Western Digital announces Xbox Series X|S expandable storage cards: Release date, prices, and more

Western Digital has finally launched its expandable storage cards for Xbox Series X|S users. This is a significant departure from Xbox and Seagate's exclusive partnership for official storage expansion. As previously, Xbox Series X|S customers had to buy Seagate expansion cards because there was no other option, which tended to be more costly, making them an expensive investment.

However, WD has finally released its own C50 Expansion Card, which is significantly cheaper. Now let's move on to the release date, cost, and other information about this highly awaited Xbox accessory.

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When are Western Digital Xbox expansion storage cards releasing?

Western Digital has officially made its WD_Black C50 storage expansion cards available for purchase for Xbox Series X|S gamers after being leaked in April. These much-anticipated cards are now available for users to expand their storage space. A 500GB extension card costs $79.99, while a 1TB expansion card costs $149.99.

The WD_Black C50 expansion cards have a sleek industrial style consistent with WD's trademark design. They provide a simple plug-and-play installation technique, requiring users to put the card into the console's expansion port. The expansion card's games will benefit from the same Xbox Velocity technology, delivering smooth gameplay experiences with features like Quick Resume and lightning-fast loading times.

Currently, Best Buy only has the 1TB model in stock. However, both storage options are available on Western Digital's website. These expansion cards provide Xbox Series X|S users a welcome choice for growing their game collection and storage space, thanks to their low cost and dependable performance.

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Western Digital or Seagate: Which Xbox Series X|S expandable storage card is best?

WD or Seagate (Image via Sportskeeda)

Western Digital and Seagate offer expandable storage cards that fit the Microsoft Xbox Series X|S, which use their proprietary format to match internal SSD performance. Though current-gen Xbox games may be installed onto external USB 3.0 SSDs for easier installs, to ensure optimal performance, they must be moved either to an internal SSD or storage expansion card.

For almost three years, Seagate had the exclusive license to produce Xbox expandable storage cards, resulting in somewhat expensive pricing that stayed constant. On the other hand, prices for comparable Sony PS5 items have decreased dramatically. This makes WD's arrival into the market a good development.

Western Digital is currently selling the 1TB model, with 512GB and 2TB variations anticipated in the future. The WD_Black C50 1TB card costs $179.99, which is $40 less than Seagate's 1TB internal NVMe SSD. In terms of specifications and functionality, both cards provide a plug-and-play interface and support for rapid resumption.

WD also gives a more extended warranty duration of five years compared to Seagate's three. When picking between the two, gamers should consider aspects such as cost, warranty, and individual storage demands.