Attention photographers and videographers! I think I’ve just discovered the ultimate memory card reader that ticks all the boxes for professional image makers with large memory cards that are stuffed to the gunwales with videos or photos that need to be transferred to a Mac or PC for editing.
Back in the days when I used to photograph weddings for friends and family, I would often take upwards of 1,000 shot in a day, and sometimes far more. The golden rule of wedding photography and videography is that you can never have too many photos or too much footage. It’s a one-off event and essential that you don’t mess things up. However, the day after shooting a wedding is a grim one. You have to round up all those memory cards and then start uploading the files onto your Mac and PC ready to begin cataloging them in Adobe Lightroom or editing with Final Cut Pro.
Uploading digital files is a process that can take absolutely ages. If you’re uploading digital video, then it can take a very long time as HD video produces some fairly chunky files. It all depends on the speed of the memory cards you’re using, how fast the card reader is, and which USB interface you have. Thankfully, these days, many of us have computers with USB 3.0 ports and that does speed things up quite a bit. Even so, not all memory card readers are created equal.
Fortunately, I recently got the chance to test drive a Lexar Professional Multi-Card 3-in-1 reader that has a superfast interface and slots for MicroSD, SD as well as Compact Flash cards, which covers most eventualities – unless you’re still using SmartMedia or xD cards. Who remembers Compact Flash cards? You may even have a few yourself in a drawer somewhere. They’re still used on some professional DSLRs that are still in use.
The Lexar Professional Multi-Card 3-in-1 reader has a nicely textured surface for gripping and is weighted with a non-slip base so that it doesn’t slide around your desk when you’re slotting cards in and taking them out. There’s a bright LED on the front of the reader that turns from red to blue when there are cards in the slots.
At the rear of the reader is a USB-C connector and Lexar supplies a stout USB-C to USB-A cable in the box. The pace of this card reader is blisteringly fast with read speeds up to 312MB/s. The cards I tried appeared on my iMac’s desktop at lightning speed. I did a few unscientific tests and I reckon this card reader is twice as fast as my older model, although that is a smaller, pocket-sized reader that still has a use when space is at a premium.
Verdict: Over the years, I’ve searched high and low for the ideal memory card reader. I’ve tried quite a few models but my favorite one, which was an old Lexar pro reader with a Firewire interface, is no longer supported on my Mac. The Lexar Professional Multi-Card 3-in-1 reader makes an ideal replacement and truly deserves its “professional” tag. It’s a solidly built product and a joy to use. It’s also very fast. If you shoot a lot of images or huge video files, this reader will save you loads of time and speed up your digital workflow. Currently, no other card reader on the market comes close.
Price: $28.74 / £28.45 / €36.20
More info: www.lexar.com
Specifications:
- Supported card formats: CompactFlash (including Type I and Type II UDMA 7), SD, SDHC, SDXC, microSD, microSDHC, microSDXC, and SD/microSD UHS-I and UHS-II cards
- Transfer speeds of up to 312MB/s for SD and microSD and up to 160MB/s for CompactFlash cards.
- Interface: USB 3.1 Type-C
- Cable: USB Type-C to Type-A cable
- System Supported: macOS 10.8+, Windows 10/8/7/Vista/XP, USB 1.1+ port
- Operating Temperature: 0° to 40° C (32°F to 104°F)
- Dimension (W x L x H): 80.0 x 89.2 x 21.5mm / 3.149” x 3.511” x 0.846”
- Weight: 99.8 g / 0.220 lbs
