Being in popular demand, numerous SD cards have stepped into the market recently and given my enthusiasm to improve my vlogging experience, I decided to test some of the best and help you guys out as well in choosing the perfect fit for your use.
As a vlogger, you always have to keep in mind to use the right equipment to make your videos better and more watchable than your rivals and SD cards play an important role in helping you with that.
I will be rating the following SD cards for you in terms of their speeds and value for money;
- LEXAR Professional SDXC Card
- SanDisk Extreme PRO SDXC UHS-I
- PNY Pro Elite Class 10 U3 SDXC Card
- Transcend Ultimate UHS-II U3 SD card
What else will you find?
- What is an SD card?
- How to choose the best SD card?
- Top 4 SD cards.
- FAQs
What Is an SD Card?
SD card is short for Secure Digital Card; now SD card is a term that covers different formats of memory cards, namely SD, SDXC and SDHC. We will be covering SDXC cards widely. It is a type of memory card that is widely used by beginners and by professionals to store their content and it matters a great deal that you select the right one or else your video’s quality tarnishes.
I have taken the liberty to draw a sample of the best SD cards I have used recently for my videos, which are usually professional grade Vlogs; so what follows next would be of great help to you!
How To Choose The Right SD Card?
Since it has already been established that SD card is very wide term, it is crucial to understand what type you would need in order to get the most out of your video.
Many people don’t know which SD card is the suitable one for their device and their purpose, and I know this because I was like them once when I was a beginner. Months of research and wastage of money, I finally found the right one and since then I keep testing out the compatibility of various SD cards with different devices; be it a camera or a phone.
There are 4 things that you absolutely have to consider when you’re going to buy an SD card.
1- The Size:
Okay so these memory chips come in different sizes and you would wanna get the right one because it’s dreadful when you don’t. The three types are the standard SD card, the rare miniSD card, and the widely used micro SD card.
The first one is the one that is mainly used in DSLR cameras, laptops, and camcorders; this one is the biggest in size! The mini is not used very commonly, only a few mobile phones may use it. The micro SD card is the man! It is a tiny chip and widely used in cameras, cellphones, tablets and what not. It is more functional because you can also fit these into a laptop for quick transfer by using an adapter.
So basically, you need to know what size your device supports and then accordingly make your purchase. Do remember to buy an adapter along with mini or micro SD cards if that’s what you require. In my opinion though, you should always buy micro SD cards with their adapter because you can use them for multiple devices as it is widely used in almost every device.
2- Card Type:
Just like sizes, you can find three types of SD cards in the market, namely SD that can store up to a maximum of 2GB, SDHC that’s capable for storing up to 32GB of data and lastly, SDXC that can easily store large amounts of data (more than 32GB).
Nowadays, SDXC are commonly compatible with almost all vlogging cameras; you can check out some of the best vlogging cameras here: You would definitely wanna go for the better SDHC or SDXC card if your videos are bigger in size and if you’re as lazy as me and does not dump out your old videos to a cloud.
Having said that, before buying a new SD card, make sure you know what type(s) of cards does your device supports and then go for the good one accordingly.
3- Capacity:
It is common knowledge that you can very easily find a vast range of capacities in SD cards. Everyone has a different storage need and a budget hence, the SD card companies have made different storage capacities to cater to every user.
Usually us vloggers go for a higher capacity one, so that we can store as much data in it as possible because vlogs are big videos. A 16GB card can store up to 4 hours of standard HD video, so you can guess what capacity will be suitable for you depending on your average video duration (and quality). You can either invest in a bigger one once which will last you a while, or get several smaller ones.
I personally prefer getting one big one, so you’re saved from the fear of losing data or having to stop recording midway.
4- Speed:
Not everyone understands what speed has to do with an SD card, but let me tell you, it is one of the most important feature to look at while selecting the right SD card for yourself.
Speed here means how fast can the card write the data which is very important in determining whether it will record the type and quality of video you are looking for. For example, for 4K2K recording, you might wanna use UHS speed class mark 3 that has a speed of 30mbps, and for full HD video recording you can use the UHS speed class mark 1 with a speed of 10mbps.
These two are the best for vlogging purposes however, if your vlogging requirements are not that high, you can also go for lower options, keeping your budget in mind. But I would definitely recommend to get a card with good speed.
BEST SD CARDS REVIEWS:
1- LEXAR PROFESSIONAL 1667x SDXC CARD
This UHS-II card at a price point of less than a 100 bucks is a steal! With the capability of recording 3D and 4K videos, this card is absolutely stunning for shooting near perfect vlogs! I tried it out with Sony A7 III and man did it surpass my expectations.
If you are a beginner, I would say, definitely get this card for your vlogs as it doesn’t cost much and would give you an exceptional vlogging experience.
This card gives you the option to choose from 3 capacities; 64GB, 128GB or 256GB. These capacities are more than enough to record high quality videos for an enough period of time and I guess there is nothing that goes against this card, to be very honest.
Easily Compatible:
It is easily compatible with most cameras and devices nowadays, in fact its range of compatibility surpasses its rivals only and only because of how cheap it is! It can easily cope up with the speed demands of most cameras and give you aesthetically pleasing end results. It has a 100mbps write speed which is quite impressive!
