Sony RX1R III Memory Card Guide

Welcome to my Sony RX1R III (DSC-RX1RM3) memory card guide that will help you find the best cards for your needs and budget.

Which Memory Cards are Compatible?

The Sony RX1R III has a single memory card slot that is compatible with UHS-I and UHS-II SD/SDHC/SDXC memory cards.

Here’s a quick speed comparison between UHS-I and UHS-II cards.

• UHS-I: theoretical maximum transfer speeds of up to 104MB/s
• UHS-II: theoretical maximum transfer speeds of up to 312MB/s

In-Camera Write Speed Comparison

With the RX1R III only just being announced I’ve not yet had the opportunity to test these cards in camera. The below in-camera tests were carried out using my Sony A6700.

Best UHS-II Memory Cards for Sony RX1R III

With a 61MP sensor the Sony RX1R III is capable of producing file sizes up to around 135MB when shooting uncompressed RAW, so it will not take long before you have many GB’s worth of images.

Therefore I’d strongly recommend that you use one of the faster UHS-II memory cards that will help the buffer to clear faster and also enable you to copy files over to your computer approximately 3x faster than the UHS-I cards.

Memory Card	* Approx In-Camera Write Speed	* Shots Before Buffer Hit	Video Rating	Price Check
1. Sony SF-G Tough	230 MB/s	91	V90	B&H Photo | Amazon
2. Kingston Canvas React Plus	227 MB/s	84	V90	B&H Photo | Amazon
3. Hoodman Steel 2000X	226 MB/s	84	V90	B&H Photo | Amazon
4. PNY X-PRO 90	226 MB/s	82	V90	B&H Photo | Amazon
5. Angelbird AV Pro Mk 2 V90	225 MB/s	86	V90	B&H Photo | Amazon
6. Ritzgear Video Pro	224 MB/s	83	V90	B&H Photo | Amazon
7. Lexar Professional 2000X	223 MB/s	84	V90	B&H Photo | Amazon
8. Transcend SD 700S	223 MB/s	84	V90	B&H Photo | Amazon
9. Delkin Devices POWER	221 MB/s	81	V90	B&H Photo | Amazon
10. Exascend Catalyst UHS-II	221 MB/s	79	V90	B&H Photo | Amazon
11. SanDisk Extreme Pro	217 MB/s	79	V90	B&H Photo | Amazon
12. ProGrade V90	218 MB/s	78	V90	B&H Photo | Amazon
13. Integral Ultima Pro X2	217 MB/s	79	V90	B&H Photo | Amazon
14. Sony SF-M Tough	145 MB/s	47	V60	B&H Photo | Amazon
15. Sony SF-M	145 MB/s	47	V60	B&H Photo | Amazon
16. ProGrade V60	129 MB/s	44	V60	B&H Photo | Amazon
17. Lexar Professional 1667X	100 MB/s	38	V60	B&H Photo | Amazon
18. Sony SF-E	72 MB/s	34	V30	B&H Photo | Amazon

Best UHS-I SD Memory Cards for Sony RX1R III

I don’t recommend the use of the much slower UHS-I memory cards in the RX1R III. But if you really want to use them here are my recommendations.

Memory Card	* Approx In-Camera Write Speed	* Shots Before Buffer Hit	Video Rating	Price Check
1. Delkin Devices Advantage UHS-I	79 MB/s	35	V30	B&H Photo | Amazon
2. Kingston Canvas Go! Plus UHS-I	79 MB/s	35	V30	B&H Photo | Amazon
3. SanDisk Extreme Pro UHS-I	73 MB/s	34	V30	B&H Photo | Amazon
4. Lexar Professional 1066x UHS-I	62 MB/s	33	V30	B&H Photo | Amazon
5. Transcend 500S UHS-I	56 MB/s	33	V30	B&H Photo | Amazon

