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[Elder Legend]

So what's the next big thing for hard drives? Here is some history.

The very first hard drive that's able to hold 5MB was in 1956 and it looks like this.

Yes, it's the massive thing in the left and was developed by IBM in San Jose California.

Today we have things like these (there are larger capacity SSD but those are ultra expensive and not really for consumer level) this holds 2 TB or so.

So what's the next big thing in technology step? While I am nowhere near an expert nor do I really keep up with storage tech I've decided to do some Googling today and found this.

It's gonna look like a still image but if you look very closely you can tell the laser is working.



Source - https://www.zmescience.com/research/technology/quartz-disk-5d-storage-52543/

TLDR

1 - Over 360 TB of Storage.
2 - Can hold data up to 13.8 Billion years. Basically we can record human kind. This is getting into modern portion of Assassins Creed and Horizon levels of craziness.

3 - Can withstand 190 degrees of Celsius
4. - Made out of quarts crystals
5 - Classified as 5 Dimensional Storage or 5D officially.
6 - Came into fruition/created and experimented with in 2013, almost 10 years ago.

Here is an official quote and part from a press release on what this and what they are called and how they became to be.

Scientists at the University of Southampton have made a major step forward in the development of digital data storage that is capable of surviving for billions of years.

Using nanostructured glass, scientists from the University’s Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC) have developed the recording and retrieval processes of five dimensional (5D) digital data by femtosecond laser writing.

The storage allows unprecedented properties including 360 TB/disc data capacity, thermal stability up to 1,000°C and virtually unlimited lifetime at room temperature (13.8 billion years at 190°C ) opening a new era of eternal data archiving. As a very stable and safe form of portable memory, the technology could be highly useful for organisations with big archives, such as national archives, museums and libraries, to preserve their information and records.

Absolutely nuts.

So Activision Blizzard when are we getting Warzone 6 that weighs 250 TB on its own? I want too live long enough too see that.

What do you want too see from storage tech in next 10 years or so?

 

[tusharngf]

I think there is no growth in terms of capacity. We are still buying 512mb to 1tb drives. Its just speed has changed. But capacity remains a big problem.

 

[Elder Legend]

I think there is no growth in terms of capacity. We are still buying 512mb to 1tb drives. Its just speed has changed. But capacity remains a big problem.

Agreed. Clearly this 360 TB or so storage will solve that, but when will it be cheap enough for a consumer level is the question.

 

[I Master l]

4TB SSD becoming the same price as HDD

 

[lh032]

I think devs need to fully utilised the SSD, feels like there is a lot of potential unused.

 

[Elder Legend]

I think devs need to fully utilised the SSD, feels like there is a lot of potential unused.

Yeah, I think once the cross gen transition is over which is sometime next year we should start seeing more games take advantage of that.

 

[Ezquimacore]

 

[clarky]

Agreed. Clearly this 360 TB or so storage will solve that, but when will it be cheap enough for a consumer level is the question.

Personally, and this might be slightly off topic, but I was recently blessed with 1gig fibre and find less need to store massive files and games locally.

But regarding the op i think they'll just get faster, but what's around just now is plenty fast enough, for gaming anyway.

 

[Ezquimacore]

I think devs need to fully utilised the SSD, feels like there is a lot of potential unused.

One day you guys are going to realize it's all marketing bs and the ssd magic is BS too. I have been using ssds for more than 5 years. You will have faster loads or no loads at all... That's all.

 

[CamHostage]

5D glass unfortunately is probably not the future. It's slow, it's bulky, it's not cheap... it's amazing for longevity (which concerns me more and more as I get older, that I just have nothing which will last into my children's lives the way photos of my grandparents have for me,) and maybe there will be further breakthroughs but I don't think it'll be in games for a long, long time.

(Also, it seems like 5D optical might be a better fit for physical media rather than hard drives? Physical media is on the ropes in most entertainment forms, with streaming and with patching and also with the capacity of BD pretty much maxed, but maybe the next format could be a unique shape instead of a spinning disc and could inspire collectibles again? Like, I don't know if I need to quintuple-dip Blade Runner, but if the movie came in a glass cube that I dropped into my PlayStation 8, that could be pretty rad; PS9, as we all know, will use Snowglobe Technology...)

 

[Deerock71]

We're supposed to meet aliens for the first time in two days (per TikTok user realtiktoktimetraveler), so I bet they've got some CRAZY tech!

 

[Lethal01]

One day you guys are going to realize it's all marketing bs and the ssd magic is BS too. I have been using ssds for more than 5 years. You will have faster loads or no loads at all... That's all.

Devs have not fully utilized games being designed around having next to no load times.

 

[Craig of War]

Next step is already here Xbox does it right with how easy it is to swap SSD

 

[LazyParrot]

Isn’t that quartz shit read only? I bet the read speeds are abysmal too. I mean, it’s for longterm data storage where none of that stuff matters. For gaming it does.

 

[Deerock71]

Next step is already here Xbox does it right with how easy it is to swap SSD

I've got a 1TB card, and 69 games (could do more, but nop) on my Xbox Series S.

 

[Ezquimacore]

Devs have not fully utilized games being designed around having next to no load times.

You know when you teleport from a tower to another and there's a 10 seconds loading screen. Remove that loading screen and that's the "magical achievement" the ssd technology will give you.

 

[Elder Legend]

Isn’t that quartz shit read only? I bet the read speeds are abysmal too. I mean, it’s for longterm data storage where none of that stuff matters. For gaming it does.

You might be right. I didn't think about that good point. Then in that case this is the next thing.

APACER Shows Off Next-Gen PCIe Gen 5 NVMe Consumer SSDs: Up To 13,000 MB/s Read & 12,000 MB/s Write Speeds With Heatsink Cooling

APACER has revealed the first consumer-grade PCIe Gen 5 NVMe SSDs that offer blistering fast transfer speeds of up to 13,000 MB/s.

wccftech.com

[AS2280F5 M.2 PCIe Gen5 x4 SSD]

‧Equipped with PCIe Gen5 x4 latest high-speed interface supports the latest NVMe 2.0 standard
‧Read and write performance up to 13,000 / 12,000 MB/s
‧Backwards compatible with PCIe Gen4, but doubles the performance
‧Designed with exclusive high-quality metal cooling fins
‧Built-in multiple protection technologies to ensure the correctness and stability of data reading and writing
‧Comes with a 5-year global warranty

[ZADAK TWSG5 Gen5 x4 SSD]

‧Adopts PCIe Gen5 latest high-speed interface supports the latest NVMe 2.0 standard
‧Read and write performance up to 13,000 / 12,000 MB/s
‧Comes with two types of heat sinks, ultra-thin graphene, and aluminum
‧Comes with a 5-year global warranty

 

[Lethal01]

You know when you teleport from a tower to another and there's a 10 seconds loading screen. Remove that loading screen and that's the "magical achievement" the ssd technology will give you.

Yes, being able to design game around not having that loading screen and thus being able to quickly move the camera to anywhere in the game is indeed a massive win for game design.

We can agree it's not going to make you suddenly able to render in 12k without pretending that isn't extremely useful for game design.

 

[Craig of War]

I've got a 1TB card, and 69 games (could do more, but nop) on my Xbox Series S.

I bought the 1 TB card for my Series S too and is loving how fast & easy it is to take out and put in
I just wish over time the price drop if they can get it to be around 100 for the 1 TB card
I would buy like 2-3 of them and just swap them out like old school memory cards

 

[64bitmodels]

TBH i think devs should work on optimizing and shrinking game sizes more. Yes, a bigger drive can fix the problem of not enough storage but at the end of the day you're still going to have to download/install all of that content, and if your internet connection isn't the best that can take up to a whole day. It's a band aid solution on an infected wound

 

[64bitmodels]

I've got a 1TB card, and 69 games (could do more, but nop) on my Xbox Series S.

 

[TheGreatMusashi]

 

[LazyParrot]

Then in that case this is the next thing.

Yeah, but isn’t that super obvious to the point where it’s barely worth discussing? Everyone knew PCIe 5 would be twice as fast as 4, which everyone knew was gonna be twice as fast as 3. They’ve got these planned out years in advance. I think they already got the specs set for PCIe 7 and - surprise - it’ll be twice the speed of 6, which will itself be twice as fast as 5.

