Lexar announces new XQD cards and reader

Lexar announces new XQD cards and reader
Taking Sony on in the camera memory race

Lexar has announced it will be producing an XQD memory card and reader. The new format was introduced last year and has had a slow uptake.

So far, the only camera that currently uses this kind of card is the Nikon D4, which has dual CF and XQD slots. To date, only Sony was producing the cards.

The new cards from Lexar will offer a minimum guaranteed read transfer speed of 1100x (168MB/s).

Announced at the beginning of last year, XQD cards are smaller than traditional CF cards but offer a faster performance and take advantage of newer technologies such as PCI Express technology for capturing high-quality images, 1080p Full HD video recording and up to 100 frames in raw format continuous shooting mode.

Quick as a flash(gun)

Available in capacities of 32GB and 64GB, it's anticipated by some that the format will start to appear in more cameras appearing this year, especially those manufactured by Nikon and Sony.

The new reader uses USB 3.0 to provide high-speed file transfers from a card to a computer.

Working with major camera manufacturers to ensure memory cards are fully compatible, the new XQD cards come with a limited lifetime warranty and include downloadable Image Rescue 4 software to help recover lost or deleted photo and video files.

The Lexar Professional XQD card will be available to buy from January at a price of £227.99 in the UK (around AU$350) and US$299.99 in the US for the 32GB version. The 64GB version will cost £431.99/US$579.99 (around AU$663).

The reader will be available to buy for £33.99/US$44.99 (around AU$52).

Have a huge SDXC card too

Also today, Lexar has announced the world's largest capacity SDXC card, with a 256GB memory. It features a 600x (90MB/s) minimum guaranteed read transfer speed and also includes the Image Rescue 4 software.

The Lexar 256GB SDXC card price will be £743.99/US$999.99 (around AU$1,142).

Amy Davies

Amy has been writing about cameras, photography and associated tech since 2009. Amy was once part of the photography testing team for Future Publishing working across TechRadar, Digital Camera, PhotoPlus, N Photo and Photography Week. For her photography, she has won awards and has been exhibited. She often partakes in unusual projects - including one intense year where she used a different camera every single day. Amy is currently the Features Editor at Amateur Photographer magazine, and in her increasingly little spare time works across a number of high-profile publications including Wired, Stuff, Digital Camera World, Expert Reviews, and just a little off-tangent, PetsRadar.