Preferred memory card?

AlexisRhea · Dec 6, 2007

Hello!

I have a few questions for everyone.
What brand of memory cards do you use/prefer? (and why?)
Why Compact Flash versus SD? Is it speed?
(editing to say XD instead of SD- thanks big mike!)

I'd love to hear what everyone is using. I was originally going to go with the San Disk Extreme III 2.0 but then I read some poor reviews and various places on San Disk in general. I just got my Oly e-510 today and I wanted to get your opinions before I get my card(s). I have a small SD that I can use in the meantime while I get acquainted with my new love. :heart:

Thanks for your feedback!

jchantelau · Dec 6, 2007

I use Transcend compact flash and Olympus XD with my e-510, by the way not to get off subject but I love the e-510!

Kingston makes some good cards as well. I've not had good luck with Lexar or SD.

N'Kolor · Dec 6, 2007

I like Lexar Professional 133x or 300x.

Big Mike · Dec 6, 2007

What brand of memory cards do you use/prefer? (and why?)

I like Sandisk, no real reason. I like their Ultra II cards because they are pretty fast and can be had for a good price. Their Extreme cards are faster but a bit more expensive.

Why Compact Flash versus SD? Is it speed?

Those are different formats of cards...they are different shapes. So you don't choose between them...you buy the type that fits into your camera.
There are a few cameras that can take both types...but the only ones I know, are high end pro bodies.

AlexisRhea · Dec 6, 2007

Those are different formats of cards...they are different shapes. So you don't choose between them...you buy the type that fits into your camera.
There are a few cameras that can take both types...but the only ones I know, are high end pro bodies.[/quote]

Good point! :blushing: Doh- I should have said XD for my 510. I can use xd or compact flash. Thanks for making that point.

AlexisRhea · Dec 6, 2007

J- Yay! I can't wait until this battery charges up already. The suspense is killing me. I'm glad you like your 510. This is my first DSLR. Maybe I'm showing my "noobness", but why do you use both XD and compact flash?

N'Kolor- any particular reason you like Lexar?

N'Kolor · Dec 6, 2007

I guess I could have explained myself...lol

I used both SanDisk Ultra II and Lexar. I have found the Lexar to be faster by a noticeable amount. They are both rated at 133x but in my 40D, the Lexar has less lag when viewing pictures as the SD Ultra II has.

FrimpyEIBW · Dec 6, 2007

N'Kolor said:
I like Lexar Professional 133x or 300x.

Ditto

Atropine · Dec 7, 2007

I prefer SanDisk and will probably do so until one of them break. But they have been working well so far. Right now I have a SanDisk Extreme III 12GB in the camera and a 2GB as a spare. I am a little bit lazy and don't want to hassle with card change too often. And yeah, I also shoot at motorsports events and that often requires a lot of continuous shooting = a lot of data.

Someone said that you should avoid large cards, but I cant see why. The only downside is that it takes a couple of seconds longer to format.

YoungRebel · Dec 7, 2007

Pretty happy with my two SanDisk Extreme III 2GB CompactFlash cards...fast and until now, reliable

JerryPH · Dec 7, 2007

SanDisk Extreme IV. The write times are very fast. I can tell the difference in how long the little green light stays on vs my SanDisk Extreme II, quite the diff.

It becomes even more evident when I transfer from a USB 2.0 card reader to PC... the Extreme IVs are almost 2X faster to empty.

Johnboy2978 · Dec 7, 2007

Atropine said:
I prefer SanDisk and will probably do so until one of them break. But they have been working well so far. Right now I have a SanDisk Extreme III 12GB in the camera and a 2GB as a spare. I am a little bit lazy and don't want to hassle with card change too often. And yeah, I also shoot at motorsports events and that often requires a lot of continuous shooting = a lot of data.

Someone said that you should avoid large cards, but I cant see why. The only downside is that it takes a couple of seconds longer to format.

The downside to a large card is that when it fails (and eventually all things will fail) is that now you've lost not 1gb of images, but perhaps 12gb. That could be an entire wedding or an entire photoshoot down the drain.

itoncool · Dec 7, 2007

I like and use Sandisk, I have 2 Gb and 4 Gb Extreme III (a couple each), I prefer 4 Gb for shooting RAW and 2 Gb for shooting JPEG. Never tried the Extreme IV.

JIP · Dec 7, 2007

I just bought a Lexar Pro 133x and I like it well so far.

Atropine · Dec 7, 2007

Johnboy2978 said:
The downside to a large card is that when it fails (and eventually all things will fail) is that now you've lost not 1gb of images, but perhaps 12gb. That could be an entire wedding or an entire photoshoot down the drain.

Well that is a good point. Losing several GB's of photos would be a painful experience. But I have also been told that the most common occasion when cards break is when you put them in and out of your camera. With a big card this risk would be smaller or am I just tying to cover my a**?