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

If you happen to’re fortunate sufficient to have a brand new Nintendo Switch 2 in hand proper now, you are in all probability filling it up with previous and new video games alike. The console comes with 256GB of storage inbuilt; that is eight instances greater than the original Switch and 4 instances greater than the Switch OLED. However the brand new console’s improved performance signifies that some video games will hog a ton of that area. Take, as an example, Cyberpunk 2077, which is a 59GB obtain, whereas Split Fiction checks in at 69GB. Whereas not all titles hog a lot storage, there is a good probability you may need to add more room to your Swap 2 as time goes on.

You will want a microSD Categorical card to try this. These are not the identical as the usual microSD cards you’ll have for the primary Swap or different gaming handhelds. They’re newer, quicker and (as to be anticipated) costlier. However if you would like more room, they’re your only choice. If you happen to’re trying to seize one at present, we’ve laid out the perfect microSD playing cards for the Swap 2 and damaged down what it’s best to know before you purchase.

One of the best microSD playing cards for the Swap 2 (and why you would possibly need to wait to purchase)

The Swap 2 is the primary mainstream system to require microSD Categorical for storage growth, so there aren’t many choices available for purchase simply but. To make issues straightforward, right here’s a listing of each microSD Categorical card we’ve seen at retailers on the time of writing.

128GB

256GB

512GB

1TB

Nintendo says the Swap 2 technically supports playing cards with a capability as much as 2TB, however we haven’t seen any microSD Categorical mannequin transcend 1TB simply but. It’s additionally price noting that GameStop and Onn (Walmart’s in-house electronics model) aren’t producers, so it’s unclear who precisely is making their playing cards.

Inventory for these playing cards stays considerably patchy, notably for the higher-capacity choices. However lots of the 128GB and 256GB fashions look like steadily obtainable as of the Swap 2’s launch week. Simply be warned that you’ll have to take care of prolonged ship instances in some circumstances. SanDisk’s microSD Categorical Card has additionally elevated in worth because it first went up on the market in February; initially, it value $45 for 128GB and $60 for 256GB.

Both method, all of those playing cards are far pricier than conventional microSD choices. The Samsung Pro Plus, for instance, prices $17 for 128GB, $25 for 256GB, $43 for 512GB and $90 for 1TB as of this writing.

Keep in mind: You’re searching for microSD Categorical, not “Excessive,” just like the branding SanDisk makes use of for a few of its conventional microSD cards. A microSD Categorical card can have an enormous “EX” brand printed on it — when you see that, try to be good to go.

We’ve already examined SanDisk’s Categorical card and the Lexar Play Professional for our broader information to the best microSD cards. Between the 2, SanDisk’s card has a lot quicker sequential read speeds — as much as 899 MB/s vs. 712 MB/s in CrystalDiskMark, to call one benchmark — which theoretically makes it higher outfitted to cut back load instances.

The Play Professional is faster for sequential writes (as much as 720 MB/s vs. 650 MB/s), obtainable in additional sizes and needs to be cheaper at 256GB every time it’s in inventory. (SanDisk says the 128GB model of its card has slower sequential writes than the 256GB mannequin, too.) Random efficiency is about equal, so the 2 needs to be equally adept at conserving massive video games like Mario Kart World working easily.

We primarily examined these playing cards on a Home windows PC and Mac, although. How they carry out on the precise Swap 2 stays to be seen. Nintendo didn’t ship out early assessment models to press, and we have solely simply obtained our personal retail mannequin. So we’ll want a couple of extra days to complete testing.

For now, although, we are able to’t say for positive if the console renders all microSD Categorical playing cards to comparable speeds. That was largely the case with the primary Swap: As soon as a (common) microSD card hit a certain threshold of efficiency, there wasn’t that a lot sensible distinction between it and different alternate options. The Swap 2 is working with a unique commonplace, but when one thing comparable have been to occur once more, the “greatest” microSD Categorical card would merely be essentially the most reasonably priced one from a good model within the capability you need.

That brings us to our important piece of recommendation: If you happen to can maintain off on shopping for one in all this stuff early on, that’s in all probability a good suggestion. It’s not simply in regards to the lack of testing — in truth, we’d be stunned if any of those playing cards are really “dangerous.”

It is extra about worth: Barring extra tariff shenanigans, all of those playing cards are as costly at present as they’re ever prone to get. The Swap 2 is already fashionable and can proceed to be, thus extra microSD Categorical playing cards will must be made and costs will (ultimately) come down. Attempt to use all 256 of the gigabytes baked into the Swap 2 first, even when it means having to delete a recreation or two. However when you’re completely positive you need more room instantly, the playing cards above ought to be adequate.

What are microSD Categorical playing cards?

Most microSD playing cards are primarily based on a regular known as Extremely Excessive Pace (UHS), of which there are three variations: UHS-I, UHS-II and UHS-III. The overwhelming majority of playing cards you’ll 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 Swap 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 may 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 really 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: report 4K video, stash photographs and so forth. However with the Swap 2, Nintendo needs more. The brand new console is dramatically extra highly effective, which permits it to run demanding games which will have initially been constructed for stronger {hardware} just like the PlayStation 5, Xbox Sequence X or gaming PCs. The system also uses UFS 3.1 storage internally, which is far speedier than the eMMC storage utilized by the unique Swap. (A customized file decompression engine helps enhance load instances as nicely.) So if the Swap 2 goes to simply accept microSD playing cards, it wants ones that gained’t convey a severe drop-off in efficiency and may maintain up with trendy video games.

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

As famous above, real-world efficiency gained’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 very least 5,500 MB/s.) They usually’ll fall nicely beneath their peak speeds beneath sustained hundreds: 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 Professional Silver Plus — the highest UHS-I decide in our common microSD card information — topped out simply over 200 MB/s, and that’s with a proprietary reader. (On the primary Swap, it’d be nearer to 100 MB/s.) Sequential writes and random speeds have been three to 4 instances higher as nicely, and typically much more relying on the benchmark we used.

It stays to be seen how nicely these Categorical playing cards will maintain up with prolonged use, and there’s no option to know precisely when their sky-high costs will drop. Non-Swap 2 gadgets that help 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 system (except you purchase a pricey external reader). Nonetheless, whereas the elevated prices and restricted choice are annoying, the tech itself appears worthy of a next-gen Swap.