One of the best microSD playing cards for the Nintendo Change 2

The Nintendo Change 2 is right here, and which means an entire lot extra folks will ultimately want a brand new microSD card. Whereas the brand new console comes with 256GB of built-in storage — eight instances greater than the authentic Change and 4 instances greater than the Change OLED — its improved efficiency implies that some video games will chew up a ton of that house. Cyberpunk 2077 is a 59GB obtain, for instance, whereas Break up Fiction checks in at 69GB. Different titles aren’t almost as massive (notably these made by Nintendo itself), however likelihood is you’ll wish to add extra room sooner or later down the highway.

At any time when that’s, you’ll want a microSD Categorical card. That is not the identical because the previous dependable microSD playing cards you could have purchased for the primary Change or different gaming handhelds — they’re newer, quicker and much dearer. However if you need more room, they’re your solely alternative. For those who’re trying to seize one at present, we’ve laid out the perfect microSD playing cards for the Change 2 and damaged down what you must know before you purchase.

One of the best microSD playing cards for the Change 2 (aren’t all that essential)

The Change 2 is the primary mainstream gadget to require microSD Categorical for storage growth, so there aren’t many choices that can be purchased simply but. Of the six suitable fashions we’ve seen so far, we’ve examined 5: the SanDisk microSD Categorical Card, the Lexar Play Professional, the Samsung microSD Card for Nintendo Change 2, the PNY microSD Categorical Card and the GameStop Categorical microSD Card for Nintendo Change 2. The primary 4 are made by real storage producers, whereas the GameStop card seems to be a rebadged model of one other mannequin. (This ought to be the case with one other card offered by Walmart underneath its Onn sub-brand, which we hope to catch in inventory earlier than our subsequent replace.) We used the 256GB model of each card aside from Lexar Play Professional, which was 1TB.

After timing these microSD Categorical playing cards throughout a variety of Change 2 video games, our recommendation is easy: Get whichever one is accessible for the bottom worth within the capability you need. They aren’t an identical, particularly if you wish to transfer a recreation to the cardboard from the console’s inner storage (or vice versa). However the variations in load instances and general efficiency inside precise video games are robust to note except you have got a stopwatch useful.

All 5 playing cards loaded up the digital model of Mario Kart World, as an example, between 18 and 20 seconds. Every loaded the primary Grand Prix race in about 6.5 seconds. Attending to the beginning display screen of Cyberpunk 2077 took about 38 seconds in every case. Loading a save in a very asset-heavy space (Jig-Jig Avenue) then took between 26 and 29 seconds, relying on the cardboard.

With Quick Fusion, a smaller native Change 2 recreation, the preliminary load all the time took six to seven seconds, whereas every card loaded the primary championship race in roughly 4 seconds. It was an analogous state of affairs with the Change 2 improve for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (utilizing a Change 1 cartridge): Every card took simply over six seconds to get to the beginning display screen, between 19 and 20 seconds to load a save simply earlier than the ultimate boss, about 16 seconds to quick journey between Kakariko Village and Korok Forest, and so forth. We noticed no vital points with in-game masses when taking part in every recreation, both.

All of this means that the Change 2 has a comparatively particular goal for these playing cards to hit, and that there might not be a lot room for one mannequin to leap too far out in entrance of the others. We’ll additionally be aware that the console’s built-in storage was persistently quicker than any exterior possibility: The hole wasn’t all the time massive, however no card actually outpaced it in any of our assessments. Loading that demanding space in Cyberpunk, for instance, took about 22.5 seconds on common. So if you need absolutely the quickest load instances, don’t put your recreation on a card in any respect.

For those who want the psychological consolation of understanding you technically have the perfect card accessible, get the SanDisk microSD Categorical Card. It had no outliers throughout our many recreation loading assessments, and it was persistently proper close to the highest when it got here to transferring video games to and from system storage, which implies it provides robust sequential learn and write efficiency. Benchmark testing on PC with instruments like CrystalDiskMark backed this up, as famous in our broader microSD card shopping for information.

