Xbox Series X storage: everything you need to know

techradar.com:

If you’ve been scratching your head over how Xbox Series X storage works, don’t worry, you’re not ALONE. 

Even though the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S are far more user-friendly than gaming PCs, the storage situation isn’t as clear as it should be. There are a few caveats to note, and with space at a premium, you’ll want to ensure you know exactly what you’re buying and why.

We’ll cover everything from internal to external drives, the differences between HDD and SSD and shed some light on what an NVMe SSD actually is. More importantly, you’ll know exactly how Xbox Series X storage works by the end of this guide. Just remember that everything outlined here relates to the Xbox Series S, too.

The Xbox Series X comes with a 1TB NVMe SSD, while the Xbox Series S is equipped with a 512GB NVMe SSD. The Xbox Series X has 802GB storage, which means 198GB is reserved for system files and the Xbox operating system. 

The Xbox Series S, meanwhile, only has 364GB of usable storage. Games should take up 30% less room than their Xbox Series X counterparts as file sizes are reduced due to developers not targeting a 4K resolution, but you'll likely need to expand the system's memory sooner rather than later.

NVMe SSDs (Non-Volatile Memory Express) is a superior storage solution compared to standard hard drives and SSDs. Due to the fact NVMe SSDs use PCIe sockets for data transfer, they can send up to 25x more data than the slower SATA equivalent (which is the hard drive the Xbox One uses). 

NVMe drives also cut out the middle man by communicating directly with a system’s CPU, and the end result is blazing fast performance. Both the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S rely on this new storage format to create a next-gen performance leap, so it’s