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Flash drive or SD card for storage?

H

HarryWarden

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Oct 27, 2012
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The full-size cards in your list will all work (like this one), as will all the micro SD cards on the listing that come with adapters. The micro SD cards without adapters will not work.

For the most part, the more expensive SD cards are faster in terms of read/write speed than typical USB flash drives, and that's why they are more expensive. This is more useful for working with things like video and audio files.

The other main advantage is that they don't take up a USB port, which can be in short supply on the MacBook Air.
 
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AXs said:
usb 3.0 is about 3 to 4 times faster than class 10 sd
Click to expand...

USB 3.0 is, but the recording media on most USB flash drives isn't, unless you're paying top dollar. Same is true with SD cards.

Even this "USB 3.0" drive doesn't even max out USB 2.0 speeds.

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HarryWarden said:
How about USB 2.0? I have a bunch of USB flash drives that are 2.0 because they're older. What's the speed comparison then?
Click to expand...

Again, depends on the media, but I would bet they're slower. Still, if you already have the drives, you might as well use them.
 
Me being.....

a person not too careful, had found the SD cards are too fragile for me. Same height of drop in a USB flash disk not ever kill or damage permanently the drive...just my 2 cents.....:eek:

:):apple:
 
I bought both a 32GB SanDisk Extreme USB 3.0 drive and a 32GB SanDisk Ultra microSD that I keep in the computer installed in an Apotop adapter/reader..

Both fast, I can't really tell much of a difference between the two, but I know that the 3.0 is really really fast. 5GB transferred in like 1-2 minutes..:eek:
 
HarryWarden said:
Is there any reason to use one over the other? I hear a lot of people using SD cards for extra storage on their MBA. What's better about them vs. flash drives? They seem a fair bit more expensive vs. flash drives of similar size. Also, will any of the SD cards in the following link work with the slot in the 2012 Air?

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_s...eywords=sd+card+64+gb&sprefix=SD+Card,aps,284
Click to expand...

For an extra few bucks you can get a "Set it and forget it" storage solution for your MBA. It sits flush with most Macbook Air/Pros and they make a 128GB version which is a bit spendy at the moment but, it should come down in price soon.
 

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I don't get some people. They opt for the 128GB model, then go spend $100 on an SD card.

Ridiculous imo.

Extra $200 256GB Model means an extra 128gb of the fastest storage available in the market, and not to mention it doubles the speed of a 128gb Air.
 
AXs said:
I don't get some people. They opt for the 128GB model, then go spend $100 on an SD card.

Ridiculous imo.

Extra $200 256GB Model means an extra 128gb of the fastest storage available in the market, and not to mention it doubles the speed of a 128gb Air.
Click to expand...

I don't think you remember when it was a 400 dollar upgrade and when SSD's maxed at 128. Not everyone who has an Air had that option
 
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tl;dr: Get the max SSD you can afford, then get usb3.0 flash storage.

Use the sd card slot for your phones and cameras and so on. 10mbps in 2013 is irrelevant.
we're talking 750mbps speeds with SSD.
USB 3.0 will also go up to 200mbps when paired with SSD.


tl;dr summary: SSD>USB>SD
 
SD cards are fatally easy to misplace, or to lose outright. Flash drives are easier to keep track of. Some of them can even be clipped to your keychain.

I have a 64GB SD card that I copy iTunes stuff to when I take a trip (my iTunes library is stored on a wireless disk, and while I have a clone of that library on a portable drive, I prefer using an SD card if I'm going to be on battery. Video is enough of a power hog, without adding the extra drain of running a USB drive....)

But after losing my first 64GB card, I would never use one to store my only copy of a particular file. Losing a $80 SD card is bad enough -- losing the data on it would REALLY hurt :(

Another possible solution for you: There are mini-drives available that let you load a microSD more or less permanently in the SD slot on a MBA. These don't stick out of the side the way a regular SD card does, and because they stay loaded in the computer, they're a lot harder to lose than a regular SD card.
 
AXs said:
usb 3.0 is about 3 to 4 times faster than class 10 sd
Click to expand...
You just compared the USB delivery system to the SD media storage ?
A USB stick doesn't get faster just because the USB pipe is now faster.
USB and SD use the same memory chips and similar file systems
Just when you think you have found one to be faster than the other,
the tables turn. Because they both are essentially on the same playing field.
Even though the USB connector and housing only cost the Chinese manufacturer
pennies, the perceived value almost always make USB drives more expensive.
 
