Someone pointed out that my SSD (Got it for free so just chucked it in my PS4) would be put to better use in my PC for games like Titanfall etc. I'm inclined to agree so decided to swap it back out for a much larger HDD, I'm losing performance in the PS4 loading speeds etc but gaining twice the capacity.
Had a look around at the largest available drives. Officially the 1.5TB Hitachi drive is supported, but was more interested in the 2TB M9T hard drive.
Currently this hard drive is not available to buy (Only Pre-order) as an individual product. However.. You can buy it in the form of an external portable drive. The better news is it's about half the price of the drive only 2TB M9T.
Because the hard drive is not officially released, I think the drive is not fully supported by the PS4, some people experience blue screen with no display after the PS4 has been completely powered down. This will likely be fixed later in a patch after the drive is officially released as a stand alone product. (Sony will likely release a firmware update to fix the blue screen issue some people experience) The easy fix for the blue screen is simply to have all devices switched off at the plug. Power on the PS4 first, then power on the TV last. This way you do not get blue screen.
*Update* Firmware 1.70 allows you to turn HDCP off and fixes no display boot issue. Drive works perfect on FW 1.70.
You can pick up the external drive from a few places. I won't mention them here as not sure if it would breach the rules. Please be aware once you open the portable housing the warranty is gone as far as the external product is concerned. I'm not sure if Seagate would honor on RMA on the drive itself if needed. Maybe someone has more insight on this. Tbh you would have to have hands like King Kong to do any damage to the drive itself by opening the housing..
The one you want is called the
2TB Seagate Backup Plus Portable Drive. It's 2.5" and comes in a case with a black bottom and silver top (others colors are available albeit more expensive). Inside this portable drive you will find the 2TB Samsung Spinpoint M9T.
So let's get started.
First thing is to backup yours and other users save games etc. Do this by logging into each profile going to storage management and backing up the saves to your USB stick. Also sync your PSN trophies.
You will need the PS4 software, latest version atm is 1.62. You can download this here -
http://uk.playstation.com/ps4initialise/
(You need the full 800mb+ file)
Now you have backed up your saves, PSN trophies synced, and OS software downloaded and placed on USB, it's time to get to the hard drive..
This is what the box looks like
The external drive housing.
To take this thing apart, get a small think piece of plastic, like a guitar plectrum etc. Gently separate the top lid from the bottom. Working around the edges.
Till it starts to look like this.
When you get the lid of you will have this.
The drive can just be gently pulled out from the bottom of the case, it is not fixed in anyway to the black bottom part.
When fully removed the drive has foil around the egde, just peel this off it comes of easy. The sata to USB adaptor can be gently pulled off from the end.
Now you have just the hard drive itself, you need to remove the HDD installed in your PS4, the black shiny housing part on the PS4 will clip apart from the main case. Revealing the HDD slot. One top screw will allow the drive caddy to be pulled out. The drive itself is held in the caddy tray by 4 screws. Unscrew these and remove the old drive (In my case SSD) and in with the new drive. Screw it back together and slide the caddy tray back into the PS4. Put back the one top screw and fix the top panel back into place.
With your USB stick in the PS4. Turn on the system. You will get an error and be asked to attach your PS4 control cable and press the PS button. Now follow the instructions to install the PS4 OS. You will come back to the start screen to enter all your preferences. Region, Language etc. Click on your profile and sign into PSN to get your profile back. From here enjoy a much larger hard drive and get your games etc installed again
)