Sony RX1R III Price Check at: B&H Photo

UHS-II Memory Cards

1. Sony SF-G Tough UHS-II – 64GB

• Max Read Speed: 300 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 299 MB/s
• Video Rating: V90
• Capacities: 32GB, 64GB, 128GB, 256GB

2. Kingston Canvas React Plus UHS-II – 64GB

• Max Read Speed: 300 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 290 MB/s
• Video Rating: V90
• Capacities: 32GB, 64GB, 128GB, 256GB

3. Hoodman Steel 2000X – 64GB

• Max Read Speed: 300 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 260 MB/s
• Video Rating: V90
• Capacities: 64GB, 128GB

4. PNY X-PRO 90 – 64 GB

• Max Read Speed: 300 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 280 MB/s
• Video Rating: V90
• Capacities: 64GB, 128GB, 256GB

5. Angelbird AV Pro Mk 2 V90 – 64 GB

• Max Read Speed: 300 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 280 MB/s
• Video Rating: V90
• Capacities: 32GB, 64GB, 128GB, 256GB

6. Ritz Gear Video Pro – 64 GB

• Max Read Speed: 280 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 250 MB/s
• Video Rating: V90
• Capacities: 64GB, 128GB, 256GB

7. Lexar Professional 2000X UHS-II – 64GB

• Max Read Speed: 300 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 260 MB/s
• Video Rating: V90
• Capacities: 32GB, 64GB, 128GB

8. Transcend 700S UHS-II – 64GB

• Max Read Speed: 285 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 180 MB/s
• Video Rating: V90
• Capacities: 32GB, 64GB

9. Delkin Devices POWER UHS-II – 64GB

• Max Read Speed: 300 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 250 MB/s
• Video Rating: V90
• Capacities: 32GB, 64GB, 128GB, 256GB

10. Exascend Catalyst UHS-II – 64 GB

• Max Read Speed: 300 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 280 MB/s
• Video Rating: V90
• Capacities: 64GB, 128GB

11. SanDisk Extreme Pro UHS-II – 64 GB

• Max Read Speed: 300 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 260 MB/s
• Video Rating: V90
• Capacities: 32GB, 64GB, 128GB, 256GB

12. ProGrade V90 UHS-II – 64 GB

• Max Read Speed: 300 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 250 MB/s
• Video Rating: V90
• Capacities: 64GB, 128GB, 256GB

13. Integral Ultima Pro X2 UHS-II – 64GB

• Max Read Speed: 280 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 240 MB/s
• Video Rating: V90
• Capacities: 32GB, 64GB, 128GB, 256GB, 512GB

14. Sony SF-M Tough UHS-II – 64 GB

Sony’s SF-M Tough Series are similar in construction to the more expensive SF-G version but these are only rated V60 for video and their read time has been cut to 277MB/s and the write time to 150MB/s.

• Max Read Speed: 277 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 150 MB/s
• Video Rating: V60
• Capacities: 64GB, 128GB, 256GB

15. Sony SF-M UHS-II – 64 GB

Sony’s SF-M Series are identical to the SF-M Tough Series just without the added toughness so they cost a little less.

• Max Read Speed: 277 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 150 MB/s
• Video Rating: V60
• Capacities: 64GB, 128GB, 256GB

16. ProGrade V60 UHS-II – 64 GB

• Max Read Speed: 277 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 130 MB/s
• Video Rating: V60
• Capacities: 64GB, 128GB, 256GB

17. Lexar Professional 1667X UHS-II – 64 GB

• Max Read Speed: 250 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 120 MB/s
• Video Rating: V60
• Capacities: 64GB, 128GB, 256GB

18. Sony SF-E UHS-II – 64 GB

• Max Read Speed: 270 MB/s
• Max Write Speed: 70 MB/s (64 GB), 120 MB/s (128 GB, 256 GB)
• Video Rating: V60
• Capacities: 64GB, 128GB, 256GB

