SanDisk unveils the world’s first 4TB SD card for 8K video and storage rights
Technology company Western Digital breaks new ground with the creation of the world’s first 4TB microSD card for laptops and cameras, the SanDisk Extreme PRO SDUC UHS-1 memory card. The company says the upcoming SanDisk model will be released next year “and will be showcased at NAB 2024” in Las Vegas.
We can infer a lot about the upcoming card’s performance by looking at its name. UHS-1 refers to the Ultra High Speed-1 interface, which provides a maximum data transfer rate of 104 MB/s, according to AnandTech. Fast transfer speeds aren’t really important to the average person, as slower cards can meet most people’s needs, but speed matters a lot to photographers.
Photographers who take a lot of photos in quick succession using a camera’s burst mode need SD cards that can keep track of those photos. Additionally, the SanDisk 4TB card is said to be Video Speed Class V30 compliant, allowing it to support write speeds of 30MB/s. AnandTech states that the speed level is “good enough for 8K video recording.” If you’re going to record footage in 8K, you’ll need all the space you can get.
Speculation
In addition, very little is known about the SanDisk 4TB card, but the name does offer more interesting facts. For example, SDUC stands for Secure Digital Ultra Capacity, a storage standard that allows drives up to a theoretical maximum of 128TB.
AnandTech speculates that the device “could support off-spec DDR200/DDR208 mode” to boost transfer speeds beyond what UHS-1 can normally do. Speeds can reach up to 170 MB/s, as seen with the SanDisk Extreme Pro SDXC 1TB card. We wouldn’t be surprised if this new card has the same level of performance, if not better. Of course, we’re assuming Western Digital decides to implement it at all.
For what it’s worth, the 1TB Extreme Pro card is available for purchase $140 on Amazon at the time I write this. The 4TB SanDisk card will likely cost several hundred dollars more.
Check out Ny Breaking’s list of the best SD cards for 2024. Spoiler alert: SanDisk makes three appearances.