SanDisk's 8TB PS5 SSD Costs Over Three Times the Price of PS5 Pro Amid Storage Crisis SanDisk has unveiled its latest storage solution for PlayStation 5 consoles, the Optimus GX Pro 850P NVMe SSD, which comes in 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, and 8TB variants. The 8TB model, priced at $2,960 after a reduction from $3,700, exceeds the cost of a PS5 Pro by more than threefold. This pricing places it at over 300% of the PS5 Pro's base price, which includes a 2TB SSD. Even the 2TB version, available for $760 (down from $950), surpasses the standard PS5's $500 price point with a disc drive. The Optimus GX Pro 850P is marketed as a high-performance storage expansion for PS5 and PS5 Pro systems, featuring PCIe 4.0 compatibility and read/write speeds of 7,300MB/s and 6,300MB/s, respectively. Its heatsink design is highlighted as a key feature, though its specifications closely mirror those of the discontinued WD_Black SN850X NVMe SSD. Notably, the 8TB variant of the SN850X was previously available for under $600 in 2024, raising questions about the current pricing strategy amid a global memory shortage. SanDisk's pricing for the Optimus GX Pro 850P is juxtaposed against the broader trend of rising costs in gaming hardware. The SSD's reduced price of $2,960 still represents a significant jump from the $600 range its predecessor occupied just a year ago. A hypothetical discount to bring the 8TB model back to $600 would equate to an 84% reduction, underscoring the severity of the current market conditions. The surge in hardware prices is not isolated to SanDisk. Sony recently increased the cost of its PS5, PS5 Pro, and PS Portal models, following Microsoft's earlier price hikes for Xbox consoles in 2025. Nintendo, which initially resisted, raised the Switch 2's price by $50 in the U.S., effective September 2025.#san_disk #ps5 #ps5_pro #wd_black_sn850x #global_memory_crisis
