The Best Memory Cards for the Sony A57
Two types of memory cards will work with the Sony A57. SDXC, SDHC, and SD memory cards can be used as well as Sony PRO Duo and PRO-HG Duo memory.
There is a single card slot in the A57. You will need to pick between an SD or PRO Duo card.
Sony engineered and owns the PRO Duo card format. Because of that, SD memory cards are less expensive and can have better performance than PRO Duo memory cards.
- UHS-I, U1, and Class 10 Speed Rating. Can sustain 10MB/s write speeds.
- Excellent choice for photos.
- Capable of recording Full HD (1920x1080) Video.
- Inexpensive with more than good enough performance.
- Larger capacities are available for a reasonable price.
Best SD Cards
SanDisk, Lexar, and PNY are manufacturers that produce high-quality Memory cards. The best SD cards I have owned have been the SanDisk Extreme Pro SD cards.
That does not mean you need to buy a card made by SanDisk for your Sony ILCE-A57. Make sure the name sounds impressive. That will make sure you get fast transfer speeds, dust resistance, and other professional features.
I have not run into errors with PNY Elite Performance or Lexar Professional memory cards.
The problems I have experienced with cards has been when I have used inexpensive generic brands. Being cheap increases the chance of card errors or corrupted data.
If you would like to spend less, don’t buy a generic card. You will avoid problems by buying a high-quality card with a smaller capacity.
Recommended SD Cards
- UHS-I, U1, and Class 10 Speed Rating. Can sustain 10MB/s write speeds.
- Excellent choice for photos.
- Capable of recording Full HD (1920x1080) Video.
- Inexpensive with more than good enough performance.
- Larger capacities are available for a reasonable price.
- UHS-I, U3, V30, and Class 10 Speed Rating. Can sustain 30MB/s write speeds.
- Good for burst shooting photos and recording 4K video.
- Larger capacity cards are available.
- Reliable & Durable: Magnet Proof, Shock Proof, Temperature Proof, Waterproof.
- Comparatively expensive for faster read speeds.
- UHS-I, U3, V30, and Class 10 Speed Rating. Can sustain 30MB/s write speeds.
- Only makes sense for professional use or if you need the largest storage capacity available.
- Temperature-proof, waterproof, shock-proof, and X-ray-proof.
Sony A57 SD Card Compatibility
SDXC, SDHC, and SD memory cards are compatible with the Sony A57. Use a card to get the optimal performance out of the A57.
The newest SDUC memory cards can’t be used with the A57.
Currently, there are four different specifications of SD (Secure Digital) memory cards. New card specifications add more features that allows for increased memory capacity and faster transfer rates.
- Secure Digital (SD) - 128MB to 2GB.
- Secure Digital High Capacity (SDHC) - 4GB to 32GB.
- Secure Digital eXtended Capacity (SDXC) - 64GB to 2TB.
- Secure Digital Ultra Capacity (SDUC) - 4TB to 128TB.
SD Card Speed
The speed rating of an SD card is based on the sequential write and read speeds. SD card file write speed is very important for clearing the buffer for continuous shooting as well as recording video.
A slow memory card can cause a reduction in the number of continuous photos the Sony A57 can take. This is because the camera’s buffer is not able to write to the card quickly enough.
When shooting video, a slow memory card can cause a sudden end to the recording. The video file may also be corrupted. If you are going to record video, it is critical the memory card you use meets the minimum requirements of the camera.
Read speed is nice to have for transferring files to a computer. If you are filling up cards with images or video, a card with a fast read speed will save you time.
Speed Class Rating
A SD card is given a Class rating based on the sustained continuous write speed of the card. Class 10 is the highest rating, even though SD memory cards are for sale that are far faster.
Here you can see all of the Class ratings and the associated lowest read/write speeds:
- Class 2 - 2MB/s
- Class 4 - 4MB/s
- Class 6 - 6MB/s
- Class 8 - 8MB/s
- Class 10 - 10MB/s or faster
Virtually any card worth ordering for the Sony A57 will be a Class 10 SD card. In the time period since the camera was made, Cards have gotten so much faster.
Ultra High Speed (UHS)
The Ultra High Speed (UHS) bus is available in SDHC, SDXC, and SDUC cards. UHS cards to have increased read and write speeds.
There are 3 different specifications. They are UHS-I, UHS-II, and UHS-III.
You can find out the UHS rating of a card by looking at the label. If the card has UHS, a Roman numeral I, II, or III can be found on the memory card label.
- UHS-I - Maximum transfer rate of 104 MB/s
- UHS-II - Maximum transfer rate of 312 MB/s
- UHS-III - Maximum transfer rate of 624 MB/s
Sony A57 PRO Duo Card Compatibility
The Sony A57 may use a PRO-HG Duo or PRO Duo memory cards. PRO-HG signifies the memory card may have read speeds up to 50MB/s and a 15MB/s minimum write speed.
PRO Duo memory cards are usually twice as expensive as an SD memory card. I would not recommend purchasing a Sony PRO Duo memory card for use with a A57 on account of the difference in expense.
Image Capacity
Below is an approximate estimation of how many large JPEG images you can expect to store on each size of SD card.
- 16GB - 4,640 images
- 32GB - 9,280 images
- 64GB - 18,560 images
- 128GB - 37,120 images
- 256GB - 74,240 images
Related Cameras
Right now you have learned every aspect about SD and PRO Duo cards.