# Testing old drives as external storage to avoid price hikes — hard drive, SATA SSD, and NVMe in enclosures up to 80 Gbps, tested

> AI-driven demand has pushed prices to insanely high levels for the best external SSDs and the best flash drives — if you can find those sought-after models in stock at all these days.

- **Source:** [Tom's Hardware](https://www.tomshardware.com/pc-components/storage/testing-old-drives-as-external-storage-to-avoid-price-hikes-hard-drive-sata-ssd-and-nvme-in-enclosures-up-to-80-gbps-tested?utm_source=gearopen.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=feed&utm_content=6a689df87f5ab608f201803b)
- **Published:** 2026-07-28
- **Category:** Computers & IT
- **Tags:** #ai
- **Canonical:** http://localhost:4321/a/6a689df87f5ab608f201803b

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_GearOpen's distilled summary. The full original article is published at Tom's Hardware (source link above); GearOpen does not republish the source's full text._