ProGrade launches huge 512GB V90 SDXC memory card

(Image credit: ProGrade)

The latest mirrorless cameras with 4K, 6K and even 8K video capture place huge demands on memory cards, and while card makers can largely handle the speeds, these huge video files need massive storage capacity too.

• Best CFexpress cards
• Best memory cards
• Best card readers
• ProGrade CFexpress Type B review

So ProGrade’s new 512GB V90 SDXC memory card is one of the first to offer V90 write speeds AND 512GB storage – the only other maker to do this so far is Wise, in March 2022.

The V90 speed rating equates to a sustained write speed of 90MB/s, the highest speed rating for the SDXC memory card format. Memory cards used for video have different speed ratings to the traditional ‘maximum write speeds’. For video, it’s essential to know the minimum *sustained* speed, because video is written to the memory card in real time, and it won’t wait for the card to catch up.

The new Prograde 512GB V90 SDXC card will be part of its ‘Cobalt’ line for professional users. These work with ProGrade’s Refresh Pro software, which lets users restore their cards back to factory condition after use and monitor their health.

SDXC vs CFexpress – which do you need?

ProGrade's Cobalt V90 SDXC card range is optimized for 8K, 6K, 4K, UHD, Full HD, Motion JPEG, and most high bit rate MPEG-4 CODECs, and pushes the SD memory card envelope to the max. If you need faster speeds than this, for example for 10-bit capture, 4:2:2 internal recording and high frame rates, the next step up is a CFexpress card. Indeed, many high-end mirrorless cameras like the Sony A1, Nikon Z9, Canon EOS R5 and Panasonic Lumix GH6 offer CFexpress card slots too, which take the ultimate speed ratings further still.

ProGrade also makes CFexpress Type A cards (Sony) with a VGP 400 rating (Video Performance Guarantee) which equates to a minimum sustained write speed of 400MB/s, and CFexpress Type B cards (everyone else) with a 1400MB/s rating.

In general, V90 SDXC cards will be plenty for most video production needs right now, but CFexpress cards are needed for the highest resolution/quality capture on the latest cameras and could prove to be the card storage format of the future.

The ProGrade SDXC UHS-II V90 512GB memory card will cost $499.99 (about £400/AU$705). It joins 64GB ($89.99), 128GB ($159.99) and 256GB ($289.99) cards in the ProGrade line-up.

Rod is an independent photography journalist and editor, and a long-standing Digital Camera World contributor, having previously worked as DCW's Group Reviews editor. Before that he has been technique editor on N-Photo, Head of Testing for the photography division and Camera Channel editor on TechRadar, as well as contributing to many other publications. He has been writing about photography technique, photo editing and digital cameras since they first appeared, and before that began his career writing about film photography. He has used and reviewed practically every interchangeable lens camera launched in the past 20 years, from entry-level DSLRs to medium format cameras, together with lenses, tripods, gimbals, light meters, camera bags and more. Rod has his own camera gear blog at fotovolo.com but also writes about photo-editing applications and techniques at lifeafterphotoshop.com

SDXC vs CFexpress – which do you need?

Get the Digital Camera World Newsletter