Hot on the heels of Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders and the potentially wallet-straining news that the new handheld is switching to microSD Express storage technology, PNY has unveiled its new microSD Express Flash Memory Cards.
PNY says that its new cards are capable of up to 890MB/s read speeds and up to 750MB/s write speeds, 4.4 times faster than standard UHS-I microSD cards.
It features PCIe Gen3x1 microSD technology, which should, in theory, reduce load times of your favorite Nintendo Switch 2 games and even improve performance.
The Nintendo Switch 2 comes with 256GB of onboard storage as standard, so if you want any more, you'll need to invest in a microSD Express card like this one.
PNY says its microSD Express Cards maintain backwards compatibility with USH-I and USH-II host devices at their respective speeds.
They also come with unique heat dissipation technology and built-in microSD thermal monitoring PNY claims adjusts to optimize temperature and keep things running smoothly.
PNY's microSD Express cards are also rated as magnet proof, shock proof, temperature proof, waterproof, drop proof, X-Ray proof, humidity proof, and wear-out proof. They also come with a lifetime warranty.
Capacity | 128GB-256GB | Row 0 - Cell 2 |
Format | microSDXC | Row 1 - Cell 2 |
Interface | PCIe Gen3x1 UHS-I | Row 2 - Cell 2 |
Speed class | Class 10, U3 | Row 3 - Cell 2 |
Video Speed Class | V30 | Row 4 - Cell 2 |
App performance | A1 | Row 5 - Cell 2 |
Read performance | Up to 890MB/s | Row 6 - Cell 2 |
Write speed | Up to 750MB/s | Row 7 - Cell 2 |
Compatibility | mnicroSD Express including Nintendo Switch 2 | Row 8 - Cell 2 |
Backwards compatibility | microSD UHS-I and UHS-II devices | Row 9 - Cell 2 |
Available now at PNY.com or Amazon.com, the PNY microSD Express Flash Memory Cards are priced at $44.99 for the 128GB model and $55.99 for the 256GB model. That's cheaper than the licensed Nintendo Samsung microSD Express card and offerings from SanDisk at the same capacity.
The switch to microSD Express is just one of a number of ways in which the Switch 2 is a much more expensive proposition compared to its predecessor. The overall console retails at $449.99, and while the console itself hasn't seen any tariff-induced price increases, Joy-Con 2 controllers, the Pro Controller, Switch 2 camera, dock set, wheel set, and charging grips are all more expensive than initially planned.
Likewise, big titles like Mario Kart World cost $80. Nintendo Switch 2's official specs confirm its GPU is a custom Nvidia SoC (Ampere-based) with 12GB of memory. As such, you can expect performance similar to that of the old RTX 2050.
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