On Wednesday (local time), NAND storage behemoth SanDisk unveiled an officially Sony-licensed SSD expansion drive, tailored specifically for the PS5. The official website lists the 8TB version at a staggering price of $3,699.99, though it can be snagged for $2,959.99 post-discount. In stark contrast, the Sony PlayStation 5 Pro console is available for a mere $899 during the same timeframe, boasting 2TB of built-in storage. Considering SanDisk's discounted price for the 8TB SSD, one could splurge on three PS5 Pro consoles and still have cash to spare, with the trio offering a combined storage capacity of 6TB. The discounted price for SanDisk's 4TB iteration stands at $1,499.99, nearly equivalent to the combined cost of two PS5 Pro consoles.
Sony recently revealed at an earnings briefing that the memory prices necessary for 2026 have largely been secured through agreements. This hints that if NAND prices continue their upward trajectory, further price hikes for game consoles are on the horizon. A senior vice president at Silicon Motion Technology highlighted that the current NAND shortage is merely the tip of the iceberg, with shortages projected to escalate by 2027. This is because new production capacity won't significantly come online until late 2027 or early 2028. When it comes to NAND supply, data centers take precedence, followed by smartphones, PCs, and automobiles, leaving the retail SSD market on the brink of extinction.