Steve you meant to write SanDisk 32GB Ultra II 15MB/s, right? Not Extreme?

Let us know how it works.

Also, remember to try setting your EX1 to 720 24P S&Q ON at 40FPS.
Let us know if this works.

If so, the 32GB Ultra II are equal to the data rate (which it should be) of their 4GB Ultra II 15MB/a which I tested.
If it runs at 40FPS S&Q as outlined above, then that means there should be 40% data rate headroom above all HQ modes.

Please let us know.

Steve you meant to write SanDisk 32GB Ultra II 15MB/s, right? Not Extreme?

Let us know how it works.

Also, remember to try setting your EX1 to 720 24P S&Q ON at 40FPS.
Let us know if this works.

If so, the 32GB Ultra II are equal to the data rate (which it should be) of their 4GB Ultra II 15MB/a which I tested.
If it runs at 40FPS S&Q as outlined above, then that means there should be 40% data rate headroom above all HQ modes.

Please let us know.
Hi Steve sorry yes Ultra 11 15MBs. Had a horrible thought for a second I had ordered the wrong card but just checked and OK!

Hopefully it will be just as fast as the 16Gb but withy lots of extra capacity!
If these work fine with no hitches I will be selling 4 16Gb SXS cards on ebay in the next few weeks to get some money back.

I hear you there...
They are not cheap.

Keep at least one around for slo-mo effects..

just my thought, will Sony release the next firmware and secretly block those Keningston and Lexar expresscard / adapor that we have tested so far in order to protect their SXS revenue?

It's possible - but, you would have to send your camera in to have the software upgraded
which I would not.

It's possible - but, you would have to send your camera in to have the software upgraded
which I would not.

They will not tell you they block it until you have upgraded to the new firmware. I hope Sony will not choose this path.

Just an update concerning my testing of the Sandisk/Kensington combo.

I have now spent almost a whole workday. Recording, deleting, recording etc etc...trying to get the combo to fail. I have made recordings that fill the 8 GB card and I have made several shorter recordings, deleted every second clip to achieve fragmentation, and then filling up the card with video.
Still not even an error message telling me to restore media! Also - the camera performs and behaves just like I am used to with SxS-memory. No delays or lags. It feels rock solid!

I only hope it will stay this way AND that somebody finds an adaptor that fits behind the door.

Here are some numbers that might be of interest:

Transfering a full 8 GB card via camera USB to harddrive - 16 minutes.
Transfering a full 8 GB card to laptop using the Kensington adapter - 7:22 min
Transfereing a full 8 GB card to the same laptop using it's built in SD-reader - 8:41 min
Transfering 8 GB of media from laptop to card using Kensington adapter 14:17 min

The first number suggests to me that the cameras USB interface is not very fast. Or maybe it has to share the bandwith somehow with the USB-port on the camera, resulting in half speed.

The last one is encouraging as it suggests an overhead of almost 100% in write speed in relation to what is needed for recording (one card can take 28 minutes of HQ video).

Finally - Steven - have you recieved your 16 GB card yet? Is it performing as well as the 8 GB card?

Thanks Ola,
I have not received my 16GB Sandisk Ultra II 15MB/s SDHC card.
Althought I do have the 16GB Sandisk Exteme III 30MB/s SDHC which works well with the Kensington 7-in-1 expresscard reader in the EX1.

I'm willing to bet both the 16GB and 32GB SanDisk Ultra II 15MB/s SDHC will work fine.

nice! I will be ordering my EX3 friday morning (and breaking the bank to do it). You guys just made my year. No need to buy SxS card until the price drops. I'll have 2 8gb sxs cards anyway.

I feel a lot better about buying this camera all the sudden.

Yes, use the SxS for S&Q modes.

Thanks Ola,
I have not received my 16GB Sandisk Ultra II 15MB/s SDHC card.
Althought I do have the 16GB Sandisk Exteme III 30MB/s SDHC which works well with the Kensington 7-in-1 expresscard reader in the EX1.

I'm willing to bet both the 16GB and 32GB SanDisk Ultra II 15MB/s SDHC will work fine.