UHS-I Memory Cards

Delkin Devices Advantage UHS-I – 64 GB

Bus speed: UHS-I
Video speed class: V30
Capacities: 32GB (SDHC), 64GB, 128GB, 256GB,512GB, 1TB (SDXC)
Read speed (label speed): 100 MB/s
Write speed (label speed): 80 MB/s

Kingston Canvas Go! Plus UHS-I – 64 GB

Bus speed: UHS-I
Video speed class: V30
Capacities: 32GB (SDHC), 64GB, 128GB, 256GB, 512GB (SDXC)
Read speed (label speed): 170 MB/s
Write speed (label speed): 90 MB/s

SanDisk Extreme Pro UHS-I – 64 GB

Bus speed: UHS-I
Video speed class: V30
Capacities: 32GB (SDHC), 64GB, 128GB, 256GB,512GB, 1TB (SDXC)
Read speed (label speed): 170 MB/s
Write speed (label speed): 90 MB/s

Lexar Professional 1066x UHS-I – 64 GB

Bus speed: UHS-I
Video speed class: V30
Capacities: 32GB (SDHC), 64GB, 128GB, 256GB,512GB, 1TB (SDXC)
Read speed (label speed): 160 MB/s
Write speed (label speed): 120 MB/s

Transcend 500S UHS-I – 64 GB

Bus speed: UHS-I
Video speed class: V30
Capacities: 8GB, 16GB, 32GB (SDHC), 64GB, 128GB (SDXC)
Read speed (label speed): 95 MB/s
Write speed (label speed): 60 MB/s

Compatible Memory Cards for Video

For shooting video an UHS-II SDXC V90 rated card will cover you for all of the movie recording formats the RX1R III supports.

The following tables will help you to determine which cards can be used depending on how you are recording and the recording format used.

For movie recording (When [Proxy Recording] is set to [Off])

For movie recording (When [Proxy Recording] is set to [On])

For S&Q Motion shooting (When [Proxy Recording] is set to [Off])

For S&Q Motion shooting (When [Proxy Recording] is set to [On])

For time-lapse shooting (When [Proxy Recording] is set to [Off])

For time-lapse shooting (When [Proxy Recording] is set to [On])

Number of Images That Can Be Recorded on a Memory Card

The table below shows the approximate number of images that can be recorded on a memory card formatted in the RX1R III.

JPEG Quality/HEIF Quality/ File Format	SD memory card
	64GB	128GB
JPEG Light	4 900	9 000
JPEG Standard	3 300	6 700
JPEG Fine	2 300	4 700
JPEG Extra fine	1 200	2 500
HEIF Light	6 500	13 000
HEIF Standard	4 800	9 000
HEIF Fine	3 600	7 200
HEIF Extra fine	2 500	5 000
RAW & JPEG (Compressed RAW)*2	590	1 100
RAW & HEIF (Compressed RAW)*2	640	1 300
RAW (Compressed RAW)	780	1 500
RAW & JPEG (Lossless Compressed RAW: L)*2	530	1 000
RAW & HEIF (Lossless Compressed RAW: L)*2	570	1 100
RAW (Lossless Compressed RAW: L)	680	1 300
RAW & JPEG (Uncompressed RAW)*2	360	720
RAW & HEIF (Uncompressed RAW)*2	380	770
RAW (Uncompressed RAW)	420	860

Summary

If you shoot a lot of continuous bursts and require the buffer to clear quickly then my recommended memory card for the Sony RX1R III is the Kingston Canvas React Plus V90 UHS-II (B&H Photo | Amaozon) card due to its performance and price.

The Kingston card has always performed well in my in-camera tests. I’d also comfortably recommend the Delkin Devices Power and Black UHS-II cards.

If you shoot in harsh environments then it might possibly be worth paying the extra for the Sony Tough card, otherwise please save your money.

Ultimately all of the top 10 UHS-II cards that I have tested will all perform well in the Sony RX1R III.

I’d strongly advise against going with one of the cheaper UHS-I cards especially when dealing with the large 61MP files that the RX1R III produces.

FAQs