Best Sony A7 SD Memory Cards
The Sony A7 is able to use two different kinds of memory cards. SD, SDHC, and SDXC memory cards can be used as well as Sony PRO Duo, PRO-HG Duo, and XC-HG Duo cards.
The camera only has a single memory card slot. You will need to choose between a PRO Duo or SD card.
Sony created and owns the PRO Duo format. SD cards have had a wider adoption that PRO Duo cards because SD memory cards are appreciably faster as well as being more affordable.
- 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 make high-quality Memory cards. The best memory cards I have used have been the SanDisk Extreme Pro memory cards.
You do not need to buy a card from SanDisk for your Sony ILCE-A7. Just make sure the name is cool. That will make sure you get fast read/write speeds, water resistance, and other professional features.
I have not run into problems with PNY Elite Performance or Lexar Professional memory cards.
When I have had problems with memory cards has been when I have used low priced no name brands. Not having a brand name increases the possibility of corrupted data or card failure.
If you would like to spend less money, don’t buy a cheap card. You will avoid problems by buying a professional-quality memory card with a smaller capacity.
Recommended SD Cards
SanDisk Ultra 64GB SD Card
- 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.
PNY Elite-X 128GB SD Card
- 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.
SanDisk Extreme PRO 128GB SD Card
- 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 A7 SD Card Compatibility
SD, SDHC, and SDXC memory cards are usable in the Sony A7. Use a card to get the best overall performance out of the A7.
The most recent SDUC cards are not compatible with the A7.
Currently, there are four different specs of Secure Digital (SD) memory cards. Newer memory specs increase tech that provides for larger memory capacity as well as much 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
Speed ratings of an SD card is determined by the sequential read and write speeds. SD memory card continuous write speed is important for continuous shooting in addition to video.
A slow SD card can decrease the number of continuous photos the Sony A7 can capture. This is because the camera’s buffer is not able to write to the card fast enough.
With video, a slow card can cause a sudden end to shooting. The video file could also end up being corrupted. If you are going to capture video, it is crucial the card you use meets the required minimum continuous write speed for video.
Card read speed is nice to have for file transfers to a computer. If you are filling up cards with images or video, a memory card with a fast read speed will save you time.
Speed Class Rating
A SD memory card is labeled with a Class rating based on the sustained continuous transfer rate of the card. Class 10 is the top rating, even though SD memory cards are made that are far faster.
Here are all of the Class ratings and the applicable minimum transfer rates:
- Class 2 - 2MB/s
- Class 4 - 4MB/s
- Class 6 - 6MB/s
- Class 8 - 8MB/s
- Class 10 - 10MB/s or faster
Any memory card worth picking for the Sony A7 will be a Class 10 SD memory card. In the short time since the camera was introduced, Cards have gotten so much faster.
Ultra High Speed (UHS)
The Ultra High Speed (UHS) bus is found in SDHC, SDXC, and SDUC cards. UHS memory cards to have faster write speeds.
There are three different specs. They are UHS-I, UHS-II, and UHS-III.
You can determine the rating of a SD card by reading the front of the memory card. If the card has UHS, a Roman numeral I, II, or III can be seen 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
Sony A7 PRO Duo Card Compatibility
One PRO Duo or PRO-HG Duo memory cards can be used in the Sony A7. 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 in most cases twice as much as an SD card. I would not recommend purchasing a PRO Duo card to use in a A7 due to the increase in price.
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
At this time you understand just about everything about PRO Duo and SD memory cards.