Steven!

May I ask why you are risking it with a slower 16 GB card when the Extreme III is so cheap? Also - does the 16 GB Extreme III measure as fast as the 8 GB using your speed test software?

Based on my tests, the Extreme III and Ultra II will perform the same with the Kensington 7-in-1 in the EX1.

The 8GB and 16GB Extreme III should perform the same in the EX1/with Kensington.

Based on my tests, the Extreme III and Ultra II will perform the same with the Kensington 7-in-1 in the EX1.

The 8GB and 16GB Extreme III should perform the same in the EX1/with Kensington.

Hm - so why not use the much cheaper Transend cards instead? Don't you trust them? (Sorry to bug you but I'm trying to make up my mind on what to buy)

The SanDisk 16GB Ultra II is only $60. Yes the Transcend is less, but $60 for 16GB for reliable memory sounds good to me.


There was one report where the Transcend SDHC card was defective on first try.

I have not looked close at the data rate tests for the transcend, buy the Sandisk data is very repeatable.

The SanDisk 16GB Ultra II is only $60. Yes the Transcend is less, but $60 for 16GB for reliable memory sounds good to me.


There was one report where the Transcend SDHC card was defective on first try.

I have not looked close at the data rate tests for the transcend, buy the Sandisk data is very repeatable.



I have 4 of the Transend 8bg cards no errors so far $18.99, I think the 16 gb cards are slower. I have 4 SanDisk 32GB Ultra II on order.

I have 4 of the Transend 8bg cards no errors so far $18.99, I think the 16 gb cards are slower. I have 4 SanDisk 32GB Ultra II on order.

I am looking forward to hearing about your results with these cards. This truly is a revolution.
Might I make a suggestion? Since all cards, more or less, are on paper fast enough I think that the overcrank test that Steven suggests is the best way to judge how much headroom the card has when actually recording HQ-video in the camera.

Why don't we make a list of all of these cards (Sandisk Exterme, Ultra, Transend 8,16,32 Gb) according to achieved S&Q fps?

That would be invaluable information for anyone looking into buying SD-cards for their EX1/EX3.

I know people don't like buying memory off ebay, due to the amount of fakes, however, i just found an ebay shop which happened to be 1 mile from my house so i went to the shop and bought the transcend 8gb class 6 cards, £20 each,they work, they're genuine.
They've got loads in stock.
Also sdhc to usb readers for £5, instock.
Also sxs cards there for £80ish for 32gb, transcend.

So if anybody wants the details of this supplier then pm me and i'll give you the details, i won't post the details because they're not sponsors.

I'm not in any way connected to this shop, they're just genuinly down to earth people who helped me out letting me test cards in the shop, so i thought i'd return a favour.
They take paypal and post next day.

Paul.

To repeat my findings so far in EX-3, I am working perfectly in SQ and HQ modes with Kensington reader + Transcend 8gb and SanDisk Extreme III 16gb. My next test will be to pick up a SanDisk Ultra II 32gb.

While I honestly have not shot any under/overcranking since starting to test the SD cards, my plan generally will be to keep one SxS card in the camera and one SD card.

My next test will be to pick up a SanDisk Ultra II 32gb.


that's the test I want to see. :)

I have 4 SanDisk 32GB Ultra II on order.

Brian, based on the smaller Ultra II that has been tested, these should work fine.

But, I hope they offer a return if they do not work..

Honestly, again based on their smaller Ultra II SDHC cards, the 32GB cards should work the same. Ultra II claims 15MB/s data rate.

I'll be ordering a 32GB Ultra II soon.

that's the test I want to see. :)

32gb Ultra II do not seem available at the moment. I did find a UK vendor claiming stock but B&H notes not yet released. I imagine we will start seeing them in the coming weeks. Interesting to note that the 32gb Ultra II is labeled a Class 4 card.

Paul, Amazon are cheaper than that.

Running tests today on a couple of Transcend 16Gb cards and a couple of 8 Gb Sandisk Extreme III cards.

