A single accessory hard drive equals three computers? Storage price hikes create "absurd scenes"
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The global storage chip shortage is pushing consumers toward an absurd price reality.
SanDisk recently released an officially licensed PS5 expansion solid-state drive — the Optimus GX PRO 850P NVMe SSD, with a maximum capacity of 8TB and an official price of up to $3,699.99, still requiring $2,959.99 after discount.
This price means that buying a storage accessory costs enough to purchase three Sony PS5 Pro consoles. The release of this product presents the price distortion caused by the global memory shortage to consumers in a very direct way.
For the market, this pricing is not just an anomaly for a single product but also reflects the deep pressures of supply-demand imbalance in the current storage industry.
Similar Western Digital SSDs are currently priced at about $1,470 on Amazon. According to price comparison website PC Part Picker, the same product was about $640 at retailers such as Best Buy and Newegg last year — compared to the new SanDisk product, the price per same capacity has increased by over 360%.
Outrageous Pricing: One Hard Drive Equals Three Consoles
The Optimus GX PRO 850P NVMe SSD introduced by SanDisk is an officially licensed PS5 dedicated storage expansion accessory, available in capacities ranging from 1TB to 8TB. SanDisk claims the 8TB version can store up to 200 PS5 games (based on average installation size estimates).
However, the pricing of this product is jaw-dropping. The 8TB version is priced at $3,699.99, with a discounted price of $2,959.99; the 4TB version is priced at $1,874.99, discounted to $1,499.99; the 2TB version is priced at $949.99, discounted to $759.99 — the latter is even about $100 more expensive than a standard PS5 console.
Given that Sony recently increased the price of PS5 consoles, even at the higher price, consumers could still buy three PS5 Pro consoles for the price of one 8TB SanDisk SSD. This comparison has drawn widespread attention to the product’s pricing in the consumer electronics market.
Shortage Premium: Same Product Price Tripled in a Year
Pricing data reveals an even more astonishing surge. According to The Verge, a Western Digital SSD with specifications similar to the new SanDisk product (Western Digital is SanDisk's parent brand) is currently about $1,470 on Amazon. Historical price data from PC Part Picker shows that last year the same Western Digital SSD was sold for about $640 at mainstream retailers such as Best Buy and Newegg.
Based on this, the price of SanDisk’s new 8TB product compared to last year’s market price for similar products has increased by over 360%. The global memory shortage is thought to be the direct driving force behind this round of price surges. In its product description, SanDisk also explicitly mentions the "global memory shortage" as one factor behind the high pricing.
Product Positioning: The Premium Logic Behind Official Licensing
Despite the steep price, SanDisk has constructed a differentiated narrative for this product. This SSD is equipped with a "heatsink specially optimized for the PS5 and PS5 Pro M.2 slot" and has passed compatibility tests with both consoles. SanDisk states that this allows players to "store more with peace of mind and play more."
The official licensing tag and exclusive heatsink design are central to SanDisk’s justification for the product’s premium pricing. However, faced with similar Western Digital products available on Amazon for less than half the price, whether consumers will accept this premium logic remains to be seen.
Currently, the product has not been officially listed yet and will be sold via SanDisk’s official online store.
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