USB-C Card Readers (Please Help!!)

[TheRealTVGuy]

So I have a new camera coming next week that shoots on both CF and SDXC. I have a newer MacBook Pro that only has USB-C ports. I also have a little money to burn, so I'm going to purchase this ( http://www.lexar.com/portfolio_page/professional-3600x-cfast-2-0-card/ ) and this ( http://www.lexar.com/portfolio_page/professional-2000x-sdhcsdxc-uhs-ii-cards/ ).

What I can't find, from either SanDisk or Lexar is a USB-C card reader that supports BOTH CF (at CFast 2.0 speeds) AND SDXC (at UHS-II speeds). Does anyone know if such a reader exists yet? I refuse to plug a standard USB-A reader into an adapter and then into my MacBook Pro.

 

[kenoh]

I use an adapter I am afraid. Not found an alternate solution. Only native reader I have is the Sandisk SD reader.

 

[deep diver]

Look at micro center, b&h photo, and adorama. If none of them have it then it probably doesn't exist. I'm not sure why you are limiting yourself to sandisc and lexar. There are other good products out there.

 

[bunnspecial]

Just so we're clear, are you talking about CF(Compact Flash) or CFast? As far as I know, you won't find a reader that reads both in the same slot as the physical interfaces are quite different. CF is effectively PATA(IDE) and CFast is SATA.

For CF, I have this reader and love it, although it looks like there's no directly comparable option for CFast

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1141181-REG/lexar_lrw400crbna_professional_usb_3_0_dual.html

A quick look around B&H suggests this might be a good option

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1322708-REG/delkin_devices_ddreader_48_usb_3_0_cfast_2_0.html

Use one of the readily available type A to type C dongles to plug it into your computer.

Alternatively, if the reader uses a micro USB 3 plug, you could use one of these cables https://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/co...gvWEAQYAiABEgIjKfD_BwE&is=REG&m=Y&sku=1141591

 

[kenoh]

OP "refuses" to use adapter....

 

[bunnspecial]

OP "refuses" to use adapter....

Sorry, I missed that.

There again, if you "refuse" to use an adapter...just use a micro-USB-3 to USB-C cable.

Maybe one of these days someone will come out with a card reader that has a permanently attached USB-C cable, but given the ubiquity of USB-A to USB-C I don't see that happen.

Of course, you can always just use your camera as a card reader and use a mini or micro-USB to USB-C cable. I haven't looked but I'm sure they exist.

 

[kenoh]

Sorry, I missed that.

There again, if you "refuse" to use an adapter...just use a micro-USB-3 to USB-C cable.

Maybe one of these days someone will come out with a card reader that has a permanently attached USB-C cable, but given the ubiquity of USB-A to USB-C I don't see that happen.

Of course, you can always just use your camera as a card reader and use a mini or micro-USB to USB-C cable. I haven't looked but I'm sure they exist.

Not sure why OP refuses, seems a bit extreme because CF isnt fast enough to warrant USB-C connectivity anyway so other than having to carry yet another cable, i see no issue but hey ho, each to their own.

 

[TheRealTVGuy]

The Delkin mentioned above plus a Micro USB to USB-C 3.1 cable may be a good solution. I'm not necessarily stuck on Lexar, but they do have CF cards that will read at 540MB/s, so it would be nice to have a reader that is compatible.

Thanks All!

 

[bunnspecial]

The Delkin mentioned above plus a Micro USB to USB-C 3.1 cable may be a good solution. I'm not necessarily stuck on Lexar, but they do have CF cards that will read at 540MB/s, so it would be nice to have a reader that is compatible.

Thanks All!

Before you spend a bunch of money, can you clarify what type of cards you need-or alternatively specify your camera model?

You keep referencing CF(Compact Flash) cards, but in your opening post you link to a CFast card.

CF and CFast are two totally different technologies that share a form factor but are NOT interchangeable. CF uses a series of pins, while CFast uses a "blade" type contact.

I mostly know Nikons and a little bit about Canon. Of the two, Canon is the only one using CFast. Nikon still makes cameras(or a camera) with Compact Flash, but they are phasing it out in favor of XQD on newer models.

 

[TheRealTVGuy]

Before you spend a bunch of money, can you clarify what type of cards you need-or alternatively specify your camera model?

You keep referencing CF(Compact Flash) cards, but in your opening post you link to a CFast card.

CF and CFast are two totally different technologies that share a form factor but are NOT interchangeable. CF uses a series of pins, while CFast uses a "blade" type contact.

I mostly know Nikons and a little bit about Canon. Of the two, Canon is the only one using CFast. Nikon still makes cameras(or a camera) with Compact Flash, but they are phasing it out in favor of XQD on newer models.

Sorry about that, I misspoke. On the CF side I’m looking for an ultra quick CF card reader, not CFast.

I’m shooting on the D810. And before anyone chimes in about how the D810 only writes at UHS-I speeds (on the SDXC slot), that’s why I’m interested in UHS-II Cards/readers. I’m thinking about the speeds AFTER the cards are out of the camera.

 

[bunnspecial]

’m shooting on the D810.

If you're using a D810(great camera-a D800 is my main camera) DO NOT buy the first card you linked. It will not physically fit or work in your D810.

You MUST use Compact Flash(CF) cards-not CFast.

I bought this combo when I first bought my camera

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1277038-REG/sandisk_64gb_extreme_pro_compactflash.html

In my case, the SD card isn't super important to me as I put JPEGs on it and rarely even remove it from the camera.

In addition to that CF card, I have a bunch of these

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/prod..._lcf32gcrbna10662_32gb_pro_compact_flash.html

Both of the linked cards are excellent in my experience(again, first hand, using them in the camera) and transfer speeds using this reader

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1141181-REG/lexar_lrw400crbna_professional_usb_3_0_dual.html

are about as fast as you could hope. Over USB 3.0, it will reliably come close to maxing out the transfer speed of the card.

And, yes, you are right that transfer OFF the card is important. A D800 RAW file is in the range of 80mb, and a Jpeg fine is 10-20mb. Given that the 810 uses more or less the same sensor, I suspect the file sizes are similar.

 

[tonidavid5]

I recently settled for a Trascend RDF9K reader (CF and SDXC UHS-2 compatible) with fast write and read speeds and bought a USB 3 micro-B to USB-C (USB 3.1 gen 2 10GBps rated) cable to use with the reader instead of the original that came with it.

Very happy with the combo.