The SD Association has announced a new Secure Digital memory card specification. The SDXC (eXtended Capacity) memory card will be able to store as much as 2 terabytes of data with read/write speeds of 104 MB per second and a target speed of 300 MB per second. That’s right – 2 TB of storage and 300 MB per second transfer on a tiny little SD memory card like the one you have in your point-and-shoot digital camera. For photographers, this could be the biggest announcement from the 2009 CES tradeshow.
The SDXC capacity jump is so huge that I was worried the announcement might be a joke. But it appears to be legit. It is important to note that this is a new spec – not an actual card you will be able to buy in the store in a few weeks. A 2 TB SDXC memory card will be able to store 4000 RAW files (assuming 5 MB RAW file size), 17,000 high quality JPEG images, and 1,800 hours of HD video capture. Even pros whose cameras use Compact Flash should be excited about the SDXC memory spec. Because if they can do it with SD cards, they can do it with CF cards, too. Plus, there’s already a trend towards using the SD card format in digital SLRs. The SDXC card might just make the SD form factor the universal standard for all digital cameras. With new DSLRs that can shoot HD video, faster, higher-capacity cards will quickly become a necessity. If you’ve shot any video with a Nikon D90 or Canon EOS 5D Mark II, you know what I’m talking about. Video eats up storage space a lot faster than shooting still photos. The high-capacity SDXC card will also make it possible for consumer camcorders to use a more convenient memory format than Mini DV tape, DVD, and built-in hard drives.
Official SDXC Memory Card Press Release >>
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Digital Camera Memory Card Guide
Digital Photography Forums
Digital Camera Memory Card User Reviews
SD Association Web Site
next page – Official SDXC Memory Card Press Release >>
“A 2 TB SDXC memory card will be able to store 4000 RAW files (assuming 5 MB RAW file size), 17,000 high quality JPEG images, and 60 hours of HD video capture.”
-> ? Must be calculation error.
2 TB = 2048 GB that means 4 million RAW files or 17 million JPEGs. 60h HD video seems correct, isn´t it?
kimble
Well, the SPECIFICATION allows for 2 TB cards. Doesn’t mean we’ll see them any time soon.
kimble-
Yeah, you’re right. Something’s way off. It looks like it’s both in my math and their math. I’m going to make some changes, starting with changing the assumed size of a RAW file. 5 MB is way to small for current cameras. Assuming 10 MB per RAW file, I am getting 200,000 RAW files on one 2 TB card. Does that look right to you?
After checking with the SD Association, I discovered that the numbers in the press release were for a 64 GB SDXC memory card. So that explains the discrepancy. It’s also important to note that this announcement is for a new SD card spec, not an actual card. How soon we’ll see SDXC card available and what the actual capacities will be remains to be seen. Not to mention the price. But I still think this is really exciting news and I’m looking forward to seeing what comes of it.
Never seen such a quantum leap in storage industry. Lots of hullaballo, 2 TB SDXC, at what cost and when?
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Joannah
http://2gbmemory.net