CFexpress card...is it worth the expense?

[FlapGlide]

I was under the impression that you had to purchase a CFexpress Type A for the 4K option. I have a SanDisk SDXC V90 300ms and it appears that it will work with that camera for all the video options. Is there any reason to spend the extra money for a CFexpreas type A

 

[Uncle Kevriano]

I would say it depends on how fast you need it to write, but I wouldn't bother personally if the current card is good enough

 

[Tim Mayo]

Which camera are you using? For the a7IV you'll only really need a CFexpress card for shooting in S&Q Mode with the file format XAVC S-I 4k, a record frame rate of 25p / 30p and a frame rate of 50fps /60fps (2x slow motion). Like you are seeing, a V90 card is good for all other video formats.

If you shoot continuous bursts in Hi+ Drive Mode with either uncompressed or compressed RAW files and don't want to hit the buffer then you will require a CFexpress Type-A card.

I put together the following article on this a while back that includes a comparison between shooting with a CFexpress Type-A vs UHS-II SD and the number of shots you can take before hitting the buffer then the time to clear it.

Sony A7 IV - Do You Need a CFexpress Card?

There are only two instances when you might want to use CFexpress cards in the a7IV, otherwise I'd recommend sticking to a fast UHS-II card and saving a small fortune.

www.alphashooters.com

 

[FlapGlide]

I would say it depends on how fast you need it to write, but I wouldn't bother personally if the current card is good enough

Thanks, Kevriano.

 

[FlapGlide]

Which camera are you using? For the a7IV you'll only really need a CFexpress card for shooting in S&Q Mode with the file format XAVC S-I 4k, a record frame rate of 25p / 30p and a frame rate of 50fps /60fps (2x slow motion). Like you are seeing, a V90 card is good for all other video formats.

If you shoot continuous bursts in Hi+ Drive Mode with either uncompressed or compressed RAW files and don't want to hit the buffer then you will require a CFexpress Type-A card.

I put together the following article on this a while back that includes a comparison between shooting with a CFexpress Type-A vs UHS-II SD and the number of shots you can take before hitting the buffer then the time to clear it.

Sony A7 IV - Do You Need a CFexpress Card?

There are only two instances when you might want to use CFexpress cards in the a7IV, otherwise I'd recommend sticking to a fast UHS-II card and saving a small fortune.

www.alphashooters.com

I'll definitely read that post. I have a 7Aiv and I may want to film slow motion in for 4K so I'll look at your info. Thanks for the reply.