People are now living in the age of technology. Whenever we go out or travel, we just want to store every memory either by taking photos or by recording videos. Apart from these, there are piles of files we need to store digitally. At moments like these, to save more files, we may need to use external storage. SD cards do the best job in this regard. We use SD cards, starting from our phones to our cameras, in order to store files and information.
So Now the Question is, What is an SD card?
SD Card (Secure device) is a memory card that helps store files. You can use it on cameras, phones, etc. You can also install different files on the SD card. It is a small flash memory card designed to store more files in a portable size.
Devices where we can use an SD card:
- Mobile phones and smartphone
- Digital cameras
- Video camcorders
- Gaming consoles
- Newer TV models
- MP3 audio players
Now the question lies: what are the functions of an SD card? Before knowing about the types of SD cards, I already defined what an SD card is. Now it’s time to learn about its functions.
The Function of an SD card depends on the way it is being used. There are two main ways you can use an SD card.
Using it as portable storage:
If you format your SD card for portable storage, you will be able to do the following works:
- You can save files like photos, videos, etc.
- You won’t be able to install apps.
- You can transfer an SD card between two devices.
Using it as internal storage:
If you format the card for internal storage, you will be able to do the following work:
- You will be able to install apps.
- You can load files like photos, videos, etc.
- You won’t be able to transfer SD cards between devices but can use them along with the internal storage.
Types of SD Cards
There can be many types of SD cards based on size, shape, speed, and compatibility of the device where the cards will be used.
Each card comes in different sizes and shapes. If we think based on size, SD cards can be of three types:
- SD,
- micro SD,
- Compact Flash
SD cards I mentioned here are mainly used for photography purposes: in camera, video recorder, etc. Secondly, a microSD card is mainly used in phones, smartphones, tablets, etc. and lastly, compact flash is being used only in DSLR cameras.
SD cards type can also be different depending on the rate at which a device would be able to read and write images and other data to and from the memory card. For storing 4k videos, compact flash works best. It is faster than an SD card in case of reading and writing data.
One last factor that I would like to explain its capacity. There are different types of SD cards depending on the ability of the cards. For example, it can be 2 GB, 8 GB, or even 32gb.
Before choosing the type of SD card to used should be chosen wisely; one should not buy unnecessarily more storage-containing cards; it should be about accordion to use.
To sum up, I want to mention some of the essential types of SD cards.
There are mainly four types of SD cards.
- SD
- SDXC
- SDHC
- SDUC
Let me give a brief description of each type of SD card below –
SD CARD
SD is often referred to as the usual card used nowadays. But if you ask what was the original size of the SD card. Initially, it was only 2 GB. It is the most basic and oldest form of SD card. It is usually 32 mm by 24 mm by 2.1mm. It is larger compared to the new generation of SD cards.
The standard version of an SD card was first being used in 1999 by the joint effort of SanDisk, Panasonic (Matsushita) and Toshiba. There are mainly two physical sizes of SD cards: microSD cards and full-size SD cards. A microSD card won’t fit into a full-size SD card slot. The type of SD card we are discussing here is mainly the initial SD card that was being used in late 90 Wic took a really impressive form in the 20s. It got more advanced with time. This type of SD card is being formatted with FAT12 and FAT16.
SDHC CARD
Secure Digital High Capacity is the full form of SDHC CARD. The previous SD card version could not provide enough storage to save high-resolution images and videos. The previous form of SD card had only 4 GB storage, whereas SDHC CARD provides around 32 GB. They are faster than SD cards. It is an SD memory card based on the SDA 2.0 specification. It is a default format of FAT32. It has the same physical structure just like an SD card.
SDXC
The full form of SDXC is the Secure Digital Extended Capacity card (SDXC). It is the most recent form of SD card and the fastest one. It comes with excellent storage. It even comes in a smaller size than other sd cards. These SD cards are used in portable devices like phones and cameras. It has storage from 32b to 2 TB ( terabyte). A 2 TB SDXC memory card can store up to 100 full-length movies, 480 hours of music, or 136,000 high-quality color photographs.
SDUC
Secure Digital Ultra Capacity is a type of SD card with up to 128 TB storage. It has a speed of up to 985 MB/s.
All Memory Cards are not SD Cards.
We all know that SD cards are a type of memory card where we can store many files, images, videos, etc., but now the question is, are all kinds of memory cards considered SD cards?
The answer is No. All types of memory cards are not SD cards.
Have you heard of RAM? RAM is a type of memory card that cannot be called an SD card.
Random Access Memory, well known as RAM, is a type of memory card used for the internal storage of a device. It is a computer memory type designed to store working data and machine code. Suppose you are working on a document and mistakenly erased it; you can still undo it. It can be done because when you are writing, your writing is being stored in RAM. As a result, when you undo it, it can be retained, but you must remember you cannot undo it if you restart your computer.
This type of memory card stays inbuilt into your device. Usually, what we mean by an SD card is, it is a type of memory card used to store files. RAM does not fall under it. But yes, you can use an SD card for internal storage by formatting it.
What Type of SD Cards are Best for Cameras?
SD / SDXC / SDHC are the best types of SD cards for cameras. These are the most common types of SD cards being used in cameras. These types of cameras usually hold a lot of space than the usual SD card that helps in storing large amounts of images and videos. For instance, SDXC has a storage capacity of 32b to 2 TB ( terabyte). But one thing to be kept in mind before the insertion of an SD card is that each device has a definite capacity of an SD card.
Is Macro a type of SD Card?
Not all types of macro cards are SD cards. A new macro card has been launched as a new feature of the Content Formatting Macros for the Confluence cloud app. It is a visually linked element that helps the user to add images and videos on a confluence page. It helps in highlighting the key content. On the contrary, there is a type of macro sd card that allows a user to store large files. This type of SD card was an older version of the SD card.
Dimensions and Sizes of SD Card
For your easy understanding, I presented all the information on the dimensions and size of the SD card:
| CARD TYPE | DIMENSION | CAPACITY |
| SD | 34mm * 24mm | 2GB |
| SDXC | 15mm * 11mm | 64GB up to 2TB |
| SDHC | 32mm x 24mm x 2.1mm | 4GB to 32GB |
Conclusion:
In this article, we told you about all the types of SD cards: SD, SDHC, SDXC, and SDUC. The kind of SD card to be used depends on the user. And you will see different types of SD cards are available in markets. There are different types of SD cards present in the market depending on size, shape, capacity, etc. I tried to explain it all. Thanks for reading till the end. Hope you find this article to be helpful. For any queries, leave a comment down below.