Written by
Amanda Wong
Summary: SDUC card is a type of memory card within the Secure Digital (SD) card family. Reading this post to learn more about the SDUC card and the differences between SDUC, SDXC, and SDHC.
Because of SD cards' small physical dimensions, they became widely used in many consumer electronic devices, such as digital cameras, video game consoles, mobile phones, action cameras, etc. At the very beginning, the capacity is only 16MB, but over time, there are multiple types of SD cards with different storage, SDUC card is one of them, and we will explore more in this post.
What is the SDUC card?
The SDUC (Secure Digital Ultra Capacity) drive is the latest evolution in the SD (Secure Digital) card family, it is designed for large storage capacity and high performance, often used in devices requiring significant storage space, such as professional cameras, camcorders, and high-end computing devices, the SDUC standard redefines what's possible in portable storage solutions.
- Storage Capacity: SDUC cards support capacities ranging from 2 TB to 128 TB, making them suitable for data-intensive applications like 8K video recording or massive data transfers.
- Performance Standards: These cards often conform to newer SD standards (e.g., SD 7.0 or later), ensuring compatibility with high-speed transfer protocols like UHS-III or Express Bus interfaces.
- Use Cases: They are used in professional video production, high-resolution photography, and data-intensive applications like virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR).
- Compatibility: Devices must specifically support the SDUC standard to take full advantage of these cards. They are not backward-compatible with devices that only support older SD card standards like SDHC or SDXC.
- Cost: Due to their advanced technology and large capacities, SDUC cards are generally more expensive than their predecessors (SDHC and SDXC).
How are SDUC cards different from other SD cards?
The SD card specification has kept changing over time. In 2005, the SDHC (Secure Digital High Capacity) standard was introduced, allowing for storage capacities of up to 32GB. The SDXC (Secure Digital eXtended Capacity) standard, introduced in 2009, enabled storage capacities of up to 2TB. In 2018, the Secure Digital Ultra Capacity (SDUC) format was introduced, which supports cards up to 128 TB.
Here's a comparison of SDUC cards with other SD card types (SDSC, SDHC, and SDXC):
| Feature | SDSC (Standard) | SDHC (High Capacity) | SDXC (Extended Capacity) | SDUC (Ultra Capacity) |
| Release Year | 1999 | 2006 | 2009 | 2018 |
| Capacity Range | Up to 2 GB | 2 GB to 32 GB | 32 GB to 2 TB | 2 TB to 128 TB |
| File System | FAT12/16 | FAT32 | exFAT | exFAT |
| Maximum Transfer Speed | Limited by device | Up to 104 MB/s (UHS-I) | Up to 624 MB/s (UHS-II, III) | Up to 985 MB/s (Express Mode) |
| Typical Use Cases | Basic cameras, phones | Consumer cameras, smartphones | High-res video, photography | 8K video, large-scale storage |
| Cost | Low | Affordable | Moderate | High |
Whether you should choose SDUC cards?
SDUC cards often come with high read/write speeds. If you need extremely high storage (e.g., for 8K video or professional photography), an SDUC card might be worth considering. You should ensure that your device supports SDUC cards. Many older devices do not support this standard, check for the "SDUC" logo on your device or in its specifications.
Meanwhile, SDUC cards are generally more expensive than SDXC or SDHC cards, just evaluate if the extra capacity and performance justify the cost.
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