Disclosure: This post may contain text and/or image affiliate links where GameIdealist.com can earn commissions if products are purchased.

2017 Holiday Shopping Guide: Best Portable External Hard Drives for PS4, Pro, Xbox One S and X

One of the better accessories that you can get for the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 4 Pro, Xbox One, Xbox One S or Xbox One X is a compatible portable external hard drive as it will give you (or a loved one, if you are looking for a gift) more space to download and/or install games. So what are the best compatible portable external hard drives that you should look out for on Black Friday or anytime during the 2017 holiday season? You can find out with our buying guide below.

Do you need a new hard drive for your PS4, PS4 Pro, Xbox One S and Xbox One X?

So do you actually need a new hard disk drive for your/their PlayStation 4, PlayStation 4 Pro, Xbox One, Xbox One S or Xbox One X? It depends on how many, as well as what type of, games you played. Chances are that the default hard drive of your system will quickly be filled up if you have a lot of big budget AAA games installed.

While you can delete games every time you need space, you have to go through the trouble of re-installing (and downloading if you bought the games digitally) if you want to replay them.

External vs. Internal

If you decide that you or your loved one do need a hard drive upgrade, there are two choices for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 4 Pro: an external dark disk drive or an internal hard disk drive. We recommend getting an external one for several reasons, one of which is simplicity as you only have to plug the external drive to the USB port of your system instead of having to open it up.

Not to mention that you can you can also use the external HDD in addition to the default internal HDD at the same time. For example, say you have an internal 1 TB hard drive for your PS4/PS4 Pro. By adding a 4 TB external HDD, your total amount of space will be 5 TB. If you get a 4 TB internal HDD, you will have to swap it out with the 1 TB internal HDD on your system.

For Xbox One, Xbox One S and Xbox One X, the decision is simple as Microsoft won’t let you swap out the internal HDD unless you want to void your warranty. Thus, you are limited to external hard drives if you want an upgrade on the Xbox side.

SSD vs. HDD

There are two kinds of external hard drives: the standard hard disk drives and the solid state drives. While SSDs provide much faster load times when compared to HDDs, it is also more expensive and limited in size options. If you simply want to add more free space to your system, then going with the external HDD is a much better option.

Portable External Hard Drive vs. Desktop External Hard Drive

If you decided to get a standard portable hard drive, you have two types to pick from. The desktop external hard drive is usually faster and offer more storage options.

With that said, it much also bulkier and requires a separate power outlet. Because of these factors, we think that you want be better off with a portable hard drive since it is smaller and will automatically power on and off along with the system (as it is powered through the USB).

Best Portable External Hard Drives for PS4 and Xbox One

So what are the best portable external hard drives that are compatible with the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One family of consoles?

One brand that you should check out for this holiday season is Seagate. The company teamed up with Microsoft for officially licensed Game Drives for the Xbox One as well as Sony for officially licensed Game Drives for the PlayStation 4. There are three size options currently available for the Xbox One: 2 TB, 4 TB and 8 TB. There are two size options for the PS4 Game Drive: 2 TB and 4 TB. You can check them out with the links below:

Seagate also has the Backup Plus Slim brand, which works just as well as the aforementioned Game Drives for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One home consoles. The Backup Plus Slim has four size options; 1 TB, 2 TB, 4 TB and 5 TB. You can check out the portable external hard drive via this page.

Another brand that you might want to take a look at is Western Digital. The My Passport has four size options: 1 TB, 2 Tb, 3 TB and 4 TB. You can check out the WD My Passport hard disk drives with this link.

Recap

If you are looking for a hard drive for your (or a loved one’s) PS4, PS4 Pro, Xbox One, Xbox One S or Xbox One X, we recommend getting a portable external hard drive. More specifically, you should keep an eye on the Seagate Game Drive, Seagate Backup Plus Slim and Western Digital My Passport during Black Friday or anytime during the 2017 holiday season.