Which Memory Card Should You Choose?

Which memory card do I need for my camera?

A digital camera without a memory card is like a film camera without film: nice to look at, but you can’t really use it. To capture your special memories properly, you need a memory card. All your digital photos are stored on it, ready to be transferred to your computer or phone—or perhaps preserved in a photo book. In short: an essential item.

But which card do you actually need for your camera? And can you use the same card for your camera and action cam? These are questions we’ll answer in this article.

We’ve previously explained the characteristics of memory cards in detail. For example, you learned that besides storage capacity, you should also pay attention to write and read speeds and different speed classes. We also discussed the various types of memory cards, such as SD, microSD, and CF.

Now we want to help you choose the right card for your camera, action cam, drone, or security camera. We do that based on three key questions:

1. Which memory card fits in the camera?
   
2. What write speed do I need?
   
3. How much storage capacity does the card need?
   

Two handy tables will help you get started. We’ll go into more detail on these later.

Two useful tables to keep in mind. We will come back to this later in more detail.

2) What write speed do I need?

A high write speed is essential when it comes to shooting video. If you’re recording high-quality footage in 4K or even 8K, you’re dealing with a huge amount of data that needs to be written to the card. If the card is too slow, you simply won’t be able to record.

It’s difficult to give a single clear answer for which card you need for, for example, 4K video. This strongly depends on your camera and the bitrate you’re recording in. The bitrate determines how much data is recorded per second. The higher the bitrate, the higher the video quality. That’s why there is no one-size-fits-all answer, but keep the following in mind:

• SD/HD: Nowadays, almost any card can handle SD and HD recording.
  
• Full HD: Choose at least 30–40 MB/s, unless you do a lot of slow motion—in that case, higher speeds are recommended.
  
• 4K: Use a card that can write at least 90–150 MB/s. For professional use, we recommend at least 150–200 MB/s.
  
• 8K: For this high resolution, you need a write speed of at least 250–300 MB/s, but often even faster. In this case, working with an (external) SSD as storage is recommended.
  

Today, many memory cards also show a special video speed class: the Video Speed Class. This is indicated with the letter V followed by a number. It starts at V6 (6 MB/s) and goes up to V90 (90 MB/s).

If you want to be sure which write speed fits your camera and needs, feel free to visit one of our stores. We’ll be happy to help you figure it out together.

Important to know: Mbps stands for megabits per second, while MB/s stands for megabytes per second. One byte equals eight bits. For the required write speed of the card, you should look at MB/s.

These (now relatively low) write speeds are hardly an issue with modern memory cards anymore. As a result, almost any current card will be fast enough for your action camera or drone.

2) Which write speed do I need?

You don’t buy a security camera for ultra-high image quality. The recordings are mainly functional. That’s why IP cameras don’t use extremely high bitrates like video cameras do. As a result, the write speeds of modern memory cards are generally more than sufficient.

3) How much storage capacity do I need?

First of all, some cameras have a limit on the maximum card size they support. So always check before buying whether the card is not too large for your device.

The required capacity depends on your usage. If you want continuous recording, you should not choose a card that is too small. Some cameras overwrite older footage when the card is full, while others simply stop recording. To avoid this happening after just a few days, it’s best to choose a larger card—such as 64GB or 128GB and up.

Of course, file size depends on the recording quality of your camera.

In short
Let’s recap. There are different types of memory cards, varying in both size and performance. Below are the key points.

For photo cameras especially, it varies a lot. However, you can say that the vast majority of entry-level models use SD cards. In higher-end segments, you’ll find other formats such as CF, CFast, XQD, and CFexpress.

Consumer camcorders typically work with an SD card. If you start working with a professional video camera, there are alternatives. Think of external SSD drives as a storage medium. Video files are large—especially in 4K—so it’s very important to check whether your card can write data fast enough.

Looking for action? For your action camera or drone, you’ll need a microSD card.

To secure your home with an IP camera, you will usually also need a microSD card. However, some models require a full-size SD card. Also make sure to check whether your camera has a maximum storage capacity limit before buying a card that is too large.