I'm looking to expand my storage for my media library. Currently, I have a 1TB and a 4TB NVMe, but I don't have any more M.2 slots available. I have four SATA 6G slots and I'm aiming for an additional 4-8TB of storage, hoping to keep my budget under $500 AUD. With storage prices being high in 2026, should I go for a hard drive like the WD Black, or do I have better alternatives?
5 Answers
Prices for SSDs are crazy right now! For your media, I'd suggest a RAID setup with high-quality HDDs like the WD Red or Seagate Iron Wolf. If you're considering a NAS, that's a bigger investment but great for streaming to your devices with services like Plex.
I grabbed a few refurbished enterprise SATA drives off eBay, and they've worked like a charm. I use one for my non-critical gaming storage. But just a warning: sometimes they don't play nice with standard consumer PSUs, and you might need a converter for the power supply.
I looked into refurbished drives, but the prices aren't significantly lower than reliable ones like WD Blue. Not sure if the hassle is worth it for my situation.
If you're looking for specific drives, check out the Seagate Barracuda 4TB or the WD Blue 8TB. They're solid options for what's available now!
Just a note, I've had really bad experiences with Seagate drives. I wouldn't recommend them based on my past failures.
You can definitely find some decent options on platforms like eBay or Amazon Australia where you can filter by size and price. Generally, a known brand's drive should work well for your needs.
Yeah, filtering is helpful, but I think OP is looking for personal experiences with specific brands or drives to really feel confident about their choice.
Exactly! I'm more interested in weighing my options like HDD vs SATA SSD and new vs refurbished drives.
I recommend considering WD Red drives, especially if you want longevity. They’re designed for NAS, which means they're built to last and handle data better. But just remember that the firmware is what really sets them apart from basic drives.
Just a heads up, while they're marketed for NAS, other drives have similar build quality. The difference mainly lies in the firmware.
I would love a NAS, but they were around $1k AUD last time I checked. I'm okay with running Plex on my PC until prices drop more.