The reader also has a magnetic base so you can secure it to a convenient steel surface, like the surface of your PC case, for example. It is supplied with a pair of high quality 45cm cables, USB-C to A and USB-C to C. ProGrade have come up with a robust device that gives you confidence it will last and withstand a degree of abuse.

But as we shall see, it’s more complicated than that.įirst, here is a quick look at the hardware: That’s double the theoretical speed of USB 3.0 Gen 1. The ProGrade CFAST™ & SD Dual Slot USB 3.1, Gen 2 Workflow Reader not only supports UHS-II but also data transfer at up to a theoretical Gen 2 10Gbits/sec, or 1.25 GBytes/sec via its USB 3.1 Gen 2 interface using a USB C-type connection. Where the bottleneck resides depends on the memory card itself, he card reader, the connection to the host device and the interface at the host. Memory card performance is limited by bottlenecks.

The ProGrade reader we’re reviewing fully supports UHS-II, but that’s only half the story. UHS-II cards are compatible with older SD card readers but you don’t get the extra performance.

You can tell an UHS-II card from a ‘standard’ card by the extra row of contacts on the card. UHS-II cards are capable of much faster read and write rates thanks to improved data transfer protocols and interface electronics. But now UHS-II cards have come onto the scene the limitations of first-generation USB 3.90 card readers have been exposed. Please note we are only examining its SD card performance in this review.įor years now we’ve ignored the USB 3.0 card reader at our office (a Lexar Pro SR1). The reader we’re looking at in this article supports both UHS-II SD card and CFAST cards. ProGrade was formed earlier this year by a group of former Lexar and SanDisk personnel and they have a particular focus on the needs of photographers. It’s a bit of a mouthful! We’ll review their UHS-II V90 SDXC card separately. Here we’re reviewing their ProGrade CFAST™ & SD Dual Slot USB 3.1, Gen 2 Workflow Reader. We have been using a couple of new products from a new player, ProGrade Digital, in the professional category of the memory card business. Not all USB 3 card readers are made the same

Usb 3 card reader review