Shooting in 25P S&Q mode I am getting very similar performance from both these cards. At 52 FPS both will give media errors pretty quickly, at 50 FPS I get occasional media errors on long clips and at 48 FPS both are error free. Both are quite a bit faster than my 8Gb Transcend cards which only make 38 FPS (still plenty fast enough for regular HQ mode).

Given that the 16Gb Transcend card is around the same price as the 8Gb Sandisk Extreme III yet offers such similar performance I will be using the 16Gb Transcend card.

As an aside, if Sony had crippled the interface then we probably wouldn't be seeing the differences in performance we are finding from different cards.

Just filled a whole 16Gb transcend card with 2x 50FPS S&Q clips without any errors!

Class 4 is slower than Class 6, I would NOT get the Ultra 2 cards.

32gb Ultra II do not seem available at the moment. I did find a UK vendor claiming stock but B&H notes not yet released. I imagine we will start seeing them in the coming weeks. Interesting to note that the 32gb Ultra II is labeled a Class 4 card.

Yes,
When SanDisk released the Ultra II, this was the highest Class (4) to rate them at that time.
Class 6 came out later which states 6MB/s minimum. The Ultra II tests at 15MB/s


I hear you on the 32GB Ultra II SDHC. I'm not sure how some are ordering.

Paul, Amazon are cheaper than that.

Yeah i know what you're saying but for the sake of a couple of quid i'd rather just wander up the road and physically pay for them and have them put in my hand, then i don't have to wait in for them to be delivered, then they get delivered when i'm out, then i have to go and collect from somewhere, blah blah blah. All to save a few quid.

Paul.

Yes,
When SanDisk released the Ultra II, this was the highest Class (4) to rate them at that time.
Class 6 came out later which states 6MB/s minimum. The Ultra II tests at 15MB/s


I hear you on the 32GB Ultra II SDHC. I'm not sure how some are ordering.

I just wrote to SanDisk PR wearing my journalist hat and asked for an eval 32gb card. Most vendors jump at the chance for product review so we shall see what happens.

I'd like to thank everyone who contributed to this great thread.

This is just great news!

Now, do you think you can take a look into the inks for my Epson printer? It costs me $110 for one set of inks, and the actual printer cost $90!!

When the ink is half way empty, sell the printer with half the ink as "perfect working order" on ebay for half price !

Then put $45 to the money and buy a new printer.

Paul.

The PHU-60K is a very nice addition to the EX1/3. It has only one drawback and that is the limited capacity, 60 GB is not very much.

I wonder if it would be possible to remove the standard 1.8" disk and replace it with a 120 GB single platter (8 mm height) 1.8" Toshiba SATA disk with 5400 RPM.

My questions are relatively simple:

1. Is the physical height of the replacement disk (8mm) OK? Or could even a 2 platter disk with 160 or 250 GB fit?
2. Is the disk controller a SATA type?
3. Is 5400 RPM supported?
4. Is this feasible with the limitation of breaking the warranty?

What do you think?

On the Kensington 7-in-1 expresscard reader - Has anyone had problems using this with a MacBook Pro?

I hear that the MacBook does not work well with this.

Why bother doing all that now that 8gb/16gb cards can be bought for next to nothing ?

Paul.

My concern with the PHU-60K is the fact that no hard drive is as dependable as solid state memory. I shot a Firestore for a couple of years with my HVX200. Other than the bulk of the device, I was in constant fear of HD failure. It did not fail. I sold it when I bought the EX3 and my unfortunate customer broke it almost immediately.

At $1K for a 60gb solution that won't under/overcrank, that adds bulk and weight I would say take a pass. Buy a Kensington adapter for under $40 and a bunch of $20 Transcend 8gb cards. Reserve your SxS cards for S&Q motion. Save money and bulk.

Just my .02

Why bother doing all that now that 8gb/16gb cards can be bought for next to nothing ?

Paul.

Paul,

Maybe your definition of "next to nothing" is different than mine, but a 160 GB disk is around € 200, the PHU-60K is around € 900, so totaling around € 1100. Ten 16 GB cards amount to around € 8500 for the same capacity. That price difference gives me a second EX3 for free. All excluding 19% sales tax BTW.