Placing Mario Kart (a 21.9GB file) on that card took 4 minutes and 39 seconds on common, which was solely second to the Lexar Play Professional by six seconds. It was the quickest to put in writing Quick Fusion (3.5GB), taking a median of 27 seconds throughout three runs. Solely PNY’s card was quicker to maneuver video games again to the console’s storage, however that one was far slower at writing video games to the cardboard — getting Mario Kart on there took seven minutes and 11 seconds on common. Simply be aware that the 128GB model of SanDisk’s card has slower sequential writes than the bigger variations, together with a lot slower sustained write speeds (100 MB/s vs 210-220 MB/s). So transferring a recreation to that specific mannequin will take for much longer.

Virtually talking, although, pace variations aren’t as essential on this case as having a lot of house to carry video games at a worth you possibly can stay with. To make issues straightforward, we’ve listed each Categorical card we’ve seen at retailers on the time of writing under. Bear in mind: You need microSD Categorical, not “Excessive,” just like the branding SanDisk makes use of for some standard microSD playing cards. A microSD Categorical card may have an enormous “EX” brand printed on it.

128GB

• SanDisk microSD Categorical Card ($60 MSRP)

• PNY microSD Categorical Card ($47 MSRP)

256GB

512GB

1TB

• Lexar Play Professional ($220 MSRP)

• GameStop Categorical microSD Card for Nintendo Change 2 ($190 MSRP)

As you possibly can see, whereas the SanDisk card is quick, it’s additionally the costliest of an already-pricey bunch. Is it price an additional $10-20 to shave a pair seconds off sure masses in sure video games, or a pair minutes when transferring a recreation to exterior storage? Most likely not for most individuals.

However inventory for all of those playing cards has been patchy because the Change 2 landed, particularly for the Walmart Onn mannequin, which is by far the most cost effective alternative. If just one card is definitely accessible by the point you learn this — and it’s essential to have it at present — it’s secure to only get it. You received’t lose or achieve all that a lot in terms of real-world efficiency.

In the end, although, we advise holding off on shopping for any microSD Categorical card for so long as attainable. President Trump’s tariff shenanigans might spike costs a bit greater within the quick time period, however typically, all of those playing cards are about as costly at present as they’ll ever be. And in comparison with conventional microSD choices, they are expensive: The Samsung Professional Plus, for instance, prices $17 for 128GB, $25 for 256GB, $43 for 512GB and $90 for 1TB as of this writing.

The Change 2 is extraordinarily in style, so extra microSD Categorical playing cards will have to be made and costs will (ultimately) come down. Ideally, we’ll see extra high-capacity choices as effectively: Nintendo says the Change 2 technically helps playing cards as much as 2TB, however to this point solely a pair even go as much as 1TB. All of this implies you must attempt to use all 256GB baked into the Change 2 first, even when it means having to delete a recreation or two. However for those who completely want more room immediately, the playing cards above ought to be superb.

What are microSD Categorical playing cards?

Most microSD playing cards are primarily based on a typical referred to as Extremely Excessive Velocity (UHS), of which there are three variations: UHS-I, UHS-II and UHS-III. The overwhelming majority of playing cards you could have purchased previously make the most of UHS-I. These have one row of pins within the again and a theoretical most knowledge switch pace of 104 megabytes per second (MB/s). (Although many playing cards are capable of surpass that restrict with proprietary tech and card readers.) The unique Change has a UHS-I microSD slot, as do most different gaming handhelds like Valve’s Steam Deck.

UHS-II playing cards add a second row of pins and might attain as much as 312 MB/s. These are pricier and far much less widespread than playing cards primarily based on UHS-I, however they’re supported by some cameras and higher-power handhelds just like the ASUS ROG Ally X. UHS-III, in the meantime, is twice as quick as UHS-II in concept (624 MB/s), however no microSD playing cards have truly used it.

