Lexar's PLAY 2280 Gen 4 SSD for PS5 actually looks like a PlayStation 5

One of the great things about the PlayStation 5 is that Sony made expanding the limited internal storage with a high-speed PCIe Gen4 SSD relatively easy. Best of all, the Sony PlayStation 5 supports any compatible off-the-shelf SSD if it meets the minimum speed requirement of 5,500 MB/s.

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With the advent of Gen5 SSD storage on PC, the price of Gen4 has come down dramatically, especially when you look at the prices of PCIe Gen4 SSDs when the PlayStation 5 first launched in 2020. Lexar's new PLAY 2280 PCIe Gen 4.0 SSD sports a massive 4TB capacity for $379.99 USD, with 2TB and 8TB options set to arrive in Q4 2024.

The integrated heatsink is designed to keep the SSD running cool while installed in a PS5, but it also features a design inspired by the PlayStation 5 console. Once installed, you won't see it when you're gaming, but it's a nice touch that makes it feel like a perfect fit for the console.

Regarding performance, the Lexar PLAY 2280 PCIe Gen 4.0 SSD pushes Gen4 to its limit with 7400MB/s max read and 6500MB/s max write speeds. However, the PS5 does cap SSD speed at 5500MB/s, so you'll need to put it into a PC rig to use the SSD's full performance.

The Lexar PLAY 2280 PCIe Gen 4.0 SSD is also compatible with PCs. It would be an excellent option for those looking to beef up their Steam library capacity with an additional 4TB of storage, especially for installing PlayStation hits like Ghost of Tsishuma and the upcoming PC release of God of War Ragnarok. Lexar notes that the addition of HMB and SLC Dynamic cache will improve PC performance with "accelerated data access speeds and enhanced overall responsiveness."

Here's a look at the specs for the 4TB variant, which is available now via Amazon.

• Capacity: 4TB
• Form Factor: M.2 2280
• Interface: PCle Gen 4x4
• Performance: Sequential read 7400MB/s, sequential write 6500MB/s1
• Operating Temperature: 0C to 70C
• Shock: 1500 G, duration 0.5ms, Half Sine Wave
• Dimension (L x W x H): 80 x 24 x 10mm
• TBW: 3200TBW (4TB)
• MTBF: 1,500,000 Hours
• Warranty: Five-year limited warranty