In this article we tell you everything you need to know to choose your next memory cards for yourself. At the end of it we propose some recommendations of brands that we use in our day to day and whose results we love. If you want to see them look at the end of the article.
If you take a look through the blog at those “essential” photographic accessories that you should make room for in your backpack, you will always find something like, “take extra memory cards”, “never go out without a set of memory cards more”, etc.
So far so good, maybe tomorrow you are going on a trip and these essentials have come to your mind, or you have started to photograph in RAW format after having read so many bonanzas about it, and you have realized that the images take up three times what they used to , so the capacity of your card has become obsolete, so you have finally decided to pay attention to us 😉 and you go to your usual store to get a new card.
We are not going to fool ourselves, you have not even thought that there could be too many options in this regard, you have only thought perhaps of the storage capacity and with that idea you stand at the counter (or in front of your computer) ready to make an easy purchase and fast. It is here that, too late, you realize that there are many and varied different features that you probably had not imagined. I’m wrong? Well, luckily you have come to this article with which I propose that the next time you go for a new card, you are an expert in the field 😉 Let’s go there.
One large capacity or several smaller capacity?
This is the first question you should ask yourself. It is usually recommended that you have several smaller capacity in case you lose one of the cards or it gets damaged in some way. This way you avoid losing all the work you have done, by having distributed its content.
However, if you are very disorganized, it may be difficult for you to manage with more than one card, so you can cross your fingers and work with a couple of large capacity.
Before leaving home…
Look at the specifications of your camera to see what type of cards they are compatibleabout what ability and what is the maximum speed that it accepts. Not all of them are compatible and many times the result is that you don’t recognize them or that you buy exceptional (and expensive) cards that your camera is unable to take advantage of. So in order not to waste time and money, learn what kind of cards your camera accepts before you go out and buy a new one 😉
Now yes, let’s get that basic information to help you buy your card, trying not to get into too many formalities 😉
What are the main characteristics that I should know when buying a memory card?
Now yes, let’s go for that basic information to help you buy your card, trying not to get into too many formalities.
flash card types
For digital cameras, you will most likely need cards SD (Secure Digital) or SDHC. The latter are the “improved” version of the SD, they are newer and more capable of providing more speed and capacity (SD High Capacity) than the previous ones in general. That does not imply that there are no fast or good capacity SD, it will depend on the model and your needs but, in general, the SDHC was created as an improved version of the SD.
Although there are many types of cards, the most common for SLR cameras are SD and SDHC
Ability
This is probably the most (or the only) feature that we take into account when buying a new memory card. Once you have identified what the maximum that your team accepts, you will know in what maximum capacities you move, and above all, what minimum you need. As I have already told you before, it is usually recommended to have more than one card with a lower capacity rather than just one with a large capacity. However, if you have decided to switch to working in RAW or the one you have has become too small, you will need to increase the capacity, so you already have an approximate necessary capacity between the maximum and the minimum that you need 😉
Speed
The speed of a memory card refers to the speed of writing and reading card information. It is very important that you take this into account, especially if you usually shoot in burst or videosince it is in these situations where you are going to need faster cards.
If your camera accepts SDHC format, it is very likely that it will also work correctly with SD, but remember that a card that is “inferior” to its performance can cause your camera to slow down. That is, you may have a very high frame rate per second, but if your card is slow, it will be of little use to you.
Or conversely, if your camera accepts SDHC but you don’t plan to use RAW or burst shooting, or HD video as a priority, you’d better save the money for something else; with a good SD it will be more than enough 😉
Here you have the equivalences for cards SDHC and their corresponding minimum transfer speeds those that reproduce or record the information.
ClassSpeedclass 2
2MB/s
Class 44 MB/s Class 66 MB/s Class 1010 MB/s
If instead you think of a SD cardkeep in mind that the numbering corresponding to the speed speaks of maximum transferno reference is made to the minimum as in the previous case, don’t be fooled 😉
trusted brands
There are many brands on the market and very different prices. Unfortunately, very cheap is rarely good in this case, so try to focus on well-known brands, and with good references to make sure that what you are buying is really what you think it is. Look at the end of the article, where we recommend some options.
Memory card care
It will be of little use to have several memory cards if you do not take care of them properly, so here are some quick tips so that you can try to give your cards the best life possible 🙂
- Keep them protected in a case, purse, etc. Not only will you prevent them from getting scratched or dirty, but it will help you keep them organized and prevent them from getting lost.
- Make sure to eject it correctly once you have downloaded it to your computer.
- Do not delete photos directly from the camera as it reduces the life of the card. It is preferable that you delete them all at once once you have successfully downloaded them.
- And of course… treat it with care, do not force it when inserting or removing it from the camera or when transferring it to other devices.
A bonus tip
Don’t get obsessed, the capacities and speeds are constantly increasing every few months, if the price of the card you want seems outrageous, wait a bit, or buy the previous one, don’t get obsessed with being “up to date” and go shopping more according to your needs, than according to the market.
recommended cards
If you are looking for a good memory card, you can try these. Any of them will work very well for you as long as you need an SD.
If your camera takes another type of memory card, different from SD, in Amazon you should find practically any type of card.
I hope that with these basic tips you will go with a determined step to acquire your next card, I hope to avoid some of the stuttering and the “well, I had no idea” “I didn’t even know that this possibility existed” that I personally had the first time I bought a replacement for my camera. If so, if you think it will be useful to you and you think someone else will benefit from these tips, please share it on Facebook, Twitter and/or Google +. Thank you very much for reading us and until next time! 🙂