UHS-I playing cards have held on over time as a result of they’re low-cost, broadly supported and quick sufficient for the issues most individuals want them to do: file 4K video, stash images and so forth. However with the Change 2, Nintendo wants extra. The brand new console is dramatically extra highly effective, which permits it to run demanding video games that will have initially been constructed for stronger {hardware} just like the PlayStation 5, Xbox Sequence X or gaming PCs. The gadget additionally makes use of UFS 3.1 storage internally, which is way speedier than the eMMC storage utilized by the unique Change. (A customized file decompression engine helps enhance load instances as effectively.) So if the Change 2 goes to simply accept microSD playing cards, it wants ones that received’t deliver a critical drop-off in efficiency and might maintain up with fashionable video games.

Therefore, SD Categorical. This normal has technically been round since 2018 however largely went nowhere till the Change 2 got here alongside. It additionally makes use of a second row of pins, nevertheless it lets microSD playing cards make the most of the PCI Categorical (PCIe)/NVMe interface, which is identical underlying tech utilized by fashionable SSDs. In consequence, it might produce significantly quicker learn and write speeds, with a present theoretical most of 985 MB/s.

As famous above, real-world efficiency received’t be fairly that quick. Even when it was, the perfect microSD Categorical playing cards would nonetheless be a lot slower than the NVMe SSDs used by the PS5 and Xbox. (Sony recommends SSDs with sequential learn speeds of at the least 5,500 MB/s.) And so they’ll fall effectively under their peak speeds underneath sustained masses: SanDisk, as an example, says sustained write speeds for its 128GB Categorical card can drop as little as 100 MB/s.

However they’re nonetheless a marked enchancment over previous UHS-I playing cards, and in concept, they need to be faster than some older SATA-based SSDs when it comes loading recreation ranges, asset streaming, retrieving saves or copying video games to exterior storage. Whereas SanDisk’s microSD Categorical card can produce sequential learn speeds round 900 MB/s, Lexar’s Skilled Silver Plus — the highest UHS-I decide in our basic microSD card information — topped out simply over 200 MB/s, and that’s with a proprietary reader. (On the primary Change, it’d be nearer to 100 MB/s.) Sequential writes and random speeds had been three to 4 instances higher as effectively, and generally much more relying on the benchmark we used.

It stays to be seen how effectively these Categorical playing cards will maintain up with years of use, and there’s no option to know precisely when their sky-high costs will drop. Non-Change 2 gadgets that assist microSD Categorical are nonetheless exceedingly uncommon, and the usual itself isn’t backwards suitable with UHS-II, so that you’ll be restricted to UHS-I speeds if you wish to use your card with one other gadget (except you purchase a expensive exterior reader). Nonetheless, whereas the elevated prices and restricted choice are annoying, the tech itself is worthy of a next-gen Change.

How we take a look at microSD Categorical playing cards

We put our microSD Categorical playing cards via a sequence of assessments meant to simulate how folks would use every card on the Change 2 in the actual world. We primarily labored with 4 video games: a mid-sized title in Mario Kart World, a small one in Quick Fusion, a comparatively giant one in Cyberpunk 2077 and a hybrid in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which ran off a Change 1 cartridge however used a roughly 10GB Change 2 improve pack that was downloaded and put in digitally.

We first timed how lengthy it took to maneuver every recreation from the system’s inner storage to the cardboard in query, and vice versa. We then timed how lengthy it took to load every recreation when put in to a given card. After that, we measured how shortly the playing cards might load sure in-game situations: the primary Grand Prix race in Mario Kart; the primary championship race in Quick Fusion; quick touring between the Jig-Jig Avenue, Embers and Downtown Central areas in Cyberpunk and quick touring between the Kakariko Village, Korok Forest and the Hyrule Fort City Ruins areas in Zelda. (We selected these locations within the latter two video games as a result of they’re extra taxing than different areas.) With Cyberpunk and Zelda, we additionally timed how lengthy it took to load up completely different save recordsdata in these areas.

With every take a look at, we accomplished three to 5 runs to account for any irregularities and marked down the common time taken between them. We did every take a look at in airplane mode, with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth off, to reduce any efficiency drain that would come up from background downloads. Between every take a look at, we additionally spent at the least an hour taking part in the video games off every card to make sure there have been no vital drop-offs in comparison with the console’s built-in storage.