Press Releases
SanDisk® Unveils World’s First microSD Card Designed to Deliver a New Dimension of Mobile Application Performance
Jan 4, 2017
The 256GB SanDisk Ultra® microSD card with the Latest A1 SD Specification Offers Mobile Users Even More Storage Expansion Options
LAS VEGAS, Jan. 4, 2017 – Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: WDC), a global storage technology and solutions leader, today unveiled the world’s first microSDTM card that meets the Application Performance Class 1 (A1) requirements from the latest SD Association’s SD 5.1 specifications. By meeting the A1 performance standard, the 256GB SanDisk Ultra® microSDXCTM UHS-I card, Premium Edition, delivers capacity, speed and enhanced capability to deliver a better smartphone experience1.
Since the popular memory card format launched more than a decade ago, microSD cards have been instrumental in driving new segments in digital imaging like action cameras, drones, dashboard cameras and surveillance systems, and have significantly impacted the evolution of the smartphone. Today, approximately 75 percent of smartphone models on the market contain microSD slots, according to data from Strategy Analytics2. The 256GB* SanDisk Ultra microSD card offers the capacity and performance consumers need to capture all of life’s moments without having to worry about what to delete. The card can hold up to 24 hours of Full HD video3 and with premium transfer speeds of up to 95MB/s**. With A1 performance, the card can launch and run apps at blazing speeds.
“The microSD card has been an integral part of the digital revolution by providing more options for high performance, high capacity storage for smartphones,” said Dinesh Bahal, vice president of product management, Client Solutions Business Unit, Western Digital. “SanDisk® cards are at the center of more than two billion consumer devices, and now with this A1 card, we’re proud to play a significant role in continuing to advance the trusted format.”
Long used by billions to expand capacity for photos, videos, music and many other digital files, the, microSD card now must evolve to support application-intensive environments, paving the way for a new dimension of memory card performance. With the introduction of the Android Marshmallow 6 operating system, users can expand storage capacity on smartphones by selecting the microSD card as preferred or adoptable storage, which means apps can now be loaded and launched directly from the A1 microSD card.
The A1 spec allows the new card to manage random read input-output access per second (IOPS) of 1,500 and write IOPS of 500, so it can quickly open apps and process accompanying tasks, such as audio, graphics, saved profiles and in-app permissions. With this in mind, the new SanDisk Ultra microSD card with A1 is designed to provide consumers a faster, more powerful app experience using cards.
“SD technology is trusted by consumers around the world for its reliable, backwards compatible and
highly interoperable storage, making it the world’s leading memory format with billions of SD memory cards and devices in the market,” said Brian Kumagai, SDA president. “The A1 specification will help consumers identify the appropriate card to ensure an optimal experience when running and launching apps on their smartphone. We are pleased that SanDisk will release an A1 card, and continues to contribute to breakthrough technologies enabled by the microSD format.”
The new SanDisk Ultra microSD card with A1 is compatible with the SanDisk® Memory Zone app for Android™, giving users an easy way to manage and back up content on their device. The app is available for free through the Google Play™ Store4. The card will be available worldwide in January 2017 with a U.S. MSRP of $199.99.
The complete line of SanDisk® microSD cards can be purchased at more than 300,000 retailers worldwide.
About Western Digital
Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: WDC) is an industry-leading provider of storage technologies and solutions that enable people to create, leverage, experience and preserve data. The company addresses ever-changing market needs by providing a full portfolio of compelling, high-quality storage solutions with customer-focused innovation, high efficiency, flexibility and speed. Our products are marketed under the HGST, SanDisk and WD brands to OEMs, distributors, resellers, cloud infrastructure providers and consumers. For more information, please visit www.hgst.com, www.wd.com, and www.sandisk.com.
About SanDisk
SanDisk, a Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: WDC) brand, provides trusted and innovative flash storage products that have transformed the electronics industry. SanDisk’s quality, state-of-the-art solutions are at the heart of many of the world's largest data centers, and embedded in advanced smartphones, tablets and PCs. SanDisk’s consumer products are available at hundreds of thousands of retail stores worldwide.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains certain forward-looking statements, including statements regarding the development, compatibility, performance and capacity, capabilities, applications, pricing and availability of the SanDisk Ultra microSDXC UHS-I card, Premium Edition and its A1 functionality. There are a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause these forward-looking statements to be inaccurate including, among others: volatility in global economic conditions; business conditions and growth in the storage ecosystem; impact of competitive products and pricing; market acceptance and cost of commodity materials and specialized product components; actions by competitors; unexpected advances in competing technologies; our development and introduction of products based on new technologies and expansion into new data storage markets; risks associated with acquisitions, mergers and joint ventures; difficulties or delays in manufacturing; and other risks and uncertainties listed in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), including the company's Form 10-Q filed with the SEC on Nov. 8, 2016, to which your attention is directed. The company undertakes no obligation to update the information in this release in the event facts or circumstances change after the date of this release.
*1GB=1,000,000,000 bytes. Actual user storage less.
**Up to 95MB/s read speed; write speed lower. Based on internal testing; performance may be lower depending on host device, interface, usage conditions and other factors. 1MB=1,000,000 bytes.
1Results may vary based on host device, app type and other factors.
2SpecTraX service from Strategy Analytics
3Approximations; Results and Full HD (1920x1080) video support may vary based on host device, file attributes and other factors. See: www.sandisk.com/HD.
4Download and installation required; see www.sandiskmemoryzone.com.
©2017 Western Digital Corporation or its affiliates. All rights reserved. SanDisk, SanDisk Ultra, and SanDisk Memory Zone are registered trademarks or trademarks of Western Digital Corporation or its affiliates in the US and/or other countries. The SD, microSD, and microSDXC marks and logos are trademarks of SD-3C, LLC. Android and Google Play are trademarks of Google Inc. All other marks are the property of their respective owners.
Western Digital Technologies, Inc. is the seller of record and licensee in the Americas of SanDisk® products.