Sony enters the game of high-speed CFast 2.0 cards. These new Sony CFast 2.0 cards claim a roaring write speed of 510 MB/s and a read speed of up to 530 MB/s. Photograph credit: Mathew Schwartz | unsplash.com Even though Sony’s own lineup of pro cameras uses the XQD or SxS format, the company seems eager to reach for the crown of high-speed recording media, with its first lineup of CFast 2.0 cards already pushing the boundries in terms of speed. All three models of this G Series sport the VPG130 (Video Performance Guarantee) label, which indicates a guaranteed sustained write speed of at least 130 MB/s. The high read speeds of up to 530MB/s will be beneficial for your offloading process on set, as long as you have a sufficiently fast card reader of course. Three New Sony CFast 2.0 Cards In order to please everybody’s needs (and wallets), Sony offers three different models: a 32GB version, a 64GB one and a 128GB heavy-weight champion. The high read speed and especially the incredible high write speed of these G Series CFast 2.0 cards make them a perfect match for demanding workflows, including UHD/4K and Raw capturing. Interestingly enough, you won’t find any Sony-branded pro cameras in which these cards would fit. Its line-up of pro cameras mostly require XQD or SxS cards – rivalling recording media formats to the readily available CFast 2.0. Could it be we’re witnessing the last breaths of a raging format war? Prices are dropping for both XQD and CFast 2.0 cards (not so much for SxS cards), but in terms of market saturation the CFast 2.0 standard wins the race by a nose I would say. Specs, Pricing and Availability All three of the Sony CFast 2.0 cards share the same build quality and ruggedness. They can operate in temperatures ranging from -5°C all the way up to +70°C (23°F – 158°F), and if they fail there’s a chance of saving some of the data with the bundled file rescue software. The Sony CFast 2.0 cards will be available in early 2018. Pricing will be $119.99 for the 32GB model, $199.99 for 64GB and $349.99 for the biggest 128GB card. Who knows? These G-Series CFast 2.0 cards may mean Sony is looking towards a future without XQD and SxS… or maybe it just wants a bigger piece of the cake. link: Sony.com Would it be good if there was just one unified standard, or is more competiton good for the market? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

Lexar has recently introduced the fastest XQD card in the world. With a whopping 440MB/s read speed, and a lower cost card with read speeds up to 210MB/s. XQD is the card we use in cameras like Sony FS7 or the new Sony FS5. Since Sony introduced the new XQD format alongside SanDisk and Nikon, they have been unrivalled with their product. However, with the addition of Lexar’s range of XQD, the expensive Sony XQD cards were outperformed not only in price, but also in read and write speeds. But shortly after Lexar brought out their 1333x cards, which were better in speed than their Sony counterparts, Sony introduced their latest G-series card range, which gave users up to 400MB/s read speed and 128GB data capacity (LINK).   Now Lexar has up’d the game once again, and has introduced two new cards, which are atleast $100 less expensive than Sony’s XQD cards. The Lexar 2933x  is the fastest XQD card in the world. It seems to be a back and forth battle between the two, but here are the quick specs of the new Lexar cards: Lexar 1400x 64GB with 210MB/s read and 185MB/s write speed for $137 (LINK) Lexar 2933x 64GB with 440MB/s read and 400MB/s write speed for $235 (LINK) Lexar 2933x 128GB with 440MB/s read and 400MB/s write speed for $440 (LINK) And to put that into perspective with Sony’s G series XQD cards: Sony G series 128GB with 400MB/s read and 350MB/s write speed for $549 (LINK) The new Lexar 2933x cards will work well with Lexar’s other new announcements: Professional Workflow XR2 (XQD 2.0 USB 3.0 reader) (LINK) Professional Workflow HR2 (Thunderbolt™ 2/USB 3.0 reader and storage drive hub) (LINK) Professional Workflow HR1 (USB 3.0 reader and storage drive hub) (LINK)     So what do you think? Will you add the new Lexar cards to your kit? Is it worth while getting the extra speed? Let us know in the comments below.

Sony announced that it will introduce two new camcorders similar to their small-chip PMW-100 (EX1R/EX3 successor), but with 4K recording. The two versions will be called PXW-Z100 (pro version) and FDR-AX1 (consumer version) … seriously, who comes up with these names?