Earlier this week Sony announced that they will be debuting the world's fastest SD cards with amazing read and write speeds of 300 MB/s and 299 MB/s, respectively. Not only do the new SF-G series cards claim to be the fastest currently on the market, they are also backed by Sony’s File Rescue software which is a simple data recovery software that you can use free of charge.
In addition to the data recovery software, Sony claims that the SF-G series cards have "superior reliability and durability even in intense use" which includes being X-ray proof, waterproof, temperature resistant, and shock-proof. Knowing all that, there’s a slim chance that you’ll ever need any data recovery but it's there just in case. Nothing like a good safety net.
Now the real question is, do you really need a card that fast? Well, it depends on the work you’re doing. If you’re just shooting portraits I would say probably not. On the other hand, if you’re trying to shoot sports with a continuous shutter or you’re shooting 4K video I can definitely see where a card with this kind of speed would come in handy. Regardless of whether or not you need a card this fast or not is irreverent if you just really want it. I for one would love to have write speeds of 300 MB/s if it means I can save time transferring files onto my computer after a shoot. After all, time is money.
This spring, Sony will also be releasing a new high-speed SD memory card reader, the MRW-S1, which supports UHS-II. This card reader will be capable of handling the fast data transfer speeds of these new SF-G series memory cards connected to PC via USB 3.1 Gen1 Interface.
Sony SF-G32 32GB SD Card
Sony SF-G64 SD Card
As of right now, the SF-G series SD cards will come in 32 GB, 64 GB, and 128 GB. There isn't any price for these cards yet but I am sure Sony will announce those shortly.
[via Sony]
To bad a Sony SD card is the only card that has ever failed on me. Never buying one again.
They do have the file recovery software now but I can totally understand not wanting to purchase one again!
@Garret Your single experience is statistically irrelevant at determing the reliability and quality of Sony's card. Even the most reliable cars have the occasional lemons.
Totally agree with you. By all means go buy one for yourself. However, my confidence in a product and brand is relivent to me since my sample size of sd cards is quite small. That which is why I won't be buying one.
How can you agree with me if you still feel the same way? And just in case you didn't know, Sony has always had an excellent reputation for the storage media that they have put their name on, such as optical discs and flash cards.
Why do you care so much about this? I was just making a comment about my experience. It's just a memory card. Not that exciting. Moving on.
I think we'll have to wait for a price tag on these things before we can make any decisions one way or the other.
Ooo yey, so cool that my a7rII will totally not be able to take advantage of the speed with UHS-I bus interface. Maybe there will be a a7rIII that will have UHS-II...
So don't jump into buying this card unless you know that your equipment can actually take advantage of it...
Solid point! You would think Sony would make a card that would be comparable with their flagship camera. Also maybe you're right about a potential a7riii in the future! One can only hope right?
This should shut up all the XQD proponents who proclaimed SDs would never have throughput like this.