Versus.
Two comparisons that matter: local vs cloud, and NVMe vs SATA. Short answers, lab numbers where they exist.
NVMe vs SATA.
NVMe: fast travel in seconds. SATA: the same trips, noticeably longer. The lab grades on NVMe.
◎ At a glance
Reviewed 2026-10-13.
| Lab disk | NVMe SSD |
| NVMe | Fast travel in seconds |
| SATA | Workable, measurably slower |
| HDD | Not a conversation |
Storage tiers for Kiln
| Tier | Verdict |
|---|---|
| NVMe SSD | Lab standard. Fast travel in seconds, clean streaming. |
| SATA SSD | Workable. Same loads, noticeably longer. |
| HDD | Not recommended. Stutter and pop-in on streaming titles. |
What the lab sees
The reference rig runs NVMe, and every grade assumes it. Spider-Man 2 fast-travels in seconds; open worlds stream without hitching.
On SATA the same loads take noticeably longer. Playable, but the snappiness the grades describe is an NVMe result.
Spinning disks are disqualified. Streaming open worlds off an HDD is a stutter reel, not a session.
Where it matters most
Fast travel and realm-hopping: seconds on NVMe. See the Spider-Man 2 and Ragnarok run pages.
Open-world streaming: cities and fields stream textures as you move. Slow disks show pop-in and hitches first.
Shader caches and firmware: NVMe shortens first boots and rebuilds. Not frames, but felt time.
Recommendation
Put Kiln and your active games on NVMe. It is the cheapest upgrade that the grades can actually feel.
SATA SSD for the backlog is fine. HDD for anything Kiln touches is not.
Full storage guidance: minimum rig and GPU and CPU.
Questions
Does NVMe improve fps?
Not directly — it improves loads, streaming, and stutter. Frames come from CPU and GPU. But slow disks cause hitches that feel like fps loss.
Can I run games from SATA?
Yes, workable and measurably slower than the lab result. HDDs are not recommended at all.
What disk does the lab use?
NVMe SSD on the reference rig. Every grade on the roster assumes it.
Related
Local vs cloud.
Local: your library, your PC, no subscription, no stream latency. Cloud: no hardware demands, but rent forever and blame the network.
Reference rig.
One PC grades everything: 8-core CPU, RTX 3070, 32 GB RAM, NVMe, Windows 11. Every status on the roster comes from this machine.
Marvel's Spider-Man 2 — PS5 emulator.
Stable. 60 fps at 1080p. Plays start to finish — fast travel loads in seconds on NVMe.
Minimum rig.
Floor boots, lab class plays. 6 cores and 6 GB VRAM to check boots; 8 cores and 8 GB VRAM to match the grades.
Windows installer · 400+ titles in the launcher
Get the launcher.
Install Firmware with your own PS5UPDATE.PUP, boot the system software, then start a game you own.