Better make sure the specs for the device accepts 64GB SDXC cards before buying one. Most only allow up to 32GB cards.

My 32GB SanDisk Ultra microSD, purchased from Amazon in the last GB deal (not a 3rd party seller) tested very slow - sustained write speed is only about 4 MB/s. It starts off fast, but slows down to 4 MB/s, if I continuously write to it. I tested this on two different machines using h2testw. Anyone else encountered slow writes?

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Hmmm... I had a Sandisk 16GB SDHC card in my shopping cart for a few days (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0037FLUYU/ref=ox_sc_imb_mini_detail?ie=UTF8&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER). I checked today's all day GoldBox deal and it said I could save some 60% but as it turns out, the price is still the same. I guess it wasn't listed in the "select" cards :(

Neither is the one I want. Oh, well!

In many cases your device may say "Up to 32GB" but still are able to accept SDXC cards at 64GB. This is normally for phones. Cameras and Camcorders are normally quite specific on what it supports. If you are getting slow writes on your card, it is likely defective and you should seek replacement.

@Zeeshan Syed,
If you looked at the list, it isn't one of the included.

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I have the SanDisk 64gb SDXC micro SD card in my Samsung Galaxy Note II. It works great!!

I think that if you plan to use this for a camera/camcorder, you may be better off getting the "Extreme" level of cards from SanDisk so you can get better performance from the camera itself, as well as offload your pictures faster...

If you plan on using this just as a memory supplement (like phone/tablet) then the "Ultra" line should be good enough.

So how are the USB drives? I've had that format before and like that style for keychains (no caps to loose).

Looking at the reviews some folks say the transcend look-alike is faster Transcend 64 GB JetFlash 500 Retractable USB Flash Drive - TS64GJF500E (Black) , but the sandisk 64gb here is actually cheaper by $7.

That's an odd position for transcend: more expensive and faster than sandisk? Normally transcend plays 2nd fiddle to the sandisk premium products.

Then of course these are the older USB 2.0 models. Is it worth holding out for an affordable USB 3.0 thumb drive or is the memory in the sticks too slow to take advantage of USB 2.0?

Thanks!

@gapperguy:

The specs don't always tell the full story. It depends upon your device's firmware.

For example, the specs on my Archos 8o G9 tablet say "up 32GB", but with the latest firmware, the tablet can read NTFS formatted cards. That means, it can read larger cards. I'm using a 64GB card with no issue right now.

A lot of SD/microSD card devices only read FAT32, which doesn't read anything above 32GB. That doesn't mean you can't use a larger card - it just means it will never read anything above that amount. This is very often the case with camcorders and inexpensive cameras.

Phones and tablets are a bit more grey in this area. While most won't understand exFAT (which does recognize larger drives), some will understand NTFS, as my tablet does.

My advice: get the latest firmware for your device, then take a spare card and format it NTFS. Plug that into your device and see if it reads it. If so, you should have no problem reading a 64GB card (or larger, once those become readily available).

Honestly, the worst case scenario is you buy a large card and it doesn't work in your device, but you can use it to back up or transfer files on your computer.

Having said that, the savings on these cards is not that great. I've seen better, especially considering the "savings" is off of list prices, not every day pricing, which would show a much smaller discount in comparison. At best, you're only saving a few dollars on most of these devices compared to normal pricing. While good, you can score better discounts by watching the ads and jumping at the big sales when they really do come along.