When you need an external storage medium to be able to move your files from one place to another, make backups or simply as a means of expanding the capacity of your game console, we have several options and among them, external hard drives with USB connection stand out . However, in recent times the option of buying an external SSD has become yet another alternative, promising a much higher performance than normal drives, although yes, at a significantly higher price. Which option is the most worthwhile?
An external SSD, especially if it is based on the PCIe NVMe interface, promises a much higher performance than a traditional hard disk, being able to exceed 1 GB / s transfer rate, compared to the 100-150 MB / s that they offer mechanical hard drives with USB connection. However, we must also take into account the same problem that we find in internal SSDs / hard drives: the price per GB of capacity.
So what is most worthwhile?
External SSD or USB Hard Drive, Which Is Better for You?
Currently, you can find external hard drives with a USB 3.0 connection that offer transfer rates that are around 140 MB / s quite cheap, with 4 TB capacity drives around 90 euros. However, if you want to buy an external SSD for that price more or less you will have to settle for capacities of 500 GB when internally they are SATA (and they provide speeds of about 500 MB / s), and if you are looking for NVMe SSDs you will have to pay a lot more money, since unless you find a good offer, the 500 GB models are around 150 euros.
Of course, the choice will depend on the capacity you need, your budget and also what you are going to use it for. In terms of performance, there is no doubt that an external SSD is going to give you a lot more speed than a normal disk, but it is also much more expensive and of lower capacity (in external 2.5 ″ TB disks the maximum currently is 5 TB, while in SSDs the maximum is 2 TB as a general rule, and at exorbitant prices).
When an external SSD is most worth it
When you need external storage for high-performance tasks, then an external SSD will pay off the most. For example, if you are a content creation professional and need to have backup copies of your files quickly and directly, or you simply need to take your content from one site to another, an SSD will save you a lot of time compared to a disk hard mechanical. However, this has a limit since this type of content also necessarily implies a lot of capacity.
This can also be applied to users who travel a lot and have a laptop, for two reasons. Today almost all notebooks are already equipped with an SSD, but it is usually low capacity. Having an external SSD as expanded storage will not only help you to maintain the speed of all your storage to a certain extent and thus have additional capacity, but also when traveling a lot and since the SSD has no moving parts, it is much more resistant to impacts and temperature changes than a normal hard disk. In short, it has better durability and is more suitable to carry it from one place to another without damaging it.
When is a conventional external disk worth more
When what you need is to have enough storage capacity, either for large volumes of files or for backup copies, then a conventional hard disk is more worth it even if it is at the expense of speed. Of course, it pays more for its price per GB capacity, and unless you have more than the money it will be the most reasonable solution for large capacities.
Many of you wonder if it is worth it for the extended storage of the consoles. The answer is that yes, a normal USB disk is more worth than an external SSD since that additional performance is not noticeable when you have the games installed on the device, and the higher capacity (or, we repeat, better capacity ratio by price) of conventional hard drives will allow you to have a greater number of games installed.