Paul,

Maybe your definition of "next to nothing" is different than mine, but a 160 GB disk is around € 200, the PHU-60K is around € 900, so totaling around € 1100. Ten 16 GB cards amount to around € 8500 for the same capacity. That price difference gives me a second EX3 for free. All excluding 19% sales tax BTW.

Have you been reading the thread about which cards work with the EX1 and EX3 ? Obviously not. 8gb cards can be bought for around £15, whatever that is in dollars.

Paul.

Quick question sorry if this was mentioned but I did not see it... With this Kensington reader I am assuming the EX1 door has to stay open??? Anyone have any pics of their setup? Does it stick out of the dorr very far? I am late to follow this thread but these developements sound very interesting...

Paul, Amazon are cheaper than that.

Running tests today on a couple of Transcend 16Gb cards and a couple of 8 Gb Sandisk Extreme III cards.

Shooting in 25P S&Q mode I am getting very similar performance from both these cards. At 52 FPS both will give media errors pretty quickly, at 50 FPS I get occasional media errors on long clips and at 48 FPS both are error free. Both are quite a bit faster than my 8Gb Transcend cards which only make 38 FPS (still plenty fast enough for regular HQ mode).



Looks like we have a new winner! The Transcend 16 Gb sounds like the best buy. Any other reason not to get the Transcend no that it proves to be as fast as the Sandisk?

Jason,
It misses closing by maybe 2mm due to the SDHC card protruding from the Kensington..

Yes, the door has to stay open, but if you put it in the rear slot, you can close the door right up to the SDHC card sticking out.

Jon,
Well you can leave the Kensington Reader in the EX1 and just pull out the SDHC card. This is what I'm doing and it works great.

Jon,
Well you can leave the Kensington Reader in the EX1 and just pull out the SDHC card. This is what I'm doing and it works great.

OK sounds fine. I just saw reviews that mention the Macbook Pro cannot sleep after using the reader - but this probably while the card is inserted only right?

I have a feeling many still have not figured out that with the new 1.1 EX1 firmware , or current EX3, you can use the Kensington Expresscard adapter 7-in-1 and certain SDHC cards (see thread) for a really inexpensive solution instead of SxS cards.

In fact, when the 32G Ultra II 15MB/s SDHC cards are released (very soon),
for under $400 USD you can have two Kensington expresscard readers each fitted with 32GB SDHC cards.

So for $400, you will have a by far cleaner solution for 64GB storage over the PHU-60K drive.
Yes, you will not be able to close the EX1 memory door, but the PHU-60K also MUST have the door open too, not to mention you will have a drive tethered off your camera.

Having said that, there will be some who will stay with using only SxS for several reason.
1. Tried, true, and tested
2. Already spent an arm & leg.
3. Faster read support when saving to your PC.
4. S&Q mode support


It's been over a week of testing an have NEVER had one error or media restore (that the PHU-60K is known to have)

Also using the Sandisk Extreme III 30MB/s or SanDisk Ultra II 15/MB/s, these yield 40% headroom over HQ data rate. Based on Alister's report, the Transcend has less than the Sandisk cards I mentioned, but still maintains reasonable headroom.

Shooting in 25P S&Q mode I am getting very similar performance from both these cards. At 52 FPS both will give media errors pretty quickly, at 50 FPS I get occasional media errors on long clips and at 48 FPS both are error free. Both are quite a bit faster than my 8Gb Transcend cards which only make 38 FPS (still plenty fast enough for regular HQ mode).
Alister, I've been testing with the 16GB Transcend cards, and I'm not getting the performance you report. I've only been able to get reliable up to 24P / 38FPS slomo. Beyond that I'll get occasional errors. I don't think there are different models of the Transcend 16GB, but what model are you using? That being said, for the price and for non-slomo shooting the Transcend 16GB seem fine. However I'm ordering the 16GB and 32GB Sandisk Ultra 2 for comparison. I'm intrigued by the 32GB for the nearly 2 hours of shooting time.

