I'm in the market for a 4TB M.2 SSD and I'm curious about the differences between Gen4 and Gen5. Is it really worth it to invest in Gen5 at this point? I'm planning to pair it with an AMD 9800X3D processor and a 5080 graphics card on an AORUS ELITE 870e motherboard.
4 Answers
There's really not been a big leap since Gen3. If you're mainly gaming, you're better off with Gen4 or even Gen3. You'll get minimal real-world benefits from Gen5 right now.
If money isn’t a concern and you want to be ahead of the curve, sure, go for Gen5. But for just gaming, Gen4 will do the trick and you'd likely be in the lobby faster without any other advantages in gameplay.
For most users, especially gamers, a good Gen4 SSD is more than enough. The super high speeds of Gen5 don't really make a noticeable difference in gaming or everyday tasks. Unless you have specific workloads that require the extra speed, I'd stick with Gen4.
Honestly, Gen4 is sufficient for gaming. Some people don't even notice a difference between Gen3 and Gen4 speeds when loading games. A solid Gen4 SSD can get you into games as fast as a Gen5. Plus, Gen5 drives tend to run hotter too, which means more potential cooling concerns.
True! I've noticed some Gen5 SSDs run really hot. A good Gen4 can save you some hassle.
Exactly! Most games won't utilize the full potential of Gen5, so save that cash for other upgrades if you can.