The Xbox Series S is a pretty great console for what it can do, specifically for its price point. With it, you get a next-gen gaming experience for way less than what you would have paid for its bigger brother, the Series X. But it does have one Achilles heel -- its storage capacity.
Living room with a Microsoft Xbox Series S home video game console alongside a television and soundbar, taken on October 27, 2020.
On paper, the Series S only features a 512GB internal SSD, with even less space remaining for games (364GB, according to Tech Times). But Microsoft made sure that upgrading the storage capacity of this little console is quick, simple, and easy to do. You will learn that in this guide.
How To Increase Xbox Series S Storage The 'Official' (And EASIEST) Way
Microsoft prepped for the eventuality that the Series S will not have enough space for people's favorite games. Considering how big games have gotten over the past few years, this is even more true.
For that, they partnered with Seagate to create official expansion cards for the Series S (alongside the Series X). According to Windows Central, these expansion cards come in 512GB, 1TB, and 2TB variants for people to choose from. What's even better is that these expansion cards easily slot into the console's expansion port at the back.
Here is how to connect them, courtesy of this video by YouTuber Brainus 2. Check by the 1:45 mark:
Once you connect it, the expansion card will just show up and work as intended.
These expansion cards are available at major retailers, but they could be as hard to find as the Series X and PS5 is. This then brings us to the next storage upgrade option on this list.
Read also: What's A Good 4K TV For The PS5 And The Xbox Series X?
Regular External Drives
Whether it's an SSD or an HDD (but try your hardest to go for an SSD, because once you go solid-state, you can never go back), this is also a pretty easy way to increase the Series S' storage in a snap. All you need to do is connect them to one of the consoles' three USB 3.2 ports.
But you cannot just connect any drive you buy, however. It must meet Microsoft's hardware requirements for it to work properly: at least a USB 3.0 connection, 128GB or greater capacity. And as much as possible, you'd want it to be brand-new since the cable can hamper the drive's performance if it is not in good condition.
GamesRadar lists some of the best external drives to use with a Series S. Here are a few of them to get you started:
- WD Black P10 Game Drive: This drive comes in 1TB, 2TB, 3TB, 4TB, and 5TB variants, so you can be sure that you'll never run out of space to install games on. The only problem is that it's NOT an SSD, so that the loading times will be quite slow. Plus, they can get pretty expensive at the top range.
- Samsung T5 External SSD: As we previously mentioned, try to go for an external SSD as much as you can. The T5 external SSD from Samsung will absolutely smoke a typical hard drive in terms of loading speeds, and it is cheaper. You're not getting as much storage space as you like, but the speed trade-off is absolutely worth it.
- SanDisk Extreme Pro Portable SSD: This is perhaps one of the fastest external SSDs on the market, but it does come with a few quirks. It can get as expensive as the official expansion cards from Seagate, and it's still slower than those as well. Though this choice is water and dust-resistant, for when it matters.
Why Not Just Replace The Series S' Internal SSD?
If you have a bit of technical know-how, you can replace the Xbox Series S' internal M.2 SSD with a newer, bigger-capacity one. But if you don't have any skill or experience in opening up electronics like this, this step isn't for you.
The entire process can be hard to encapsulate in mere words fully, so here is a quick video tutorial:
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Story posted on GameNGuide
Written by RJ Pierce