The card recorded 4K video @30fps at 100mbps for solid 29 minutes after which it gave up; I still think this is a pretty decent recording time it gave and one more advantage of getting its 256GB variant is that all your videos will be stored on one SD card, making it convenient to access and keep track of!
My verdict would be a solid 9/10, just because there are more pricey cards out there with better speeds but other than that, this is the perfect SD card for vlogging!
Reason To Buy?
- Highly affordable
- Gives value for money
- Fast for a number of cameras
- Variety of capacities available
Reason To Avoid?
- I honestly couldn’t find any!
2- SANDISK EXTREME PRO SDXC UHS-I
SanDisk is a renowned brand and ever since I was young, I have used and SanDisk micro SD cards; for my phones, tablets and now even for my cameras. Without being biased, I can safely say here that this SanDisk Extreme Pro is the fastest SDXC card I have ever tested in my whole career. Though it comes with its reservations, the good in it surpasses the bad.
The experts would go Gaga over what this card offers and would be more than happy to pay the hefty price however, other users, ones like me, would not go that far in spending on just a memory card.
The card can record 4K videos at a max. speed of 95 mbps. I tried it out on my Samsung phone and the SD card gave quite an impressive performance in terms of speed; the videos were sharp and I was able to store longer videos in one card as I tried out the top of the line capacity variant.
I would give it a 7.5/10 only because the price is still too high. If quality matters to you more than anything, this is the right choice for you! Though keep in mind that not all phones and tablets can reach the speed level of this card so to get the most out of it, you must also be having a latest camera for your videos.
Reason To Buy?
- Extremely fast
- Multiple capacity choices
Reason To Avoid?
- Very Expensive
3- PNY PRO ELITE CLASS 10 U3 V30 SDXC CARD
The PNY Class 10 U3 SDXC card is your ticket to better, faster video recording with a bonus of storing all your videos in just one card! Not only is it an astonishingly efficient flash memory card, but holds the ability to defend itself from the hazards of the environment and unforeseen accidents.
It is a micro SD card so you can easily use it in your tablets or phones and professionals can use it with a micro SD adapter, that by the way comes with it, for their cameras or drones!
Along with its amazing read and write speeds ranging from 90 mbps to 100 mbps, it houses the tech that makes it magnet proof, water proof, shock proof and temperature proof!
Vloggers Choice:
If you’re looking to step up your vlogging game, you need to make sure you have the right memory card to record and store your videos in, within the right resolutions and speed classes, and PNY Pro Elite class 10 gives you exactly that.
Let me tell you, to make your vlogging experience smoother, you will need ample storage space and you can get a whopping storage capacity of up to 512 GB in this fancy card. Isn’t that cool now?
However, if you’re on a budget or does not have the need for this much storage, then PNY offers a range of storage capacities for you to choose from, so don’t feel trapped!
With the high read and write speeds, it is the perfect choice for those who want to shoot 4K videos. To bring some authenticity to the table, I tested it out in my mobile phone, and I have to say that it captures very high quality videos and is definitely worth the small price tag that it comes with. It can also store images of up to 48MP without any stutter and keep their original quality intact, it’s absolutely amazing!
Reason To Buy?
- It’s affordable
- Vast variety of sizes
- Astonishingly high read/write speeds
- Great for 4K videos
Reason To Avoid?
- Didn’t find any!
4- TRANSCEND SDXC UHS-II U3
Transcend SDXC UHS-II U3 is yet another SD card that I took for a test drive; and let me just say it was a very smooth and memorable ride. This card is mostly compatible with advanced camcorders or DSLR cameras or other advanced cameras that are usually used for vlogging, all because of its UHS-II bus support.
By UHS-II, I mean, this card uses an interface where it can record at up to 285mbps (read) and 180mbps (write) speeds. It won’t be wrong to say that this card has an outstanding performance, especially in terms of speed. Since it also has the U3 Speed class, you can expect it to record brilliant 4K videos without any hassle.
Like other SD card options, this one does not offer a vast variety of capacities but it’s still good enough for the price that it offers. You can either go for the 32 GB card or the 64 GB one, depending on your frequency of usage. I’d say if you’re a beginner, 32 GB would be more than enough but if you do plan on recording longer and more videos than usual beginners, then you should get the bigger one.
Reason To Buy?
- Fast read and write speeds
- Amazing 4K recording, and raw shooting
- Cheap
Reason To Avoid?
- Not enough capacity options
FAQs:
1- What SD card is best for vlogging?
SanDisk Extreme Pro UHS-I is hands down the best SD card for vlogging, with it being the fastest one out there and its wide variety of capacities! Though, it’s a bit too pricey.
2- Best SD card for 1080p recording?
To shoot brilliant 1080p videos, you should get a V6 SD card or higher; Lexar Professional 1667x would be the perfect choice.
3- What size memory card do I need for vlogging?
Though even a 16GB card would be enough for some videos, you would wanna get at least a 32 GB card to store your videos to avoid any hassle of data loss or repeat purchases of memory cards.
4- What SD card is best for 4K video recording?
Definitely, the SanDisk Extreme Pro is the best SD card for 4K videos, however if you’re a bit tight on budget, one of the best cards for 4K videos is the Lexar professional 1667x SDXC card retailing at less than a $100! In my opinion, it offers you the best value for your money.
