Nikon Approved CF Memory Cards with D700

Raybo · Apr 20, 2012

So I just picked up a D700 and I have been using 4 GB CF 15 MB/s cards. I would like to use 8GB or 16GB cards that also have faster transfer speeds but Nikon tech support tells me that only 4GB cards are "approved". Are they just behind in their testing or is there a reason to not use cards larger than 4GB?

vipgraphx · Apr 20, 2012

I am not sure I use the scandisk extreme 16gig card. 60MB/s UDMA. It works fine for me.

Trever1t · Apr 20, 2012

well 4g cards are just fine if you take a lot of shots...not to have all your eggs in one basket approach but I and many others run 8g or even more, no problem.

Raybo · Apr 20, 2012

Thanks...do you feel that there is a "better" brand for the CF cards?

Trever1t · Apr 20, 2012

SanDisk is my brand but there are other decent ones too.

KmH · Apr 20, 2012

Gee :scratch:, page 390 of the D700 user's manual shows several approved 8 GB cards.

By the way, the faster transfer speeds are about uploading photos from the memory card to the computer, not downloading from the camera's image buffer to the memory card.

For non-video work class 6 is about as good as it gets, in the camera. In other words, cards faster than class 6 are only faster at uploading to the computer.

Raybo · Apr 21, 2012

KmH - thanks for seeing that information on page 390. I had looked on the Nikon website so it must not be up to date - unless I read that wrong also. But the tech people also seemed to have it wrong. Anyway, thanks again.

Does anyone out there use 16GB cards with their D700?

brian_f2.8 · Apr 21, 2012

Here is my 2 cents about tech support and information. I have a Panasonic avchd camera for live events. I was starting to get glitches so I sent it back( under warranty ). They called me to discuss the problem. Their final answer was that only Panasonic SD cards are supported. Other brands are 3rd party an have manufacturing issues. At Panasonic we garantee that all of our cards work. I upgraded from a class 6 to a class 10(scan disk), no more glitches. My point is to try different cards and see what works in reality. Return the duds.

KmH · Apr 21, 2012

Yes, there are reasons to not use cards larger than 4 GB for still photos.

If a full card goes bad, you lose fewer photos if you use a 4 GB card than if you have a full 8 GB or 16 GB card fail.

Something I learned when mountain climbing was my primary hobby:

Plan for the worst, hope for the best.

You should be able to get about 200-224 shots in the 14-bit Raw format on a 4 GB card, or about 1000-1200 JPEGs.

On page 67 of the D700 user's manual it shows you have to 2 Raw file compression options: Lossless compression that reduces Raw file size 20% to 40% with no effect in image quality, or Compressed, which reduces Raw file size 40% to 50% with almost no effect on image quality.