Today I did my first real shoot with my EX1 with an 8GB SxS card in slot A and the Transcend 16GB in slot B. In this shoot I did need to do some slomo, but remembering to use Card A wasn't difficult. The only strange error I got was when I was on card B (Transcend) and I switched the video format from 720P to 1080 30P. The LCD had some strange error message, E=12345 (I don't remember the number but it was 5 digits.) The EX1 wasn't really operable at that point, I could switch menus but I don't think I could switch card slots or record.

With a bit of trepidation I removed card B, and turned the power off to the EX1. Repowering, I inserted card B. No errors, no request for media restore, worked fine. Was able to transfer the media over to my hard drive fine not glitches or anything.

I'm using a simple USB to SD adapter and it works great.

Keith, do you have a list of EX1 error codes? wonder what this was.

It may of been something else. It does not appear to be the "typical" memory related error.

Also, I'm wondering if the Transcend is maybe not quite up to par as the SanDisk Extreme and Ulta II.
I do know the Sandisk can overcrank at a higher data rate. 40FPS at 24P


What do you think?

Keith, do you have a list of EX1 error codes? wonder what this was.

It may of been something else. It does not appear to be the "typical" memory related error.

Also, I'm wondering if the Transcend is maybe not quite up to par as the SanDisk Extreme and Ulta II.
I do know the Sandisk can overcrank at a higher data rate. 40FPS at 24P


What do you think?

Steven, I have no idea about the error codes or what it meant. I've never seen it before. I was shooting in full sun, the EX1 case was pretty hot at that point.

I did a lot of testing of the Transcend, filling a whole 16GB transcend card at 24P slomo- 38, 39, 40 FPS several times. At 38FPS never an error. At 39, sometimes no error all the way, sometimes an occasional error. At 40, errors at least once, sometimes early, sometimes several minutes in. On the Extreme I was able to get to 43FPS with no errors (although I didn't test it as much as the Transcend.)

Using XBench, which is a Mac benchmarking utility, it's clear that even with the Kensington Expresscard adapter and USB 2.0 as the potential bottleneck, the Extreme III is the fastest, with write speeds using 256k blocks of 13.53 MB/second, my older Sandisk Ultra II 4GB (not the 15MB/sec model) at 8.87 MB/sec, 3rd is the Transcend at 8.42 MB/sec, and , so the old Ultra seems faster than the transcend. Of course the Sony SxS card, unfettered by the Kensington and USB 2.0 blows them all away at 43.96 MB/sec. I've ordered the new Sandisk Ultra II 15MB/sec model, we'll see if that's faster, and that might be the compromise between the Extreme and the Transcend.

So it seems that the Sandisk Extreme is the 'luxury' SDHC card at the moment, but the Transcend is the 'best buy.' I'm going to keep using the Transcend for a while until I find it's unreliable.

Right now, I only have a SanDisk Ultra II 4GB SDHC(yes, 13 whole minutes of HQ! LOL),
but it works as well as my 16GB SanDisk Extreme III 30MB/s version SDHC.

I have never seen an error and I've been trying all HQ modes.

I'm looking forward to when the SanDisk Ultra II 32GB SDHC ($150) comes out. Which is suppose to be any day now.

My card and reader arrive tomorrow - I'm lookiing forward to playing with 16GB of memory! I can't believe how much cheaper this route is!

Next, let's all work on alternative fuels.

Hey guys,

How do I read the LEXAR 8GB SSD if I do not have an ExpressCard reader in my computer? Does the Sony SXS reader works with the LEXAR too?

Thanks,
Mike

I'm not allowed to post a link to Office Depots website am I? I couldn't find the model number on their site but I did find the 7 in 1 reader... is that the same one?

No to your first question and yes to your second.

I'm willing to believe you will find a Dvinfo sponsor. Take a look.

No to your first question and yes to your second.

I'm willing to believe you will find a Dvinfo sponsor. Take a look.

thanks man, still learning the style of the site. I'll check out the sponser links.

Hey guys,

How do I read the LEXAR 8GB SSD if I do not have an ExpressCard reader in my computer? Does the Sony SXS reader works with the LEXAR too?

Thanks,
Mike




Sony SXS reader des not work you have to use a lap top with express reader.