I was wrong about SLOW SD Cards

[heo3480]

A slow SD Card does not cause choppy drone footage by introducing frame skipping. In this video, I will explain why I was wrong to make that assumption and cover the 3 most likely reason why your footage is jerky and choppy

 

[FoxhallGH]

A slow SD Card does not cause choppy drone footage by introducing frame skipping. In this video, I will explain why I was wrong to make that assumption and cover the 3 most likely reason why your footage is jerky and choppy

Nice video Henrick. As a rule, I recommend looking for the 'UHS Speed Class' logo on the SD Card - and buying only U3 cards. U1 cards will sustain a write speed not less than 10 MBytes/s (80 Mbit/s), which is not enough for HD Video. U3 cards will sustain a write speed not less than 30 MBytes/s (240 Mbit/s) which will cover your needs for HD video.
Regarding what you say about the card just stopping - Won't the card stop recording then start again? So although technically the card may not be skipping frames, the effect may look the same??

 

[droneloverair]

I just bought a samsung evo 32 GB U1 orabge color. Its the cheapest and although it said only for full HD, it works perfectly with my panasonic G7 that does 4k 30 fps at 100mbps.

 

[THE CYBORG]

Nice video Henrick. As a rule, I recommend looking for the 'UHS Speed Class' logo on the SD Card - and buying only U3 cards. U1 cards will sustain a write speed not less than 10 MBytes/s (80 Mbit/s), which is not enough for HD Video. U3 cards will sustain a write speed not less than 30 MBytes/s (240 Mbit/s) which will cover your needs for HD video.
Regarding what you say about the card just stopping - Won't the card stop recording then start again? So although technically the card may not be skipping frames, the effect may look the same??

From my experience I have to agree U3 is the way to go.

 

[Physopto]

I always buy the fastest card I can get at the best price available. Not just for speed but to try to ensure it keeps pace with the changing technology of the video or camera types of the day. The cost difference between the cards is not that great. Especially if you buy one that causes problems be they once in a while (intermittent) or all the time, or compared to the cost of the drone. A slow card is wasted money and it just means having to fork out extra cash in the end. You don't have to buy the biggest when the faster cards do come out, just do with a smaller one/two until the prices drop. I can only speak from owning a canon 5D DSLR and use on computers so far, but the principle I think works for all, unless very old and slow electronic gear.

I have worked in one form or another, with computers from the early 1980s and have followed "get the best" idea within reason for all that time. I am still using a water cooled computer (Intel® Core™2 Quad Processor Q6700) built 12 years ago that is just becoming a pain to use due to more modern program requirements, because I built the best I could at the time.

Buying a slower SD card may seem OK at first, but you may not think that if you do a once in a lifetime shoot and it is lost due or stuttery to the cards slower speed.

 

[itsneedtokno]

I just bought a samsung evo 32 GB U1 orabge color. Its the cheapest and although it said only for full HD, it works perfectly with my panasonic G7 that does 4k 30 fps at 100mbps.

This is the same card I used in my MA1 but with the ability to shoot 4k60 in D-Cinelike (on the MA2) I needed to step it up to a faster card.

 

[droneloverair]

Well i bought 2.

one was a kingston canvas go plus! 64gb that is a U3 rated card over 70MB write speeds and this samsung evo.

both did 20MB of write speeds with my old bottle necked card reader. Thats 160mbps speeds.

did a quick 4k 30 that easily goes to 100mbps bitrate on my G7 and 25 mins of Vidoe and no problems so far. The samsung was just a cheap extra that i bought coz i had extra in my pocket and didnt know what to do with it. It was 10 bucks.

 

[itsneedtokno]

Well i bought 2.

one was a kingston canvas go plus! 64gb that is a U3 rated card over 70MB write speeds and this samsung evo.

both did 20MB of write speeds with my old bottle necked card reader. Thats 160mbps speeds.

did a quick 4k 30 that easily goes to 100mbps bitrate on my G7 and 25 mins of Vidoe and no problems so far. The samsung was just a cheap extra that i bought coz i had extra in my pocket and didnt know what to do with it. It was 10 bucks.

Ya can't beat ten bucks!

 

[FoxhallGH]

I always buy the fastest card I can get at the best price available. Not just for speed but to try to ensure it keeps pace with the changing technology of the video or camera types of the day. The cost difference between the cards is not that great. Especially if you buy one that causes problems be they once in a while (intermittent) or all the time, or compared to the cost of the drone. A slow card is wasted money and it just means having to fork out extra cash in the end. You don't have to buy the biggest when the faster cards do come out, just do with a smaller one/two until the prices drop. I can only speak from owning a canon 5D DSLR and use on computers so far, but the principle I think works for all, unless very old and slow electronic gear.

I have worked in one form or another, with computers from the early 1980s and have followed "get the best" idea within reason for all that time. I am still using a water cooled computer (Intel® Core™2 Quad Processor Q6700) built 12 years ago that is just becoming a pain to use due to more modern program requirements, because I built the best I could at the time.

Buying a slower SD card may seem OK at first, but you may not think that if you do a once in a lifetime shoot and it is lost due or stuttery to the cards slower speed.

You can go a bit crazy with this though, as there are a lot of different specifications on modern SD cards that just would not be applicable to their operation in a drone. For example, read-speeds are not as important as write speeds, and there is no need to support the running of an app' from the SD card ...

Understanding SD Card Speeds, Types and Important Symbols

Ever wondered what all those symbols on an SD card mean? Are you confused about SD Card speeds, classes and types? This guide reveals it all!

shuttermuse.com

 

[Physopto]

You can go a bit crazy with this though, as there are a lot of different specifications on modern SD cards that just would not be applicable to their operation in a drone. For example, read-speeds are not as important as write speeds, and there is no need to support the running of an app' from the SD card ...

Understanding SD Card Speeds, Types and Important Symbols

Ever wondered what all those symbols on an SD card mean? Are you confused about SD Card speeds, classes and types? This guide reveals it all!

shuttermuse.com

I understand that but I use the same cards for many purposes, not just in a drone or computer. Each card is re-tasked for different usage during the year. Why have multiple cards being left unused for sometimes long periods of time when they can be of use elsewhere! It would be far too costly. I may have 10-12 cards of varying sizes and being used at any one time.

 

[Motorcycle Rider]

Before joining this forum, I had no idea that cards were of different qualities. So when I ordered my Mini, I knew that I would need micro sd cards for it, found a deal for 10 cards on Amazon, cheap. So I ordered them, and they work fine for me. A couple of weeks ago reading here, was when I learned that maybe the cards I use, shouldn't work, but they do. Kexin brand, cheap, but work.

 

[Dave Maine]

You are lucky. Slow cards cause all kinds of problems intermittently. Drones full costs are pretty high. Why loose good shots because of a cheap card? You don’t need particularly big ones, as a single battery even shooting 4K continuously only fills a small part of a 64gb card.

Good practice never tries to get more than a single flight’t worth of video, as a crash or drone loss on the next flight can loose the video from the previous one.

 

[Motorcycle Rider]

Just 32gb cards for me, and if they get lost, no big deal, I'm not shooting footage for a movie, or anything professional. I haven't even watched 95% of them. Last time the card got full, I just reformatted it, as there was nothing important on it. My drone is just for my own personal fun, not for cinematography.
I've flown helicopters for professional shoots, if i need something great, Ill attach the $38,000 camera to the helicopter.
If i cared about making quality movies and pictures, I would have already known to buy top quality cards, and would have bought a Zoom 2, not a mini.
For me I just get a kick out of flying the silly little thing.