In this guide I test all of the CFexpress Type-A cards currently available in three different Sony cameras: The Sony A1, A7R V and A7 IV.
By testing the cards in-camera we get a much more accurate idea about their in-camera write speeds and identify which cards are really the fastest, because unfortunately label speeds don’t always match up to in-camera performance!
Sony A7R V Speed Tests
In the table below you’ll find my in-camera speed comparison results from my Sony A7R V.
I was shooting uncompressed RAW which is limited to 7 FPS with the Sony A7R V.
Please visit my Sony A7R V Memory Card Guide if you wish to see my complete in-camera tests with other file types and also UHS-II cards.
| Memory Card | * In-Camera Write Speed | Price Check |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lexar Professional CFexpress Type-A Gold | 711 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 2. Delkin Devices BLACK CFexpress Type-A | 662 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 3. Delkin Devices POWER CFexpress Type-A | 662 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 4. ProGrade Digital CFexpress Type-A Cobalt | 655 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 5. Sony CEA-G CFexpress Type-A | 650 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 6. Exascend Essential CFexpress Type-A | 477 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
Sony A1 Speed Tests
In the table below you’ll find my in-camera speed comparison results from my Sony A1.
I was shooting uncompressed RAW which is limited to 20 FPS with the Sony A1.
Please visit my Sony A1 Memory Card Guide if you wish to see my complete in-camera tests with other file types and also UHS-II cards.
| Memory Card | * In-Camera Write Speed | Price Check |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lexar Professional CFexpress Type-A Gold | 655 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 2. Delkin Devices BLACK CFexpress Type-A | 617 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 3. Delkin Devices POWER CFexpress Type-A | 617 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 4. Sony CEA-G CFexpress Type-A | 600 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 5. ProGrade Digital CFexpress Type-A Cobalt | 600 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
Sony A7 IV Speed Tests
In the table below you’ll find my in-camera speed comparison results from my Sony A7 IV.
I was shooting compressed RAW + JPEG for these tests at 10 FPS, if I’d gone with uncompressed RAW then the frame rate drops down to only 6 FPS and the write speed tops out at around 565 MB/s.
Please visit my Sony A7 IV Memory Card Guide if you wish to see my complete in-camera tests with other file types and also UHS-II and UHS-I cards.
| Memory Card | * In-Camera Write Speed | Price Check |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Sony CEA-G CFexpress Type-A | 600 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 2. ProGrade Digital CFexpress Type A Cobalt | 600 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 3. Delkin Devices BLACK CFexpress Type A | 600 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 4. Delkin Devices POWER CFexpress Type A | 600 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
| 5. Lexar Professional CFexpress Type-A Gold | 600 MB/s | B&H Photo | Amazon |
CFexpress Type-A Readers
Below you will find some of the better CFexpress Type-A memory card readers currently available.
I haven’t performed any speed tests on these card readers but may do so if there is enough interest.
Sony MRW-G2 CFExpress Type-A Card Reader
The Sony MRW-G2 supports both CFexpress Type A cards as well as a SD/SDHC/SDXC cards, along with transfer speeds of up to 10 Gb/s via USB 3.1 Gen 2. Both USB Type-C to Type-C and USB Type-C to Type-A cables are included.
Delkin Devices CFexpress Type A & UHS-II SDXC Memory Card Reader
The Delkin reader features one CFexpress Type A card slot, one UHS-II SDXC card slot and a 10 Gb/s USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C interface.
It’s constructed out of anodized aluminum and is also designed with multiple heat sinks to help prevent overheating.
There’s also safe internal storage for one CFexpress Type A card and it comes with a rubber end cover for protection against bumps, impact, water damage, dust, and other forms of debris.
It includes USB Type-C and Type-A cables and is also backward compatible with USB 3.0, 2.0, and 1.1.
Pre-Check Prices & Buyer Reviews for the Delkin Devices CFexpress Type A & UHS-II Reader
At: Amazon | B&H Photo
ProGrade Digital CFexpress Type A & UHS-II SDXC Dual-Slot USB 3.2 Gen 2 Card Reader
The ProGrade Digital reader features one CFexpress Type A slot and one UHS-II SDXC slot, and also supports up to 10 Gb/s via USB 3.2 Gen 2 to deliver transfer speeds of up to 1.25 GB/s, or 1250 MB/s via its USB Type-C interface.
It includes USB Type-C to Type-C and Type-C to Type-A cables.
Summary
The Lexar Professional CFexpress Type-A Gold cards have a claimed write speed on their label of up to 900MB/s, whereas all of the other cards tested only claim up to 800MB/s.
100MB/s does make a difference here and the Lexar Professional CFexpress Type-A Gold cards really outshine the other cards in both the Sony A1 and A7RV. In the A7RV they allow you to shoot 47 more shots when shooting uncompressed RAW compared with the next fastest card! However, in the A1 there is not so much of a difference.
The A7 IV with its smaller sensor and slower frame rate doesn’t max out any of the cards tested here and we don’t see a performance difference no matter which card you are using.
However, when it comes to shooting in compressed RAW, lossless compressed RAW or JPEG there is very little between the cards in all cameras tested, apart from the Exascend Essential which under performs quite badly in the A7R V, I will be testing this card in the A1 and A7 IV very soon.
For my complete in-camera speed and buffer tests please visit the following guides:
Thanks, Timothy for this review. Did you experience any overheating with any of the CFExpress type A cards? I own the Delkin card reader and I am disappointed with how hot it gets. Even if you just plug it in to your computer and it’s NOT transferring pictures, it overheats. Maybe I got a bad unit. I would definitely be interested in a speed test of the various card readers if you are able to do one, please.
Hi Nicole. I’m mainly using the Sony MRW-G2 CFExpress Type-A reader myself and have not had any overheating issues. I’m not planning to do a speed test of the readers just yet unless there is enough demand for such a test, I normally focus more on the in-camera performance of the memory cards.
Can you recommend recovery software for Sony’s CFexpress Type-A cards? Sony’s free Memory Card File Rescue is woefully lacking.
You could try PhotoRec.
Interesting that even the fastest Sony camera can’t reach the the speed limit on the CFexpress type A cards. Makes a nonsense of the critics who decry Sony’s choice of CFexpress type A because CFexpress type B cards are “so much faster” – all that extra speed would go unused when the camera can only write at around 600MB/s.
(to be fair, the cost per gigabyte of CFeB cards is notably lower than CFeA at the moment, though).
There might be heating issues if Sony allowed the cards to write in-camera at their maximum write speeds. From tests on the web with the Canon R5 it looks like this only writes at around 400 MB/s, despite some Type B cards supporting write speeds of up to 1500 MB/s, probably also restricted due to heat issues. I have an R5 as well and I definitely prefer the cost of the Type B cards! Hopefully now that we are seeing a few more manufactures producing Type-A cards the price will come down.
You don’t post often but your content is solid. Thanks for this.
Thanks for that! I’d like to say that I’ll try to post more often but with another kid on the way that might be a challenge! 🙂