Nextorage CFexpress Type B and SDXC Memory Cards Review

Memory cards play a crucial role in the image creation process, and their failure to perform can be catastrophic in that regard. Despite the importance of its role, the ideal memory card is boring. It stays out of the photographer's way, quickly and reliably doing its job while avoiding attention.

Those are the characteristics I have experienced with Nextorage cards over the last 2 months. These cards read and write quickly and have presented no issues.

About Nextorage

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Who is Nextorage?

Nextorage was established in 2019 as an affiliate of Sony. While 2019 isn't so long ago, the core members are a group of experts who have been involved in memory storage products for over 20 years as part of Sony's memory storage division, including involvement in the development and sales of the Sony Memory Stick, broadcast memory cards, and XQD cards. In January 2021, Nextorage left the Sony Group, becoming an independent company specializing in memory storage, with an investment from Phison Electronics, the giant of memory controller solution companies.

"With the goal of becoming No. 1 in the memory storage industry, we are developing new products and technologies as well as marketing products that meet customer needs." [Nextorage]

In their effort to meet that goal, Nextorage provided a set of memory cards for review. Specifically, I've been using the following:

Nextorage 256GB NX-F2PRO Series UHS-II SDXC Memory Card
Nextorage 330GB NX-B1PRO Series CFexpress Type B Memory Card
Nextorage 512GB NX-B2SE Series CFexpress Type B Memory Card

Build Quality

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The Nextorage memory cards have good build quality, indistinguishable from the high-end alternatives, including the ProGrade Digital 325GB CFexpress 2.0 Cobalt Memory Card.

Speed

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Speed and price are memory card differentiating factors, and Nextorage offers a range of card options.

The first performance test for the CFexpress cards was recording Canon EOS R5 8K RAW video, creating a data rate known to fill the buffer when writing to slow cards. The R5 was still writing to the Nextorage card after 15 minutes in multiple tests.

Following are the CrystalDiskMark performance results. CFexpress card testing utilized a Thunderbolt-connected reader, and the SDXC card was tested with a USB connection. Remember that write performance matters most when capturing movies and photos, while read speed is important for playback and uploading images to a computer.

Load Comparison Images

The NX-B2SE created the fastest test results, impressive for such an inexpensive card.

The NX-B1PRO card is considerably more expensive, but it features a VPG-400 (Video Performance Guarantee) standard rating and Dynamic Auto Power Save, reducing power consumption by up to 68% when recording video, which can help avoid thermal throttling.

The NX-F2PRO pushes the limits of the UHS-II specification.

Reliability

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These cards have performed flawlessly. A couple of months does not meet a "long-term" use definition, but my Nextorage cards have many thousands of images written to them with no issues.

Price and Value

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The Nextorage 256GB NX-F2PRO Series UHS-II SDXC Memory Card is relatively low-priced, the 5th lowest in the UHS-II V90 class at review time. It has the fastest max write speed rating in its class, with only, not surprisingly, a Sony card matching it.

The Nextorage 512GB NX-B2SE Series CFexpress Type B Memory Card is also low-priced, the lowest in its speed rating at review time, and not too far down the lowest price list if cards with close speed ratings are included. This card is a great value.

As mentioned, the Nextorage 330GB NX-B1PRO Series CFexpress Type B Memory Card carries a higher price tag — about twice as high as the higher capacity B2SE. However, the Pro card's other features must be factored into the value of this card.

The cards come in a little plastic storage case, and Nextorage provides a Memory Card File Rescue app as a free download.

Summary

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I'll continue using the Nextorage cards and readers for daily needs. Their performance is great, I trust their reliability, and the price is attractive.