PlayStation 5
BUY ITby Sony
Last verified September 13, 2026
💬 — ask a question or share feedback →Sony's claim that the PS5's SSD would make loading screens a thing of the past is backed by real, independently measured results -- including an 8.10-second to 0.8-second fast-travel improvement in Spider-Man, demonstrated directly by lead architect Mark Cerny.
Sony built its PS5 marketing around eliminating loading screens entirely, with a Sony representative stating the ultra-high-speed custom SSD's purpose was to 'make loading screens a thing of the past,' positioning it as a defining leap over the PS4 generation.
Independent, directly measured tests back up the substance of the claim, even if 'a thing of the past' oversells it slightly. Lead system architect Mark Cerny demonstrated Spider-Man's in-game fast-travel loading time dropping from 8.10 seconds on PS4 Pro to just 0.8 seconds on PS5 -- a 10x improvement. Separately, independent testing found Spider-Man: Miles Morales going from the home screen to the main menu in about 7 seconds on PS5, with saved-progress loading in under 2 seconds, versus roughly 43 seconds on PS4. Loading screens weren't eliminated in every game across the platform, but in the specific, heavily marketed comparisons Sony highlighted, the real-world numbers hold up.
Sony's SSD loading-speed claims are one of the rarer cases in tech marketing that survive direct, independently measured scrutiny -- the specific numbers cited (8.10s to 0.8s, 43s to under 2s) are real, verified improvements, not cherry-picked best cases with no context. 'A thing of the past' is a bit of marketing flourish since loading screens didn't vanish from every single game on the platform, but the core technical claim about the SSD's real-world impact checks out.
- What Hi-Fi — Mark Cerny's own demonstration showed Spider-Man's fast-travel time dropping from 8.10 seconds (PS4 Pro) to 0.8 seconds (PS5) -- a real, measured 10x improvement.
- ComicBook.com — Independent testing found Spider-Man: Miles Morales loading from home screen to main menu in about 7 seconds on PS5 versus roughly 43 seconds on PS4.
Spider-Man Miles Morales PlayStation 5 (PS5) SSD Load Times. This SSD is insane!! — Tundra
Does the PS5 really have no loading screens?
Not literally zero across every game, but the specific comparisons Sony marketed hold up under independent testing -- for example, Spider-Man: Miles Morales loads from the home screen to the main menu in about 7 seconds on PS5 versus roughly 43 seconds on PS4.
How much faster is the PS5's SSD than the PS4's hard drive in practice?
In Mark Cerny's own demonstrated Spider-Man fast-travel comparison, load time dropped from 8.10 seconds on PS4 Pro to 0.8 seconds on PS5 — a real, measured 10x improvement.