SD card in iMac

[remiller]

Would like to use SD card slot on 2019 iMac for additional file/photo storage. Would generally leave the card in place in the slot. Is there a specific card that others have found reliable and successful for this use? Thanks!

 

[hfg]

I don't know that it matters all that much. I have a Sandisk Extreme SD card in my iMac that has my large music library on it to avoid wasting the fast internal SSD disk space on iTunes music files.

 

[mikehalloran]

I don't know that it matters all that much. I have a Sandisk Extreme SD card in my iMac that has my large music library on it to avoid wasting the fast internal SSD disk space on iTunes music files.

Look for a Class 10 minimum. They're pretty slow compared to a SATA III SSD but should be more than fast enough for iTunes. A 256GB Class 10 costs around $40 or so.
https://www.amazon.com/SanDisk-256G...c+memory+card&qid=1563673428&s=gateway&sr=8-3

Once you get much larger, a SATA III SSD becomes more economical and is quite a bit faster, over 5x that of a Class 10 SDXC card.
https://www.amazon.com/Crucial-MX500-NAND-SATA-Internal/dp/B078C515QL/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=2U90A6LC7BTIF&keywords=mx500+2tb&qid=1563673063&s=gateway&sprefix=mx500,aps,197&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1

sitting in a $9 dock.
https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=sr_1_3?crid=170CAYRZIO2AV&keywords=2.5+hard+drive+enclosure&qid=1563673130&s=gateway&sprefix=2.5",aps,199&sr=8-3

I have my iTunes library on an external SSD with room for many of my streaming libraries — a SDXD card would be too slow for that. I make my living in the music business and have a very large iTunes library.

 

[Fishrrman]

I wouldn't do this.

1. SD cards are generally MUCH SLOWER than USB3 drives
2. It probably wouldn't be as "reliable" as an external drive. Too easily "dislodged".

Just get an external USB3 drive (platter based or SSD).
It will do the job better and faster.

 

[whosthis]

For day-to-day "working file storage" it's probably not well-suited, but for putting the music on it seems a good fit. Thanks for pointing that one out!

 

[dwig]

Would like to use SD card slot on 2019 iMac for additional file/photo storage. Would generally leave the card in place in the slot. Is there a specific card that others have found reliable and successful for this use? Thanks!

I haven't done this with either my iMac at work or my Dell XPS desktop at home. External HDDs and SSDs are no problem managing, physically, when using a desktop computer. I have, though, done this with two Windows tablets, my old Dell Venue 8 Pro and my current Surface Go.

In both cases the card is a microSD. The old Dell V8p ran over 3 years daily use with its 32Gb Sandisk. My Go has been running daily ~6-12hrs since the end of November with a 128Gb Samsung card. I've not had a failure with either. The cards are used primarily for media and document storage and performance is quite adequate for that use.

 

[mikehalloran]

I wouldn't do this.

1. SD cards are generally MUCH SLOWER than USB3 drives
2. It probably wouldn't be as "reliable" as an external drive. Too easily "dislodged".

Just get an external USB3 drive (platter based or SSD).
It will do the job better and faster.

As I pointed out, a Class 10 is 1/5 the speed of a SATA III SSD — doesn't matter how it's hosted on a 2012 or later Mac. That's slower than a 5400 rpm HDD. If Class 4 or 6, that's even slower.

If fast enough, then great, I suppose. Only the small ones are inexpensive. Above 128GB, they become expensive for what you get.

 

[Seamaster]

I’ve had my iTunes library on a permanently installed Sandisk SD card for over seven years, no problems to report.

 

[Zandros]

As I pointed out, a Class 10 is 1/5 the speed of a SATA III SSD — doesn't matter how it's hosted on a 2012 or later Mac. That's slower than a 5400 rpm HDD. If Class 4 or 6, that's even slower.

If fast enough, then great, I suppose. Only the small ones are inexpensive. Above 128GB, they become expensive for what you get.

We used to listen to music from way slower media; a Red Book CD requires a transfer rate of less than 0.2 MB/s. The question is what kind of performance the actual library (and album art) requires.