When Nintendo announced the arrival of the Switch 2, they mentioned that to expand the console’s memory, users would need to rely on microSD Express cards. This revelation sparked a massive buying frenzy, with stores both online and offline quickly running out of stock. A particular store in Japan, Hermitage Akihabara, reported selling over 337 cards in just an hour, a testament to the rush. This demand caught many off guard, especially since microSD Express cards come with a hefty price tag compared to their standard counterparts.
### Expect to Spend More Than Double for microSD Express
Take, for instance, the Lexar 1TB Play microSD card. It typically retails for $129.99 on Amazon but was available at a discounted rate of $69.99 at the time of this writing. While it boasts decent speeds of up to 160 MB/s for reading and 100 MB/s for writing, it’s not as fast as internal storage. In contrast, the microSD Express version of this card is significantly quicker, offering read speeds up to 900 MB/s and write speeds at 600 MB/s, showcasing a performance leap more than five times that of the standard version. However, this speed doesn’t come cheap. The Lexar 1TB Play Pro microSD Express card originally lists at $199.99 and, even with a sale price of $172.63, remains more than double the non-Express option.
### Scalping? Not This Time
Despite the increased cost associated with these microSD Express cards, Nintendo enthusiasts quickly snapped them up following the Switch 2’s announcement. Fortunately, it wasn’t a case of large-scale scalping, with reports suggesting that around 80% of purchasers only picked up a single card. The maximum purchase noted was merely three cards per buyer, indicating these pricey expansions were likely bought by genuine end-users excited for the new console.
The microSD Express standard has been available since 2019. Despite its superior speed, the high cost has deterred wider adoption. Comparatively, standard microSD cards are more budget-friendly for portable storage, and SSDs provide larger capacities albeit in a less portable form. While some gaming consoles facilitate internal memory upgrades by swapping out SSDs, this isn’t always the easiest process. At the very least, such upgrades require removing a backplate and adjusting some settings to accommodate the new SSD.
Nintendo has historically discouraged alterations to their hardware, making the microSD Express cards a straightforward route for enhancing the Switch 2’s storage, achieving speeds comparable to internal memory. With the console’s modest 256 GB internal storage and an influx of new AAA titles set to arrive, boosting capacity with these cards ensures gamers can keep all their favorite games ready at hand without compromising on performance.
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