SanDisk Extreme IV Compact Flash
Fast Just Got Faster

It may seem boring at first, but believe it or not storage media technology has been growing by leaps and bounds since the introduction of digital photography to the mainstream consumer. I remember with not-so-fond memories the first time I saw a 512MB compact flash card with a $2,000 dollar price tag - funny how technology prices are always getting lower while gasoline prices are always getting higher.

These days, compact flash cards with capacities topping 8GB are common place, and relatively affordable in the one or two gigabyte range. Of course, if capacity was the only deciding factor when purchasing storage media then bigger would always be better. One has to consider read/write performance with their storage media, especially when using high end medium format digital equipment.

That’s where the SanDisk Extreme IV Compact Flash cards come into play. The line is targeted at photographers who require the highest possible performance and the largest capacities for their medium format and high-end digital single lens reflex (SLR) cameras. The SanDisk Extreme IV cards are available in capacities of up to 8-gigabytes and deliver minimum read and write speeds of 40 megabytes per second (MB/sec.) making these (on paper at least) the fastest flash memory cards in the world.

Along with the Extreme IV cards, SanDisk also introduced the new SanDisk Extreme FireWire reader that can transfer images from the SanDisk Extreme IV cards to a computer at up to 40MB/sec. for significantly improved workflow efficiency.

Coupled with an amateur point and shoot or perhaps even an entry-level DSLR, the advantages of the Extreme IV card may be negligible. However, if instant FireWire support is important to you, or if you are among the niche market using a medium format digital back, a SanDisk Extreme IV compact flash card should be among your list of required accessories.