Home Consumer Samsung microSDXC EVO Plus Memory Card Review (512GB)

Samsung microSDXC EVO Plus Memory Card Review (512GB)

by Adam Armstrong

Last month, Samsung released its largest capacity EVO Plus microSD card at 512GB capacity, twice the previous max capacity. Aside from having a massive capacity for a microSD card, the card has quoted speeds of 100MB/s read and 90MB/s write and uses Samsung’s 4-proof protection to withstand 72 hours in seawater, extreme temperatures, airport X-ray machines and magnetic fields.


Last month, Samsung released its largest capacity EVO Plus microSD card at 512GB capacity, twice the previous max capacity. Aside from having a massive capacity for a microSD card, the card has quoted speeds of 100MB/s read and 90MB/s write and uses Samsung’s 4-proof protection to withstand 72 hours in seawater, extreme temperatures, airport X-ray machines and magnetic fields.

The latest EVO Plus offers all of the benefits of the rest of the line (32GB-256GB) including high performance storage, low cost in terms of dollar-per-GB, and compatibility with several devices including smartphones and tablets. The latest microSD card is all about large capacity. This high capacity is beneficial to photographers and drone users that don’t want to switch their memory storage as often in the field. It is also ideal for users that take and store 4K video content as the card can be removed from devices and played, with ease, on certain TVs and monitors.

The new card comes with a 10-year warranty and can be picked up for about $125.

Samsung microSDXC EVO Plus 512GB Specifications

Class Grade 3, Class 10
Interface UHS-I, compatible to HS interface
Storage Capacity 512GB
Sequential Read Speed Up to 100MB/s
Sequential Write Speed Up to 90MB/s
Water-resistant Yes
Full HD optimized Yes
Voltage 2.7~3.6V
Environmental Specs Operating Temperature: -13°F to 185°F

Non-operating Temperature: -40°F to 185°F

Dimensions (W x H x D) 0.59″ x 0.43″ x 0.04″
Weight Approx. 0.5g
Warranty Limited 10 year warranty

Design and build

The new Samsung EVO Plus microSDXC continues to use the same branded design of the company’s flash cards (both SD and microSD lines) with its modern red and white exterior. The only change from the last gen cards is that it uses the full word “plus” (vs. “+”) and the Speed Class 3 indicator.

Flipping the card over shows the 9 connector pins the model number, and the country of manufacture (Korea). As is the norm with all new Samsung microSD cards, the new EVO plus line is also bundled with an SD adapter for compatibility with full-sized SD card slots.

Performance

To test the performance of the Samsung EVO Plus microSDXC 512GB we used the BlackMagic disk speed test on a current generation MacBook Air as well as leveraging a Lenovo ThinkStation 920 for Windows testing. We will be comparing it to the 128GB of the same line.

In BlackMagic the 512GB was able to hit 90.3MB/s read and 77.8MB/s write compared to the 128GB’s 87.5MB/s read and 75.6MB/s write.

 

For our Windows testing, the 512GB hit 94.4MB/s read and 82.1MB/s write in 2MB sequential, compared to the 128GB’s 92.15MB/s read and 84.62MB/s write. In 2MB random the 512GB hit 75.5MB/s read and 52.7MB/s write compared to the 128GB’s 85.7MB/s read and 1.15MB/s write. 4K random throughput for the 512GB was 2,991 IOPS read and 808 IOPS write.

Conclusion

Samsung has expanded its EVO Plus microSDXC line with the addition of a 512GB capacity model, twice the capacity of the previous large model. The microSD card comes with features one would expect from Samsung including high performance and durability from water, shock, magnet, X-ray and temperature protection. The card also has a very good dollar-per-GB ratio.

As far as performance goes, the new EVO Plus didn’t disappoint. In our BlackMagic test it was able to its 90.3MB/s read and 77.8MB/s write. In our Windows testing for 2MB the microSD hit 94.4MB/s read and 82.1MB/s write in 2MB sequential, and 75.5MB/s read and 52.7MB/s write in 2MB random. For 4K ransom throughput the microSD card was able to hit 2,991 IOPS read and 808 IOPS write.

With its performance and price, the Samsung EVO Plus microSDXC 512GB is a great choice, especially for users that need the extra capacity and protections that Samsung offers.

Samsung EVO Plus microSDXC on Amazon

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