Where once only Sony cards were available, CFexpress Type A buyers are now spoilt for choice
(Image credit: ProGrade Digital)
ProGrade Digital has launched two new CFexpress Type A cards. The ProGrade Digital CFexpress 2.0 Type A Gold series is a step up from the company's previous 'Cobalt' Type A offering, with the new cards boasting increased transfer speeds of up to 900MB/s read and 800MB/s write. Furthermore, Gold-series cards are capable of a sustained write speed of 600MB/s, and are even rated for a 200MB/s minimum sustained write rate. The latter qualifies the cards for a VPG200 (video performance guarantee) rating, making them suitable for video recording that requires a minimum 200MB/s sustained write speed.
Additional benefits include automatic performance throttling to prevent overheating, as well as laser-etched unique serial numbering for enhanced component tracking and quality control. Each Type A Gold card is X-ray proof and shock-proof, has an operating temperature range of 14°F to 158°F/ -10°C to 70°C, and is backed by a 3-year warranty.
(Image credit: ProGrade Digital)
These new cards give users of CFexpress Type A cameras like the Sonya1, a7 IV and a7S III even more memory choice in what was, until recently, a memory format dominated by Sony cards. Now more card manufacturers are producing Type A offerings, we're seeing card speeds increase, and prices fall.
While we therefore welcome these new ProGrade cards to the market, it is worth keeping in mind that much faster Type A cards are just around the corner. At this year's CES trade show, Lexar revealed its next generation of Type A cards, based on the new CFexpress 4.0 standard. This PCIe Gen 4 technology enables a 2x speed increase for Type A cards, and consequently Lexar is quoting maximum read/write speeds of 1800MB/s and 1650MB/s for its forthcoming Lexar Professional CFexpress 4.0 Type A Card GOLD Series cards.
(Image credit: ProGrade Digital)
ProGrade Digital CFexpress 2.0 Type A Gold cards will be available in 240GB or 480GB capacities, costing $259.99 and $449.99, respectively.
Ben is the Imaging Labs manager, responsible for all the testing on Digital Camera World and across the entire photography portfolio at Future. Whether he's in the lab testing the sharpness of new lenses, the resolution of the latest image sensors, the zoom range of monster bridge cameras or even the latest camera phones, Ben is our go-to guy for technical insight. He's also the team's man-at-arms when it comes to camera bags, filters, memory cards, and all manner of camera accessories – his lab is a bit like the Batcave of photography! With years of experience trialling and testing kit, he's a human encyclopedia of benchmarks when it comes to recommending the best buys.
