Games built with considerations for Xbox Series X and Series S, including upgraded Xbox One games, can run only on Microsoft-certified storage that hits its high bandwidth threshold. While that's more than acceptable for everyday use, it's worth stressing that's a fraction of the 2.4GB/s internal SSD included with new Xbox consoles.īut it highlights the limitations of any USB-connected storage on the newest Xbox family, with slower read and write speeds failing to meet new titles' demands. This 5,400 RPM external drive meets all the Xbox consoles' requirements, pushing up to 120MB/s maximum read and write speeds.

The Seagate Expansion series remains our top pick in its 2TB configuration, although with additional capacities up to 5TB for those demanding long-term flexibility.

That expands either console with room for dozens of new games, with ample headroom for additional titles later down the line. It triples the internal storage capacity seen with Microsoft's best Xbox console, Xbox Series X, with an impressive five times increase for the smaller Xbox Series S. While Xbox owners have countless storage options available, we've found a 2TB external drive provides an ideal upgrade for those running low on storage.

But mechanical storage expands your console for a fraction of the cost, providing more gigabytes for your dollar. Hard drives act as an affordable upgrade to your console capacity, although trading the performance reserved for SSDs. When in the market for Xbox Series X and Series S storage expansions, an external hard drive presents a lower entry cost than alternatives.

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