Hello everyone, I just purchased a camera for shooting 4K and even 8K videos. After filming, I inserted the camera’s CFast card into my Mac, and hope to import the video files for editing. Could someone help me with the following questions:
What is a CFast card for?
What are the differences between CF and CFast?
Is CFast better than SD?
The CFast card utilizes a SATA (Serial Advanced Technology Attachment) interface, with a compact size of 36.4mm × 42.8mm × 3.6mm, supporting data transfer speeds of up to 6Gbit/s . With a built-in controller chip, the CFast card is transparent to the host system, supporting multiple file systems , including FAT32, exFAT, and NTFS, ensuring compatibility with various operating systems and professional devices.
CFast cards are primarily used in professional equipment that requires fast data processing and storage, especially in high-end cameras and camcorders. They excel in recording 4K and 8K video, easily handling the smooth storage of high-resolution video data.
Generally, the differences between CompactFlash cards and CFast cards can be summarized in the following aspects:
Interface and Transfer Speed
CF Cards: CF Cards utilize a parallel ATA interface , resulting in slower transfer speeds typically ranging from 160 MB/s to 170 MB/s, suitable for general storage needs.
CFast Cards: Use a SATA interface , supporting much higher transfer speeds, with maximum rates reaching 6 Gbit/s (approximately 750 MB/s), making them ideal for applications requiring fast data transfers, such as 4K and 8K video recording.
Application Scenarios
CF Cards: Commonly used in older digital cameras, camcorders, and some professional devices, widely applied in photography and data storage.
CFast Cards: Primarily used in high-end camcorders and professional photography equipment, suitable for situations requiring rapid read and write speeds.
Compatibility
CF Cards: Typically support the FAT32 file system.
CFast Cards: Support multiple file systems, including FAT32, exFAT, and NTFS, providing greater flexibility and compatibility.
Price
A 64GB CF card costs approximately 600 yuan, while a 64GB CFast card is priced higher, starting from over 1000 yuan. This price difference is primarily due to the more advanced interface and higher read/write speeds of CFast cards, resulting in higher production costs.
CFast cards do have certain advantages over SD cards. Firstly, CFast cards support higher transfer speeds, reaching up to 6 Gbit/s (approximately 750 MB/s), whereas SD cards typically have slower transfer rates, with the highest speeds being less than half of that of CFast cards.
For applications requiring fast read and write speeds, such as 4K and 8K video recording, CFast cards are more suitable. Additionally, CFast cards offer larger capacity and scalability options. However, SD cards have lower prices than CFast, so the choice between the two ultimately depends on what you value most.