Pentax K-30 Memory Card Compatibility
The Pentax K-30 may use SD, SDHC, and SDXC memory cards. For burst shooting and video, it is critical the card you use has a fast enough write speed.
The SD memory card you get is a considerable impact on the performance of your camera.
Want to skip the jargon? Here’s my suggestion on the SD card for use in your Pentax K-30:
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- 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
SD memory cards are now drastically less expensive than when the camera was originally revealed.
Since costs are cheap, it would not make sense to invest in anything other than a pro-level SD card.
The best cards I use have been the SanDisk Extreme Pro, Lexar Professional, and PNY Elite Performance models. I have under no circumstances encountered corrupted data or a card break with any of those SD memory cards.
Every one of the problems I have had has been because of cheap unbranded memory cards. Trying to save around a buck is not worthwhile if your K-30 will not function as it should.
A smart way to save money is to buy a smaller capacity memory card from a high-quality company. By making that choice, you will not have to be anxious about the images stored on the card.
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.
Pentax K-30 SD Card Compatibility
You are limited to using SDXC, SDHC, and SD memory cards in the Pentax K-30. Check to check that your camera is using the latest firmware installed.
The newest SDUC (Secure Digital Ultra Capacity) cards, aren’t able to be used in the K-30.
Four separate types of Secure Digital (SD) cards that you need to know about. They can be told apart based on the card’s storage capactiy.
- SD (Secure Digital) - 128MB to 2GB.
- SDHC (Secure Digital High Capacity) - 4GB to 32GB.
- SDXC (Secure Digital eXtended Capacity) - 64GB to 2TB.
- SDUC (Secure Digital Ultra Capacity) - 4TB to 128TB.
Image Capacity
Here is a quick estimation of just how many maximum-quality JPEGs photos you should be expecting to fit on a SD card:
- 16GB - 4,640 images
- 32GB - 9,280 images
- 64GB - 18,560 images
- 128GB - 37,120 images
Speed, Class, & UHS Ratings
Card Speed
The speed rating of an SD memory card is dependant on the sequential write and read transfer speeds of the card. The continuous write speed of a card is critical for clearing the camera buffer for continuous shooting in addition to recording video.
A slow card can cut down the number of continuous images the Pentax K-30 can take. This is because the buffer in the camera is not able to write to the card fast enough.
With video, a slow SD card can cause recording to stop. The video file may also end up being corrupted. If you are going to shoot video, it is important the card you use meets the requirements of the K-30.
Read speed is important for transferring files to a computer. If you are filling up cards with images or video, a SD card with a fast transfer speed will save you time.
Speed Class Rating
The sustained write speed of a memory card is what determines the Class rating. Cards that have a minimum write speed of 10MB/s are rated as Class 10.
- Class 2 - 2MB/s
- Class 4 - 4MB/s
- Class 6 - 6MB/s
- Class 8 - 8MB/s
- Class 10 - 10MB/s or faster
Every name-brand SD memory card that you can get will receive a Class 10 rating. You can locate the class rating of a SD card by finding a number inside of a C on the label.
Ultra High Speed (UHS)
The Ultra High Speed bus (UHS) comes in SDHC, SDXC, and SDUC memory cards. The UHS bus makes it possible offers a way to improve file transfer rates.
There are three different versions. The three are UHS-I, UHS-II, and UHS-III.
To find out the UHS rating of a SD card, look at the front of the card. If the card has UHS, a Roman numeral I, II, or III can be found on the front of the SD card.
- 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
Related Cameras
If you wanted to choose one, the 64GB SanDisk Extreme Pro is the best memory card for the Pentax K-30. Any future camera you own, you will know what memory card to get.
Listed below are more posts on digital cameras with the same needs as the K-30: