How to Pick Best MicroSD card for Android Device – Guide

If you’re an iPhone or iPad user, you won’t be able to add additional storage space on your smartphone. However, as an Android smartphone user, you might be lucky enough to add that extra storage space with the help of a memory card.

When buying a memory card, be sure to check your smartphone’s storage expandability. Find out if the phone has a microSD slot and whether it supports current generation cards. Once you’ve confirmed your smartphone’s storage expandability, there are a few other factors to consider before purchasing the card.

How to Choose the best MicroSD card for Android device

Specifications and compatibility

  1. Standard microSD cards are the most common type and are available in a variety of sizes. They are typically around 8GB in size and come with a standard card reader.
  2. Ultra-high-speed microSD cards offer speeds up to 256GB per minute. They are only available in select countries and require an expensive card reader to use.
  3. Memory Stick Pro Duo cards offer the best performance for storage, with speeds up to 128GB per minute. They are also the most popular type of microSD card because they can be used with multiple devices at the same time.

Secure Digital Standard Capacity (SDSC) capacities range from 128 MB to 2 GB. They utilize the FAT16 file system and will work with devices that support SD, SDHC or SDXC. ..

SDHC cards are a new format that uses the FAT32 file system. This means that they are not compatible with devices that only accept SD cards.

Secure Digital Extended Capacity (SDXC) cards offer greater storage capacity than standard Secure Digital (SD) cards. The SDXC card format uses the exFAT file system, which is different from the SDSC and SDHC card formats. As a result, devices that only accept SD or SDHC cards will not be able to use SDXC cards. ..

brands

Online electronics stores are a safe bet when shopping for a microSD card. With a branded card, you can expect better performance, reliability, protection from shocks, water and even airport X-rays. You also get warranty and access to recovery software in case your card fails. Some of the most popular brands are SanDisk (SanDisk Ultra, SanDisk Extreme), Samsung (Samsung EVO) and Transcend (Transcend Premium, Transcend Ultimate). ..

Capacity

The older SD specification supports cards up to 2GB. The SDHC specification, announced in 2006, supports cards up to 32GB. On the other hand, the SDXC format announced in 2009 supports cards up to 2TB. Right now, the vast majority of Android devices support SDHC. SDXC is newer but is slowly gaining in popularity. ..

When it comes to an Android device with microSD card support, you need to make sure the maximum capacity it can support is taken into account. The manufacturer specifies them in the datasheet and says something like “expandable memory via microSD card up to 128 GB”. This means that your Android device supports SDXC format with a maximum capacity of 128GB. So, if you want to buy a microSD card that has a higher capacity than 128GB, you will need to do so in smaller increments. ..

SDXC cards are backwards compatible with SDHC cards, which means that you can use older cards with newer devices. For example, the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge supports cards up to 256 GB, the Moto G4 Plus 128 GB and the HTC 10 256 GB. ..

Speed ​​Class Rating

Class 1: High-speed transfer rates up to 100 MB/s Class 2: High-speed transfer rates up to 50 MB/s Class 3: Low-speed transfer rates up to 10 MB/s The SD Association recommends that users use a speed class that corresponds to the card they are using.

SD speed class

The SanDisk Ultra microSD cards come in four speeds: Class 2 (2 MB/s), Class 4 (4 MB/s), Class 6 (6 MB/s), and Class 10 (10 MB/s). Each card has its own specific use, so it’s important to choose the right one for your needs. For example, a Class 2 card is perfect for capturing still images and videos, while a Class 10 card is ideal for recording high-resolution videos. However, there’s no need to worry about using a slower card if you only need it for basic needs; even a Class 4 or 6 card will work just fine. ..

With the Class 10 card, you can record Full HD (1080p) video at 60 fps, continuous recording of HD still images and RAW photos. With all low-end Android devices supporting HD video recording these days, it makes sense to buy a Class 10 card. It works best when taking photos, multiple photo bursts, and while transferring files. The speed class of an SD card is easy to identify – you can find it in the online store listing or on the card’s packaging.

UHS speed class

In 2009, the SD Association introduced the UHS speed class designed for SDHC and SDXC cards. This new data bus interface with higher theoretical read and write speeds allows for increased performance when recording video and photos. By using this new bus, smartphone camera can record 4K UHD video at up to 30 fps, take high resolution photos with optical image stabilization at up to 12 megapixels, and record slow motion videos at up to 60 fps.

UHS I has a bus speed of 35 MB/s, 50 MB/s, and 104 MB/s. ..

The University of Houston has a bus speed of 152 and 312 MB/s.

UHS-I and UHS-II cards can use the UHS Speed Class rating with two possible grades: class 1 for minimum read/write performance of at least 10 MB/s (symbol ‘U1’ showing the number 1 within ‘U’) and class 3 for minimum write performance of at least 30 MB/s (symbol ‘U3’ showing 3 within ‘U’). ..

If you take and record a lot of high resolution photos and 4K video, the microSD card with UHS-I speed class 3 is not enough for this purpose. You need a UHS speed class card for a budget smartphone. There are no smartphones that can take advantage of the UHS II card, so you can safely avoid it. For example – SanDisk Extreme Pro is a 64GB Class 10 UHS-I Class 3 card (you will see a symbol with 3 inside ‘U’). The Samsung EVO is a 32GB UHS-I class 1 card (you will see a symbol with 1 inside ‘U’).

Android version

Android 6.0 Marshmallow introduced the Adoptable Storage feature that lets you format a microSD card to act as internal storage. This makes it possible for you to store photos, music and videos on your Android device without having to worry about space limitations.

If you have saved your game on a microSD card, be aware that if your device’s internal storage becomes full, the game will no longer load and you will need to move your save to a different microSD card. If you decide to delete your game save, it is not possible to restore it. ..

File system support

FAT32 is the recommended file system for SD and SDHC cards. If you plan to use your microSD card with PC and Mac at any time, leave it as is. FAT32 offers near-universal interoperability with any computer system, including PCs and Macs. FAT32 doesn’t support files larger than 4GB and volumes larger than 2TB, so that’s the only downside.

Most microSD cards are not available in such high capacities, except SDXC which supports exFAT file format. If you only want to use the SD card on your Android device, then you don’t have to worry about the file system.

Final note

This guide is designed to help you pick the best microSD card for your Android device. If you have any questions about this article, please don’t hesitate to ask us. Additionally, please share this guide with your friends and family so they can benefit from it as well.