Hardware

Published on March 3rd, 2020 | by Adrian Gunning

WD Black P50 Portable Game Drive SSD Review   

WD Black P50 Portable Game Drive SSD Review    Adrian Gunning
Score

Summary: With the WD Black P50 Portable Game Drive, your game worlds just got bigger!

5

Gaming power!


Welcome to the next generation of portable hard drives with Western Digital’s new P50 SSD that uses the improved USB 3.2 connectivity to make your gaming worlds bigger and faster. The WD Black P50 Portable Game Drive SSD is also available in three sizes that include 500GB, 1TB (reviewed) and 2TB, including a generous 5-year warranty for additional peace of mind. Furthermore, the drive is compatible with Windows 10, MacOS 10.11+, PlayStation 4/Pro and the Xbox One/X.

Specifications

Hard Drive Capacity: 500 gigabytes
Usage: Everyday computing
Power Source: USB port
Security Features: None
Memory Card Type: None
Manufacturer’s Warranty – Parts: 5 years
Color: Black
Storage Drive Type: SSD
Product Width: 2.4 inches
Interface(s): USB 3.0
Product Height: 0.6 inches
Minimum System Requirements: Windows 8.1 / 10, PlayStation 4 system software version 4.5 or later, Apple MacOS 10.11 or later
External Hard Drive Type: Portable
Color Category: Black
Model Number: WDBA3S5000ABK-WESN
Product Name: WD_Black P50 500GB External USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 Portable Solid State Drive
Manufacturer’s Warranty – Labor: 5 years
Brand: WD
Number Of Drives Included: 1
Internal Or External: External

Western Digital have also future proofed this product thanks to its Superspeed USB USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 with speeds of up to 20Gb/s. While you do need a system that supports this new interface, the WD Black P50 Portable Game Drive SSD is also backward compatible which means this drive will stick around in your artillery for a very long-time and oh… it also has a shock resistant case! Add to this is that Western Digital ensure that the user has everything they need to get this this SSD up and running which includes a USB Type-C to Type-C cable, USB Type-C to Type-A cable plus Quick Install Guide.

Out of the box, the WD Black P50 Portable Game Drive SSD is very military inspired in its aesthetics with its black colouring and rigid design that probably would not look out of place on a battlefield. But apart from that, it is quite Spartan with its appearance with the only additions, an LED and input for the USB cable. Installation? What installation, you basically connect one of the included cables into your system and then let your PC and Windows 10 do the rest.

For bench-marking, we used the highly popular CrystalDiskMark, a free tool that is used by millions of people across the globe. With the USB 3.2×2 interface on our test machine, the drive scored quite impressively compared to USB 3.0 or 2.0 speeds and the results for the WD Black P50 Portable Game Drive SSD are below;

We also trialed the drive with ATTO Disk Benchmark (4.01) and this utility scored similar to CrystalDiskMark with the highest read speed of 992.23MB/s and a write of 907.38MB/s. So as you can see, as a portable drive the WD Black P50 Portable Game Drive SSD definitely excels when it comes to performance and is great for those gamers looking to extend their systems without the intrusiveness of an internal SSD or more importantly, console gamers.

Final Thoughts?

If you’re looking for a high-performance portable hard drive, the WD Black P50 Portable Game Drive SSD is indeed that product that boasts some unparalleled speeds. Best of all, it’s backward compatible and works a myriad of systems that when linked with its future proofing makes this the only portable drive you need to own!

For more information, please visit https://shop.westerndigital.com/products/portable-drives/wd-black-p50-game-drive-usb-3-2-ssd#WDBA3S5000ABK-WESN

Features

  • USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 interface
    Offers an easy-to-use connection to devices. Backward compatible with USB 2.0 for simple connection to your computer. USB-powered.
  • Solid state drive with no moving parts
    Ensures cool, quiet operation.
  • Compatible with PC and Mac
    For flexible installation options.
  • 500GB storage capacity
    Provides plenty of space to store music and other media files.
  • Portable design
    Lets you take your data on the go.

What’s Included

 

  • WD_Black P50 Game Drive SSD WDBA3S5000ABK – solid state drive
  • USB-C cable
  • USB-C to USB-A cable

 


About the Author

agun@impulsegamer.com'

Adrian lives in Melbourne Australia and has a huge passion for gaming, technology and pop culture. He recently finished his a Bachelor of Journalism and is currently focusing on games journalism. When not writing and playing video games, Adrian can be found in Comics 'R' Us debating the pros of the DC Universe and cons of the Marvel Universe.



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