1TB INTERNAL SSD DRIVE INSTALL
1TB INTERNAL SSD DRIVE UPGRADE
1TB INTERNAL SSD DRIVE FULL

Elsewhere, the gains are less obvious, albeit the SN850 was already a great drive. The new drive hits just 58☌ under sustained load. Reduced operating temps are another clear benefit of this new drive. How much that kind of feature actually makes a difference in the real world is notoriously difficult to pin down. It now runs automatically, detecting when games are loaded. WD claims it improves game loading times courtesy of a so-called 'read look-ahead' algorithm, which predictively caches game data. Rather more specific to this WD drive is the latest 2.0 version of the company’s Game Mode drive management software. It improves game loading times courtesy of a so-called 'read look-ahead' algorithm, which predictively caches game data. What’s more, WD’s in-house controller chip, provided by compatriot SanDisk, has been revised, though detailed specifics aren't provided. But the 1TB model reviewed here is now the entry-level option. We’re talking four lanes of PCIe Gen 4 connectivity in the now ubiquitous M.2 2280 form factor. In many other regards, this new X model is a dead ringer for the existing SN850. This SSD runs quite a bit cooler than even its forebear, the WD Black SN850. Our review configuration is clad head-to-toe in WD’s signature armour-style cooling, but it needn't have bothered. SK Hynix's Platinum P41 might just have the edge on performance, but the lead is so negligible that the less expensive SN850X is our pick of the current SSD crop. And it's the best one out there right now. Enter, therefore, the new WD Black SN850X, something of a last hurrah for Gen 4 SSDs. Your current PC almost certainly doesn’t have a PCIe 5.0 M.2 slot. The arrival of the Ryzen Zen 4 CPU family means that PCIe Gen 5 is now a thing on both AMD and Intel platforms. 2TB and 4TB SSDs are pretty pricey, but if you find one on sale, go for it. And honestly, with games being so big nowadays, a 250GB SSD isn't enough. You'll notice that our picks for the best SSDs are generally 1TB drives as a minimum anything smaller than that, while cheaper, suffers a drop in speed.

1TB INTERNAL SSD DRIVE INSTALL

I've used each SSD as the primary drive on a new install of Windows 11 to check its performance.

Every SSD on this list has gone through our intensive benchmarking suite: A combination of real-world game loading tests and synthetic speed tests to find the best SSD for gaming. The ones below we've tested to make sure they're doubly worth your money.

1TB INTERNAL SSD DRIVE UPGRADE

Literally any SSD will be an enormous upgrade over a hard drive, though. Take the WD Black SN850X, our pick for the best SSD for gaming, it doesn't only run cool and quick while gaming, it's also great for larger file transfers for, say, video editing.

1TB INTERNAL SSD DRIVE FULL

Microsoft's DirectStorage allows us to take full advantage of new PCIe 4.0 and PCIe 5.0 drives, and even though support is limited to just one game today, the best SSDs for gaming are still good for a whole lot more.

1tb internal ssd drive