SD memory

**cpk** · 06-30-2010, 06:59 PM

The comments on Kinsgton SD cards is making me nervous. I tend to use SanDisk but the prices are very high. I bought serveral 8gb Kinston cards because the price was so good. None have failed so far after several uses each; but is that any guarantee they won't fail in the future?

Jodokast96 · 06-30-2010, 08:50 PM

I've been using a buch of super cheap Kingston 2gb cards for about 3 years now. They don't get used regularly, but I haven't had a problem with any of them.

CWyatt · 06-30-2010, 09:46 PM

You can't be 100% sure any card won't fail, though it seems the top ones like SanDisk have a much lesser chance of having issues.

noser · 07-01-2010, 09:42 PM

To the OP, Yes. A big difference. I have a 16GB Patriot that gives me intermittent memory error messages on the LCD. A power-cycle on the camera fixes it, but I don't use it much anymore... not for client work anyway.

I decided to switch to SanDisk, and have a couple of 8GB Extreme III 30Mb/sec cards, but they always seem to fill too fast. I shoot a lot, and quickly!

Today I picked up a couple of SanDisk 16GB Ultra II 15 Mb/sec cards, and ran a little speed test.

In a nutshell, on my K20D, if you shoot JPEG (I don't), it makes almost no difference which you choose. After the buffer fills there is a difference in the timing pattern, but because of the jpeg compression time, things equal out. I stopped comparing after 15 seconds.

More interesting to me were the RAW (DNG) write times. As expected the number of shots is identical right up to about where the buffer fills. The Extreme III's get one more shot in high speed burst (16), then begin to stutter at about 2.5 seconds per shot (presumably, the actual write speed).

The 16GB Ultra II's begin to stutter one shot sooner (ony 15 shots), then take about 5 seconds per shot after that... no surprise, about 2x slower than the Extreme III card. Nice!

Ain't it nice when things work as advertised?

(And I miss the higher speed of the K10D.... I should use it more often... sigh... )

I've attached an image from some audio software of the comparison, FWIW.

The top two are RAW, the bottom two JPEG (Best quality).

Attached Images

noser · 07-01-2010, 09:47 PM

Originally posted by rparmar

I now supplement my previous short answer with an entire article, Choosing An SD Card, which I hope helps you.

Good read. I also have a couple of Transcend 4GB 150x cards I bought for my old K10D, and have never had a hiccup or issue of any kind with them.

glanglois · 07-02-2010, 07:12 AM

Thanks for the comparison, noser. I had three cards lost/stolen at a large museum and I'm back in the market.

For me, it's K-7 or K-X. But I expect that your observatioins can be applied to later/faster cameras. Makes my choice easier - Extreme.

Thanks again for real in-camera testing!

06-30-2010, 06:59 PM	#16
cpk Site Supporter Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Montreal Posts: 638	Kingston SD Cards The comments on Kinsgton SD cards is making me nervous. I tend to use SanDisk but the prices are very high. I bought serveral 8gb Kinston cards because the price was so good. None have failed so far after several uses each; but is that any guarantee they won't fail in the future?

07-01-2010, 09:42 PM	#19
noser Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Calgary, AB CA Photos: Gallery Posts: 292	SanDisk Extreme III vs Ultra II To the OP, Yes. A big difference. I have a 16GB Patriot that gives me intermittent memory error messages on the LCD. A power-cycle on the camera fixes it, but I don't use it much anymore... not for client work anyway. I decided to switch to SanDisk, and have a couple of 8GB Extreme III 30Mb/sec cards, but they always seem to fill too fast. I shoot a lot, and quickly! Today I picked up a couple of SanDisk 16GB Ultra II 15 Mb/sec cards, and ran a little speed test. In a nutshell, on my K20D, if you shoot JPEG (I don't), it makes almost no difference which you choose. After the buffer fills there is a difference in the timing pattern, but because of the jpeg compression time, things equal out. I stopped comparing after 15 seconds. More interesting to me were the RAW (DNG) write times. As expected the number of shots is identical right up to about where the buffer fills. The Extreme III's get one more shot in high speed burst (16), then begin to stutter at about 2.5 seconds per shot (presumably, the actual write speed). The 16GB Ultra II's begin to stutter one shot sooner (ony 15 shots), then take about 5 seconds per shot after that... no surprise, about 2x slower than the Extreme III card. Nice! Ain't it nice when things work as advertised? (And I miss the higher speed of the K10D.... I should use it more often... sigh... ) I've attached an image from some audio software of the comparison, FWIW. The top two are RAW, the bottom two JPEG (Best quality). Attached Images

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06-30-2010, 08:50 PM	#17
Jodokast96 Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Erial, NJ USA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,134	I've been using a buch of super cheap Kingston 2gb cards for about 3 years now. They don't get used regularly, but I haven't had a problem with any of them.

06-30-2010, 09:46 PM	#18
CWyatt Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 1,291	You can't be 100% sure any card won't fail, though it seems the top ones like SanDisk have a much lesser chance of having issues.

07-01-2010, 09:47 PM	#20
noser Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Calgary, AB CA Photos: Gallery Posts: 292	Originally posted by rparmar I now supplement my previous short answer with an entire article, Choosing An SD Card, which I hope helps you. Good read. I also have a couple of Transcend 4GB 150x cards I bought for my old K10D, and have never had a hiccup or issue of any kind with them.

07-02-2010, 07:12 AM	#21
glanglois Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Madison, Wis., USA Posts: 1,506	Thanks for the comparison, noser. I had three cards lost/stolen at a large museum and I'm back in the market. For me, it's K-7 or K-X. But I expect that your observatioins can be applied to later/faster cameras. Makes my choice easier - Extreme. Thanks again for real in-camera testing!