 

[Elder Legend]

Yeah, but isn’t that super obvious to the point where it’s barely worth discussing? Everyone knew PCIe 5 would be twice as fast as 4, which everyone knew was gonna be twice as fast as 3. They’ve got these planned out years in advance. I think they already got the specs set for PCIe 7 and - surprise - it’ll be twice the speed of 6, which will itself be twice as fast as 5.

Ehh that's why I stated in the original post that I do not keep up with the hdd/ssd technology. I don't think it hurts anyone per say really. It's just a conversation lol on a video game forum. No one is forced to partake in the thread if they don't find value.

 

[Ezquimacore]

Yes, being able to design game around not having that loading screen and thus being able to quickly move the camera to anywhere in the game is indeed a massive win for game design.

We can agree it's not going to make you suddenly able to render in 12k without pretending that isn't extremely useful for game design.

Will be good for quality of life but game design is a different thing and has nothing to do with the tech of the storage. Sonic 2006 would be trash with or without loading screens. GTA V where you can change the character instantly without the 6 seconds loading screen would still be GTA V. I would love it but it's definitely being used by certain companies to sell you new consoles and ssds.

 

[Elder Legend]

Will be good for quality of life but game design is a different thing and has nothing to do with the tech of the storage. Sonic 2006 would be trash with or without loading screens. GTA V where you can change the character instantly without the 6 seconds loading screen would still be GTA V. I would love it but it's definitely being used by certain companies to sell you new consoles and ssds.

Ehhhh I highly disagree... look at Ratchet and Clank A Rift Apart. The dimension travel is pretty design changing, not massive, but still there thanks to SSD.

Demon's Souls feels like a completely different game with instant fast travel/fog imo

 

[Bo_Hazem]

Amazing thread, mate!

 

[Lethal01]

Will be good for quality of life but game design is a different thing and has nothing to do with the tech of the storage. Sonic 2006 would be trash with or without loading screens. GTA V where you can change the character instantly without the 6 seconds loading screen would still be GTA V. I would love it but it's definitely being used by certain companies to sell you new consoles and ssds.

The fact that there is 6 to 20 seconds between character switching is a great example actually, Without that limit they could really design around rapid character switching in a mission that uses two very different parts of the map. Or the simple ratchet and Clank Scnario where you have a game that utilizes teleporters of some kind.

If going from one place to another involves a 10 second loading screen then that's a big limitation for how you can design a mission involving those two places. Like if going into a shrine in BoTW instant you could design fun challenges where the environment outside the shrine affects that of inside and you have to rapidly manage both.

 

[Topher]

I think devs need more time to figure it out. There are less limitations to design now. Ratchet and Clank: A Rift Apart was pretty amazing.

 

[melekind]

can you remind me where this from? seems like the Matrix but I dont remember.

 

[Dream-Knife]

I think there is no growth in terms of capacity. We are still buying 512mb to 1tb drives. Its just speed has changed. But capacity remains a big problem.

I bought an 8tb HDD last year for $130.

 

[Black_Stride]

10 years isnt that far into the future.
Hell Ill bet PCIE7 SSDs will probably only just be arriving in consumers hands, maybe not even.
Cuz who the fuck needs to transfer 120GB of data per second.

PCIE4 drives will be dirt cheap and be available in higher and higher capacities.

 

[Tommi84]

Nothing about read/write speeds? One needs to wonder why

can you remind me where this from? seems like the Matrix but I dont remember.

You have the tittle at the bottom of the screen . Johnny Mnemonic

 

[K2D]

What's next? For someone creative to figure out the potential of datastreaming in those insane I/O speeds.

I want CGI quality faces and I never want to see the same face twice.

Edit: And an "endless" pool of diverse face skins.

 

[kraspkibble]

i don't think anything will be replacing SSD any time soon. we'll just keep making them faster. SSD's can easily be put on motherboards and i don't know what could be better than that. the step up from HDD was hugely significant. there's about a 40 year gap in tech between HDDs and SSDs.

 

[Nitty_Grimes]

Cheaper SSD costs hopefully with 4Tb being closer to 2Tb prices.

 

[Deerock71]

Nothing about read/write speeds? One needs to wonder why


You have the tittle at the bottom of the screen . Johnny Mnemonic

 

[cormack12]

DNA storage
DNA data storage is the preferred solution for the storage shortage problem because it can store large amounts of data in very little space. One gram of DNA can store 215 petabytes of data. A petabyte is 1,024 terabytes. So one gram of DNA can store approximately 220,160 terabytes.

