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SSDs are a popular storage devices for gamers. They’re high-performance, fast and don’t wear out as easily as traditional hard drives. But how long do they last?
SSD drives can last up to 10 years if you use them for gaming. However, if you’re someone who downloads a lot of content a day, it might last 6 to 7 years. They have a pre-defined consumption lifespan instead of time, but in the end, they last almost the same as a normal HDD.
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Does gaming wear out SSD?
No, gaming does not affect your SSD. However, an SSD won’t last long due to its small size and too many writes if you use it in another way possible.
Having an SSD unit has clear advantages in your computer loading times and hard drive; it either takes less time to start Windows, open a program such as Photoshop or Word, and, of course, loading a game. Therefore, you can improve your PC’s performance by using an SSD.
You can find that SSDs don’t have moving parts which makes them way faster than other systems. This has a great impact on the performance of the computers, which are now able to execute programs instantly and or start any system in just a few seconds.
Unlike the HDD, the SSD troubleshooting is eliminated which is different from HDDs since they wear their rotation engines and reading system much faster. Yet, that does not mean that SSDs have an infinite useful life.
If you’re still worried if your game will wear out your SSD, you should know that the main factor that makes SSD units die is the use itself. Each memory cell forming the NAND memory chips of an SSD has a limited number of writing cycles in each cell, so when they exceed that limit, the SSD unit will begin to be at risk.
In other words, you can get to know what is going to be the useful life of your SSD even before buying your SSD,
In my opinion, an SSD will be better for installing the SO and the programs that you want to use, for example, Office, Steam, Origin, or AutoCAD. I recommend using HDD units for light games. You can always install the 2 or 3 games that you like the most or what else you play.
How long will an SSD last for gaming?
SDD units can last at least over 10 years. However, if you are someone who downloads a lot of content per day is recommended that you use an HDD or keep in mind that the SSD can last for you for 6 or 7 years.
On a hard drive, the MTBF usually has 300,000 hours, while in an SSD unit that MTBF is normally 1.5 million hours.
If you install games in an SSD, you’ll notice they tend to start faster than those installed on a traditional hard drive. In addition, the loading times to go from the game menu to the game itself are faster when you install a game on an SSD that is installed on a hard drive.
An option you have is to use the SSD to SACO, enjoy the extra speed that gives you, you will have changed from PC before it begins to fail by using it too much.
On the other hand, an SSD lifespan can vary depending on the memory technology you use. For example, professional or high-performance SSD units use MLC type memories which store 2 bits for each cell, one at each level, makes each storage cell support two writing cycles every time.
SSDs with TLC type memories and QLC (Quad Level Cell) is the most common for being the easiest to manufacture, greater storage capacity offers, and, therefore, those who arrive with a better price to stores. These memories write data on three and four levels respectively from the same storage cell. Therefore, take into account that each one of them supports a greater usage since it has to support more writing operations.
Manufacturers tend to facilitate the data of the number of writing cycles that support their SSD, but you will have to go to the manufacturer’s page and examine the technical specifications of the specific SSD unit model, which will vary depending on your capacity and memory technology.
For example, taking this data as a reference, I can say that an SSD unit that has an estimate of the use of 150 TBW before a probable failure, means that you will be able to write about 27.39 GB every day during the next 15 years.
Now, if you’re wondering how this affects your game, you need to know that having a good storage disk is crucial to determine how long your SSD will last while playing games.
Your storage disk stores your games and any preloaded file for online games. That is to say, users need enough storage space for their games and anything else they have on their computers. The hard drive and solid dial units are responsible for storing the data but the technology is different between the two types of storage units.
Is it worth putting games on SSD?
It all depends on how much speed you’d like to have for your games, but taking into account that your SSD will last fewer years.
The minimum advisable capacity that an SSD disk should have for games is 500GB. I highly recommended purchasing an SSD disk of 1TB or more.
Now, I’m going to mention how much an SSD improves while loading times in games. With these three different storage media, users have tested different games to see how long it takes to load the game as the Vanguard stated. In all cases, they simply access the game and load a saved game, timing, and how long it takes the system to load.
All of them said the same, there’s a clear improvement when using an SSD, especially in very heavy games like GTA V which takes almost a minute to load with a common hard drive, when the time is cut in half using any SSD.
To sum up, it is worth having an SSD, either a SATA 3 or PCIe. Now, you have to choose between these two types of SSD depending on your needs and budget.
Does uninstalling games damage SSD?
Uninstalling games can damage an SSD if you do it too many times per day since it reinstalling or uninstalling a game takes time. Take into account that SSDs have specific write cycles that each unit uses across the drive so they can last longer.
Installing any game will take a lot of these write cycles making it wear out faster. There are some tips you can use to avoid your SSD wearing out if you still need to uninstall games. The first one is to not use defragment tools.
In a traditional hard drive you can achieve a considerable performance improvement by grouping data dispersed in sectors, but that benefit not only does not translate as it is to SSDs, but also defragmentation reduces its useful life.
In those units, each specific sector has a maximum number of write operations that mark its useful life, and when defragmenting this type of operations are carried out without also having any benefit, with all that this implies.
That said, another detail, do not forget to deactivate the automatic defragmentation that certain operating systems bring, such as Windows, for example.
On the other hand, you shouldn’t occupy all or almost all of an SSD’s capacity. This type of storage solution works by storing information and data in blocks. When you have a lot of free space you have a lot of free blocks, and it can take the writing operations more quickly.
This process will be repeated with each new operation that we carry out until the disk runs out of space, assuming a clear loss of performance.
Conclusion
Choosing an SSD to improve your game’s performance is a great option, and if you have a relatively powerful computer, it is best that you also equip it with an SSD to avoid any technical problems. Although you will not gain more graphics cards for having an SSD, you will gain instability and you will not have a single jerk when you turn sharply and the game has to resort to the hard disk to load a certain part of the map.
