The recent trend of handheld PC gaming technology is being supported by storage manufacturer Western Digital. Following its heavy support of games consoles and PCs, the WD_Black SN770M is a super-fast SSD designed just for handheld PCs such as Steam Deck.
A minuscule M.2 SSD, the Western Digital SN770M is purpose built for the new generation of handheld gaming PCs such as Valve’s Steam Deck and ASUS’ ROG Ally.
Available in 512GB, 1TB and 2TB configurations, the new WD_Black-branded hardware is designed to bring additional storage and speed to handheld PC gamers. Rated for speeds up to 5,150GB/s, the WD_Black SN770M aims is designed to increase the internal storage of handheld PCs without relying on slower MicroSD cards.
While most games can run from a microSD card on the Steam Deck, there are some titles that suffer from the slower read speeds on the external storage technology. For example, the Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart PC port has major issues running from an SD card that it won’t have from a super-fast SSD.
Eric Spanneut, vice president of client SSDs for Western Digital explained that the new hardware is designed to combat the bloated sizes of modern AAA games.
“With game sizes continually becoming larger, it’s easy for handheld game consoles to fill up over time with new games and regular updates,” Spanneut explained. “The new WD_BLACK SN770M NVMe SSD boosts available storage up to 2TB and is specifically designed to handle the peak performance of demanding games for handheld gaming PCs.”
For more Western Digital content, read out review of the WD_Black SN850X for PCs and PS5. Additionally, read our interview with Western Digital on the creation of its Xbox Expansion Cards, and why very few companies are allowed to make them.
The WD_Black SN770M is available to purchase now on the Western Digital store or select partners starting at £70.99.