...

allright, gotta go to the shops with a measuring tape!

Yeah that might be a pipedream for now. A 500GB SSD can be gotten for cheap(300$) already but the price seems to soar right after that for anything bigger...
 
Vizzeh said:
SSD >>> SSHD 7200RPM >>>7200RPM>>> SSHD 5400RPM >>> 5400RPM

For gaming.
Click to expand...

No, you are wrong. Only the first and the last places are correct on that list.

seagate_laptop_thin_sshd_storagemark2010_gaming.png


The "Thin SSD" is 5400RPM SSHD, Momentus XT is 7200RPM SSHD, and others are regular HDD's (both 7200 and 5400).
 
So are external drives being completely ruled out forever? My ideal setup would be internal SSD with the current "playlist" of games and my main library on an external drive. I have a SSD in my tower I can spare, but it's only a 128 and I think deleting and redownloading 50gbish files very often would get old fast and make the extra loadtime for the included drive peanuts in comparison. I'm also not spending 500+ on a large SSD for a PS4.
 
Ulumsk said:
So are external drives being completely ruled out forever? My ideal setup would be internal SSD with the current "playlist" of games and my main library on an external drive. I have a SSD in my tower I can spare, but it's only a 128 and I think deleting and redownloading 50gbish files very often would get old fast and make the extra loadtime for the included drive peanuts in comparison. I'm also not spending 500+ on a large SSD for a PS4.
Click to expand...

unfortunately I think the minimum size is 160gb so the smallest ssd is 256gb @ ~£125
 
coldfoot said:
No, you are wrong. Only the first and the last places are correct on that list.

seagate_laptop_thin_sshd_storagemark2010_gaming.png


The "Thin SSD" is 5400RPM SSHD, Momentus XT is 7200RPM SSHD, and others are regular HDD's (both 7200 and 5400).
Click to expand...

We dont know what their testing and whats repeat loaded. When you understand a game or application needs loaded 3-4 times to be moved to the SSD to get its performance then you can surmise how a 50gb single player game will load on a Ps4 and with likely new textures and gaming resources being different accross that 50gb it wont be loaded onto the SSD

Therefore only the physical drive plater performance will matter... 7200rpm>>> 5400rpm all day long.

Only way that chart will see benifit in a single player game is if you die 3-4 times on one level so it gets cached to the SSD/nand or if you play mulitplayer games with a small pool of data under 8GB. If you can squeeze all the multiplayer resources and game engine onto it.

You cant cache an entire game to an SSD portion of sshd. Thats why for gaming SSD>sshd 7200rpm> 7200rpm>> SSHD5400rpm>> 5400rpm

Comparing the specs anyway.. an old 7200rpm drive should outperform a 5400rpm unless the 7200 is old and not up to latest tech standards and even then id be interested in seeing the testing environment.

If its pc performance based on applications there is less resources needed loaded onto th ssd portion of the hybrid therefore it will out perform the 7200rpm drive. It depends on how much new data you are using vs cached data/repeat data and if its OS pc environment or gaming in geberal or specfically a console

I will likely go for SSD.. its an investment.. you get performance, no heat, no sound and at 1TB enough space... plus nearly 0 seek times. ..only reason to argue against is price or your subjective view of value
 
Vizzeh said:
We dont know what their testing and whats repeat loaded. When you understand a game or application needs loaded 3-4 times to be moved to the SSD to get its performance then you can surmise how a 50gb single player game will load on a Ps4 and with likely new textures and gaming resources being different accross that 50gb it wont be loaded onto the SSD

Therefore only the physical drive plater performance will matter... 7200rpm>>> 5400rpm all day long.

Only way that chart will see benifit in a single player game is if you die 3-4 times on one level so it gets cached to the SSD/nand or if you play mulitplayer games with a small pool of data under 8GB. If you can squeeze all the multiplayer resources and game engine onto it.

You cant cache an entire game to an SSD portion of sshd. Thats why for gaming SSD>sshd 7200rpm> 7200rpm>> SSHD5400rpm>> 5400rpm

Comparing the specs anyway.. an old 7200rpm drive should outperform a 5400rpm unless the 7200 is old and not up to latest tech standards and even then id be interested in seeing the testing environment.

If its pc performance based on applications there is less resources needed loaded onto th ssd portion of the hybrid therefore it will out perform the 7200rpm drive. It depends on how much new data you are using vs cached data/repeat data and if its OS pc environment or gaming in geberal or specfically a console

I will likely go for SSD.. its an investment.. you get performance, no heat, no sound and at 1TB enough space... plus nearly 0 seek times. ..only reason to argue against is price or your subjective view of value
Click to expand...

An sshd may improve startup times though.
 
I was thinking of buying a sshd, but the comments about 8gb ssd cache not being enough have persuaded me to go full ssd instead. It seems like third party console exclusives will be less common this generation, considering the increased capabilities of entry level pcs (market too big to ignore) and the hardware similarities between consoles and pc (cheaper pc ports). If you only buy first party games and third party exclusives, do you really need more than 500gb (highest spec ssd with a reasonable price point)? I will buy a 500 gb samsung ssd for my Naughty Dog/SCE Santa Monica/Sucker Punch/Rockstar machine.
 
Vizzeh said:
We dont know what their testing and whats repeat loaded. When you understand a game or application needs loaded 3-4 times to be moved to the SSD to get its performance then you can surmise how a 50gb single player game will load on a Ps4 and with likely new textures and gaming resources being different accross that 50gb it wont be loaded onto the SSD
Click to expand...
You can go read the test at storagereview.com. Obviously the algorithms for caching are much more improved in the third gen. Unless you can show me test results from a reputable source that state otherwise, the 1TB Seagete SSHD is faster than the momentus XT and all non-SSHD 7200rpm drives for gaming. Also in your incorrect comparison you say 7200rpm >> 5400 SSHD which completely ignores the 8GB SSD cache, you're basically saying it makes no difference and Seagate are idiots for including it.
 
