Nikon 1 J4 UHS-1 microSD capability

Spy_Black · June 2015

Hi folks, I recently picked up the BuyDig J4/WP-N3 sale package for scuba diving, and was curious if anyone tried a high-speed card like the SanDisk 32GB Extreme PRO UHS-I card in it, and it if had any real-world benefit. The package came with a 32GB Sony SR-32UY microSDHC card, and it seems to me to be pretty slow to write to. I can't find any specs for this card, so I don't know what it's rated write speed is. The Sandisk above has the fastest write speed of 90MB/s, but can the J4 really take advantage of this capability? There's no point in buying it if it doesn't.

So if anyone's tried a high speed card in the J4 and had real-world throughput increase, please let me know. Thanks.

Ironheart · June 2015

@Spy_Black, I have a V3 which has the same Expeed 4A as your J4. I am able to clear a 40 frame buffer in 60 seconds on a "normal" class 10 UHS-I card. This may also be marked as U with a 1 inside. These are rated for 10MB/sec write performance. On a class 10 UHS-I card with a U with a 3 inside, rated for 30MB/sec write performance I can clear the 40 frame buffer in 20 seconds, or three times faster. I am not aware of any higher rated write performance specification for UHS-I. The ** next to the 90MB/sec write performance on the SanDisk cards means you may not get all that performance all the time. I will try and get a 90MB/sec one today after work to see if it really gives that in the real-world. (I'll return it if it doesn't, keep it if it does!)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secure_Digital#Speeds

Ironheart · June 2015

If this is your card, it's only guaranteed to 10MB/sec write perf, a U3 would be faster, note the star next to the 40MB/sec and the 1 inside the U.

manhattanboy · June 2015

Hi folks, I recently picked up the BuyDig J4/WP-N3 sale package for scuba diving, and was curious if anyone tried a high-speed card like the SanDisk 32GB Extreme PRO UHS-I card in it, and it if had any real-world benefit. The package came with a 32GB Sony SR-32UY microSDHC card, and it seems to me to be pretty slow to write to. I can't find any specs for this card, so I don't know what it's rated write speed is. The Sandisk above has the fastest write speed of 90MB/s, but can the J4 really take advantage of this capability? There's no point in buying it if it doesn't.

So if anyone's tried a high speed card in the J4 and had real-world throughput increase, please let me know. Thanks.

I use the San Disk high speed microSD cards in the J4. I have not had any issues, and my understanding from the research that I did was that the main issue is not going to be with pics but with video and preventing dropped frames when filming at max res and rate. I don't know if they really make any difference as I have not tried slower cards in there, but at a minimum the faster speed cards help off load the pics onto the computer quicker :P

Spy_Black · June 2015

Thanks for your replies. Yeah, I think I'm just gonna jump on the SanDisk 32GB Extreme PRO UHS-I card, which is 33bucks over at B&H. This Sony card is just agonizingly slow.

Ironheart · June 2015

So I couldn't find the SanDisk 32GB Extreme PRO UHS-I in microSD format, but it is a speed class 3 card (U with a three in it). I did grab a Delkin Black which is rated for 99MB/sec, and a speed class 3. It was just as fast as my other class three cards. I also grabbed a Samsung speed class 1 (U with a 1 in it), that was rated 90MB read, 80MB write, and it was just as fast as the others, but I guess not guaranteed to sustain that. The SanDisk you mention, should give you the max the J4 can push which seems to be in the 30-40MB/sec (U 3 speed class) range.

Spy_Black · June 2015

Yeah, I suspected something like that. Still better than what I'm getting from the Sony card. I've been shooting RAW+JPEG in my tests so far, and that draaaaaags along if you do a rapid succession of shots. Even a single shot takes far longer than it should.

Spy_Black · June 2015

BTW, here's a B&H link for the Sandisk if you're curious:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1127839-REG/sandisk_sdsdqxp_032g_a46a_32gb_extreme_pro_uhs_i.html

Spy_Black · June 2015

For what it's worth, I bought the Sandisk card, and it only cut the time roughly in half. So the bottleneck is the J4. I guess it's a bit like the rest of the Nikon 1 system, coming up a bit short. :-)

Ironheart · June 2015

For me it cut it from 60sec to 20sec, or a third. Can you time how long it takes to clear a full buffer? Is your buffer 40 frames? I shoot Raw only

Spy_Black · June 2015

I shoot RAW+JPEG, for a total of 20 frames @ 60fps, and I'm getting ~24 seconds with the Sandisk card and ~42 seconds with the Sony card.

Ironheart · June 2015

If you shoot raw only do you get 40 frames or is the J4 buffer half the size of of the V3?

Spy_Black · June 2015

I get 20 frames at 60, 20, and 10 fps, regardless of whether I'm RAW, RAW+JPEG, JPEG fine, or JPEG normal. Only in continuous mode was I able to get 100 frames in JPEG normal or JPEG fine, and 26 frames in RAW or RAW+JPEG before the camera stopped shooting. Obviously the V3 has a larger buffer. :-)

Ironheart · June 2015

And seems to be about 2x faster since I can clear 40 frames in 20 sec with a U3 card

I have been tempted by the waterproof case deals. I hope Nikon makes one for the V series, but it's probably better to take a cheaper body UW.

Spy_Black · June 2015

If your V3 is your primary camera, then getting a secondary one is paramount. Underwater cases can leak, especially at depth. So you need a camera you can consider expendable. The J4 is that camera for me.

If you're not a diver and go to depth beyond 1 atmosphere (33ft), chances are whatever underwater case you use will hold up. It's in the greater pressures where leakage can occur. Because the WP-N3 is custom made by Nikon for this series of cameras, I have a bit a faith in it's functionality. :-)

Ironheart · June 2015

I have 5 bodies, so primary is a bit of a conundrum, but the V3 is my only CX body, so I think I need a spare B-)

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Nikon 1 J4 UHS-1 microSD capability

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