I have a 128 gig PNY StorEdge SD card in my MBA which I used for media. Compared to the other options it's pretty slow, blackmagic shows it to be 42 meg/sec write and 88 meg/second read. An external USB3 enclosure with an old Samsung EVO SSD in it reads and writes around 400 meg/sec. However, the SD card is quite a bit less expensive, and a great option for something which doesn't require blazing performance.
 
That's stunning speed; 400 meg read, 270 meg write. USB sticks reach SSD speeds !
Definitely needs a USB 3 port. And the price ($60 / 64GB) is 2.5-3 times the going rate,
but it's going three times faster. actually, 400 meg is four times faster!
Like I said though; now it's SD's turn to step up to the plate.
 
terryeh said:
That's stunning speed; 400 meg read, 270 meg write. USB sticks reach SSD speeds !
Definitely needs a USB 3 port. And the price ($60 / 64GB) is 2.5-3 times the going rate,
but it's going three times faster. actually, 400 meg is four times faster!
Like I said though; now it's SD's turn to step up to the plate.
Click to expand...

64GB is $37 on Amazon :)
128GB is $70, I was lucky enough to grab it for $54.
 
I'm using and ScanDisk micro SD 128gb with 80/48 speeds for iTunes, photos, and basically any file or document I need to save. The 128gb internal SSD will just be for apps basically. I also just picked up a micro USB 64gb drive for miscellaneous transferring, etc. It only sticks out about an 1/8"! The 1TB WD Ultra Passport will be used for Time Machine backups of both the internal and external micro SD card drives. I'm still trying to figure a few things out but think I'm starting out on the right track from the onset with this new MBA I got a week ago (base 4gb RAM, 128gb SSD).
 
HarryWarden said:
Is there any reason to use one over the other? I hear a lot of people using SD cards for extra storage on their MBA. What's better about them vs. flash drives? They seem a fair bit more expensive vs. flash drives of similar size. Also, will any of the SD cards in the following link work with the slot in the 2012 Air?

I have a nifty drive and samsung evo+ 64gb in my 2013 air 13" and it works real well. Both will set you back less than $100. If the price for storage drops or you need more than 64gb you can just buy a new card and put it in the nifty drive. The nifty drive sits flush with the Air SD slot.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_3_7/192-5856559-6157731?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=sd+card+64+gb&sprefix=SD+Card,aps,284
Click to expand...

http://minidrive.bynifty.com/products/minidrive-air
with
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/samsung...c57&ksprof_id=14&ksaffcode=pg31623&ksdevice=c
 
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It really comes down to speed, which may or may not matter to you. SD cards struggle to get to 40-60 MB write speeds. SSDs through USB 3 almost reach 300MB write speeds. This is my experience using UHS-1 Sony SDs and Samsung and Crucial SSDs, all on 2014 rMBP.
 
cerberusss said:
Has anyone experience with those really small USB sticks, so small that you can leave them in all the time?
Click to expand...

I use several PNY drives. The plus is how physically small they are. My hope was to use them as emergency boot drives for when I'm on the road and don't have my usual external HDD boot/repair drives with me. Yes, it can dangle from a keychain. Yes, it takes nearly 15 minutes to boot an i5 MBP with 10.10 installed. Yes, it takes 5+ minutes to launch most apps (DiskWarrior, DriveGenius, Disk Util, even Terminal is painfully slow. And yes, it does work.

I'd love to find a USB3 version that had the read/write of the SSDs, but my search has been fruitless thus far. For simple file storage, this little thing is sweet. Be patient with the speed and expectations. Here's an example:

http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/850933/PNY-MicroMetal-Attach-USB-20-Flash/
 
kohlson said:
SSDs through USB 3 almost reach 300MB write speeds.
Click to expand...

I realize this is an old post, but FWIW, you can do a lot better than that today. Here is a Samsung T3 external USB 3 SSD. Not as small as a SD card, but it's really fast. Just setup a Mini with a 512gb drive and it takes less than 30 seconds to boot. :)

samsung500.jpg
 
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