Data Backup Digest

The past few years have been highly impactful for SD-based storage. While SanDisk first unveiled a card with 512 GB of storage capacity in 2014, with an insane price of $800, the majority of the industry viewed the product as more of a novelty than anything else. Meant specifically for the storage of 4K video, the cards had very little appeal beyond that particular niche.

Fast forward to 2016 and we're fresh off the announcement of SanDisk's 1 TB GB card. Although an exact pricing point was not released, critics are afraid that the new card will be well beyond the realm of affordability. The new card was unveiled at Photokina; an annual event that focuses on photography and videography. Photokina also played host to their 2014 unveiling of the 512 GB model.

Sam Nicholson, member of the American Society of Cinematographers and CEO of Stargate Studios, spoke about the quickened pace of SD card development as well as some viable uses for large-capacity products. He was quoted as saying: "Just a few short years ago the idea of a 1TB capacity point in an SD card seemed so futuristic – it’s amazing that we’re now at the point where it’s becoming a reality. With the growing demand for applications like VR, we can certainly use 1TB when we’re out shooting continuous high-quality video. High-capacity cards allow us to capture more without interruption, streamlining our workflow, and eliminating the worry that we may miss a moment because we have to stop to swap out cards."

It's also important to note that the recent 1 TB card was nothing more than a prototype. Nonetheless, this isn't stopping SanDisk and Western Digital, their parent company, from touting the product as the "world's first" 1TB SD card.

However, the publicity teams with SanDisk and Western Digital have remained quiet on many of the details, including information such as read and write speeds. As some critics are quick to point out, this could be due to the fact that these numbers will be relatively low given the expanded capacity of the card.

Dinesh Bahal, VP of product management with Western Digital's Content Solutions Business Unit was quoted as saying: Showcasing the most advanced imaging technologies is truly exciting for us. Sixteen years ago we introduced the first SanDisk 64MB SD™ card and today we are enabling capacities of 1TB. Over the years our goal has remained the same; continue to innovate and set the pace for the imaging industry. The SanDisk 1TB SD card prototype represents another significant achievement as growth of high-resolution content and capacity-intensive applications such as virtual reality, video surveillance and 360 video, are progressing at astounding rates.”

For professional photographers and videographers who consistently record high-quality video on a day-to-day basis, SD cards with such capacities are actually quite useful. For the average consumer, however, the high price tag means that these cards will stay in the novelty realm for quite some time. To find out more information about SanDisk, please visit their official website at www.sandisk.com.