An SSHD will greatly benefit anything the OS does since those files will be moved to the SSD. But games will probably not benefit as much. But since system files are probably used during game boot and run it will most likely help a little bit.

Waiting for some proper tests before buying a SSHD.
 
d00d3n said:
I was thinking of buying a sshd, but the comments about 8gb ssd cache not being enough have persuaded me to go full ssd instead. It seems like third party console exclusives will be less common this generation, considering the increased capabilities of entry level pcs (market too big to ignore) and the hardware similarities between consoles and pc (cheaper pc ports). If you only buy first party games and third party exclusives, do you really need more than 500gb (highest spec ssd with a reasonable price point)? I will buy a 500 gb samsung ssd for my Naughty Dog/SCE Santa Monica/Sucker Punch/Rockstar machine.
Click to expand...

Yes if you have PS Plus.
 
coldfoot said:
You can go read the test at storagereview.com. Obviously the algorithms for caching are much more improved in the third gen. Unless you can show me test results from a reputable source that state otherwise, the 1TB Seagete SSHD is faster than the momentus XT and all non-SSHD 7200rpm drives for gaming.
Click to expand...

I think your correct mate by reading those test results but at work atm so cant sift through how they tested. They could have loaded a single player game a few times to load to ssd to begin the tests in a gaming and more spefically a ps4 environment

Its the theory of how a ssd caches and how it will use the physical drive if not cached.

There is a quote I read on a hybrid site comparing those drives something along the lines of, it remains to be seen if the SSD can be utilised, it sounds like im throwing that out there but will look for it later and update.

Also hybrids havent really evolved with 7200rpm drives in theory it will be much better.. Gen 4 or 5 hybrids I hope to see a bigger SSD and faster plater at atleast 7200rpm.

Its all theory, we need more tests
 
Vizzeh said:
I think your correct mate by reading those test results but at work atm so cant sift through how they tested. They could have loaded a single player game a few times to load to ssd to begin the tests in a gaming and more spefically a ps4 environment

Its the theory of how a ssd caches and how it will use the physical drive if not cached.

There is a quote I read on a hybrid site comparing those drives something along the lines of, it remains to be seen if the SSD can be utilised, it sounds like im throwing that out there but will look for it later and update.

Also hybrids havent really evolved with 7200rpm drives in theory it will be much better.. Gen 4 or 5 hybrids I hope to see a bigger SSD and faster plater at atleast 7200rpm.

Its all theory, we need more tests
Click to expand...
I use a 64GB SSD + 2TB 5900RPM "eco" HDD on my desktop, configured with Intel Smart Response Technology, which makes the SSD act as a cache to the HDD, just like a hybrid drive, the OS doesn't even see the SSD. After a couple reboots, it was pretty much the same thing as having an SSD. I think hybrid drives with 32-64GB caches are the perfect sweet spot.
 
MightyCrow said:
Yes if you have PS Plus.
Click to expand...

Why would PS Plus change the situation? There is still a very limited number of true exclusives (first party, third party exclusives, third party not on pc), which will probably fit just fine on the standard hard drive or a 500 gb ssd.
 
In the video, they install the new hdd and then update the system with the usb drive. Is that necessary? Can't you just install the new hdd and then let it download and install the new firmware itself? We know the system will turn on without the hdd in the system because of the guy who had the broken system last night.
 
th4tguy said:
In the video, they install the new hdd and then update the system with the usb drive. Is that necessary? Can't you just install the new hdd and then let it download and install the new firmware itself? We know the system will turn on without the hdd in the system because of the guy who had the broken system last night.
Click to expand...

Nope, you need to download the 900~ MB restore firmware from Sony, put it on USB memory, put the system into safe mode and install it from there.
 
So did anyone confirm the PS4 SATA is SATA2?

I'm going to give this 256gb SSD a try with my PS4 tomorrow. Might upgrade to a larger size drive when prices drop.
 
So does SSD performance still deteriorate every time you write to it? Does PS4 properly support features like TRIM? And I wonder if having to constantly recache games on a small SSD will be faster than having them already cache on a large HDD...
 
SnakeXs said:
http://dus01.ps4.update.playstation...edada625478db608d5878c019454380/PS4UPDATE.PUP

Get a formatted FAT32 drive, put a folder called "PS4" in it, put a folder called UPDATE" in the "PS4" folder, and put the update file in the "UPDATE" folder.

No quotation marks, case sensitive.
Click to expand...

OK, now I'm concerned. I just downloaded this, which is far less in size than what you just linked me.

http://us.playstation.com/support/systemupdates/ps4/index.htm

Which is the right one?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

  • Poll
SSD comparison for gaming in 2025: PCIe 5.0 vs 4.0 vs 3.0 vs SATA vs HDD
27
7K
Corporal.Hicks replied
[Gameranx] Why a SUPERMAN Video Game Is So Hard To Make
2
69
837
NotMyProblemAnymoreCunt replied
DF: Final Fantasy 7 Remake Switch 2 Demo vs PlayStation 4 vs PlayStation 5 vs Xbox!
Analysis  2
66
2K
Go_Ly_Dow replied
  • Locked
PlayStation pricing vs PC, and the future of PlayStation
Opinion 
44
631
Tiago Rodrigues replied
Data centers are now hoarding SSDs as hard drive supplies dry up
News Hardware  2
70
759
lifa-cobex replied
Top Bottom