It will hold Warzone and one COD campaign

 

[Holammer]

5D storage sounds like Star Trek style Data Rods.

 

[Magic Carpet]

Fluffy Clouds

 

[Celcius]

SSDs so fast that RAM becomes unnecessary

 

[melekind]

You have the tittle at the bottom of the screen . Johnny Mnemonic

Thanks, I didn't realize it's the tittle

 

[bitbydeath]

You know when you teleport from a tower to another and there's a 10 seconds loading screen. Remove that loading screen and that's the "magical achievement" the ssd technology will give you.

You’re thinking too small.
Shorter load times is one thing but being able to load and unload ram in less than a second means RAM can be dedicated to exactly what you see on screen at that point in time, as opposed to what you see after travelling for the next 90+ seconds on horseback.

More RAM availability = more details on screen. It’ll mean the difference of the CyberPunk we got vs the CyberPunk people were expecting, and then some.

 

[nkarafo]

How about ROMs where the game code can be accessed directly and doesn't even need to load in RAM first?

Kinda like older cart based consoles and arcade boards?

 

[Mithos]

Price, definitely price.

Do one buy a 1TB nvme or a 4-6TB HDD, when they cost about the same, when needing extra storage...

 

[Ezquimacore]

You’re thinking too small.
Shorter load times is one thing but being able to load and unload ram in less than a second means RAM can be dedicated to exactly what you see on screen at that point in time, as opposed to what you see after travelling for the next 90+ seconds on horseback.

More RAM availability = more details on screen. It’ll mean the difference of the CyberPunk we got vs the CyberPunk people were expecting, and then some.

I think you're thinking too big and only 10% of the games this gen will "surprise" you. Already 2 years and there's not a single next gen game with better physics or interactivity than breath of the wild, a game developed for the Wii U... A machine with the hardware of an Obama phone.

 

[TrebleShot]

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but the next evolution won't be hardware based and most likely cloud based.

You will pay a monthly fee to have access to alot of storage, if you don't believe me please see how most Laptops phones etc come with some sort of online access to storage for, iCloud, Google Drive etc.

As access and connections get better you will see it evolve to cloud based gaming, there will be no local loading for blades and everything will be dependent of your connection which is improving year on year worldwide.

Local machines will likely die out in the next 10-15 years, I think its an exciting evolution.

 

[bitbydeath]

I think you're thinking too big and only 10% of the games this gen will "surprise" you. Already 2 years and there's not a single next gen game with better physics or interactivity than breath of the wild, a game developed for the Wii U... A machine with the hardware of an Obama phone.

Outside of Ratchet and Clank it’s mostly been cross-gen games over the past, almost two years. You won’t see those sorts of advancements when it’s required to run on last-gen hardware.

 

[CuNi]

You’re thinking too small.
Shorter load times is one thing but being able to load and unload ram in less than a second means RAM can be dedicated to exactly what you see on screen at that point in time, as opposed to what you see after travelling for the next 90+ seconds on horseback.

More RAM availability = more details on screen. It’ll mean the difference of the CyberPunk we got vs the CyberPunk people were expecting, and then some.

I never really understood where this "More RAM = more details on screen" trope came from.
You are still bound by GPU power. You could have infinite RAM and you wouldn't be able to render lifelike games in 60FPS. Not even 30FPS.
The issue you're talking about is and was mostly a issue for consoles because of their shared RAM architecture. But look towards current games and GPUs with a 3090 having 24GB of VRAM and yet still being brought to it's knees at 4k with RTX.

 

[bitbydeath]

I never really understood where this "More RAM = more details on screen" trope came from.
You are still bound by GPU power. You could have infinite RAM and you wouldn't be able to render lifelike games in 60FPS. Not even 30FPS.
The issue you're talking about is and was mostly a issue for consoles because of their shared RAM architecture. But look towards current games and GPUs with a 3090 having 24GB of VRAM and yet still being brought to it's knees at 4k with RTX.

It’s been proven already with the likes of Ratchet (lots more on screen), the Spider-Man demo (fast swinging movement) and the original UE5 demo (8K texture streaming).