Head-to-head · Best SSDs for PS5 Upgrade

Crucial T500 with Heatsink vs Lexar NM790 with Heatsink

Which is the better buy? Side-by-side on rating, price, strengths, and watch-outs — with the published ratings we averaged to get there.

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The short answer

Crucial T500 with Heatsink comes out ahead by a narrow margin (4.2 vs 4.0). The gap is mostly about Value-focused PS5 owners who want near-flagship speed and a PS5-ready heatsink without paying flagship prices. — read the strengths below before deciding.

Higher ratedRanked #2 in Best SSDs for PS5 Upgrade

Crucial T500 with Heatsink

4.2

4 sources1 derived$238.99as of Aug 1

The Crucial T500 with Heatsink is the value champion of the high-end PS5 SSDs. Tom's Hardware calls it a solid all-around drive that tops Gen4 drives in PCMark 10, and reviewers note it delivers roughly 90 percent of Samsung 990 Pro performance for about 30 percent less. Its clip-on PS5 heatsink is well engineered. Peak speeds trail the very top drives slightly and the 4TB dips a little in PS5 use, but for performance per dollar it is the smart pick.

Strengths

— Delivers around 90 percent of Samsung 990 Pro performance for far less
— Excellent power efficiency and consistent all-around results
— PS5-friendly integrated heatsink with a strong clip-on mechanism

Watch-outs

— Peak speeds trail the very top drives slightly
— 4TB model underperforms a touch in PS5 testing
— Heatsink version only offered in 1TB and 2TB capacities

$238.99 · Check Price on Amazon Full review →

Ranked #4 in Best SSDs for PS5 Upgrade

Lexar NM790 with Heatsink

4.0

4 sources1 derived$209.99as of Aug 1

The Lexar NM790 with Heatsink is the value pick. It is often the cheapest high-end Gen4 drive, reads up to 7,400 MB/s (enough to fully saturate the PS5), and ships with a heatsink so it drops straight into a console. Tom's Hardware was pleasantly surprised that it rivals high-end PCIe 4.0 drives, and TechRadar calls it the best value PS5 SSD. The DRAM-less design trails DRAM drives under heavy sustained load. For the lowest price that still gives you full PS5 speed, this is the one.

Strengths

— Outstanding value, often the cheapest high-end Gen4 drive available
— Up to 7,400 MB/s reads, fully saturating the PS5's interface
— Bundled chunky heatsink adds PS5 compatibility out of the box

Watch-outs

— DRAM-less (HMB) design trails DRAM drives under heavy sustained load
— Lacks the brand support and extras of WD, Samsung, or Seagate
— Heatsink is bulky compared to low-profile designs

$209.99 · Check Price on Amazon Full review →

Derived means the reviewer published no score, so one was inferred from their written verdict. Everything else is a number the publisher printed. How we rank.

How they stack up

Crucial T500 with Heatsink

The Crucial T500 is the value-versus-performance leader, delivering roughly 90 percent of the Samsung 990 Pro's speed for far less, and undercutting the WD SN850X on price. It is a step up in performance and DRAM-backed design from the budget Lexar NM790, while costing less than the premium Seagate FireCuda 530R.

Lexar NM790 with Heatsink

The Lexar NM790 is the budget value leader, undercutting the WD SN850X, Samsung 990 Pro, Crucial T500, and Seagate FireCuda 530R while still hitting the read speeds the PS5 needs. Its DRAM-less design is the trade-off versus the DRAM-backed Crucial T500 and the premium WD and Samsung drives, but it saturates the console's interface for less money than any of them.

Specs side-by-side

Spec	Crucial T500 with Heatsink	Lexar NM790 with Heatsink
Interface	PCIe Gen4 x4 NVMe	PCIe Gen4 x4 NVMe
Form Factor	M.2 2280	M.2 2280
Sequential Read	Up to 7,400 MB/s	Up to 7,400 MB/s
Sequential Write	Up to 7,000 MB/s	Up to 6,500 MB/s
DRAM	Yes (DRAM cache)	DRAM-less (HMB)
Heatsink	Clip-on, PS5-friendly	Yes (bundled)
Capacities	1TB / 2TB	1TB / 2TB / 4TB
Warranty	5 years	5 years

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