When you’re fortunate sufficient to have a brand new Nintendo Change 2 in hand proper now, you are in all probability filling it up with previous and new video games alike. The console comes with 256GB of storage inbuilt; that is eight instances greater than the authentic Change and 4 instances greater than the Change OLED. However the brand new console’s improved efficiency signifies that some video games will hog a ton of that house. Take, as an illustration, Cyberpunk 2077, which is a 59GB obtain, whereas Break up Fiction checks in at 69GB. Whereas not all titles hog a lot storage, there is a good probability you will wish to add extra space to your Change 2 as time goes on.
You will want a microSD Categorical card to do this. These are not the identical as the usual microSD playing cards you could have for the primary Change or different gaming handhelds. They’re newer, quicker and (as to be anticipated) dearer. However if you would like extra space, they’re your solely selection. When you’re trying to seize one as we speak, we’ve laid out the perfect microSD playing cards for the Change 2 and damaged down what it is best to know before you purchase.
The very best microSD playing cards for the Change 2 (and why you may wish to wait to purchase)
The Change 2 is the primary mainstream gadget to require microSD Categorical for storage growth, so there aren’t many choices that can be purchased simply but. To make issues straightforward, right here’s a listing of each microSD Categorical card we’ve seen at retailers on the time of writing.
128GB
256GB
512GB
1TB
Nintendo says the Change 2 technically helps playing cards with a capability as much as 2TB, however we haven’t seen any microSD Categorical mannequin transcend 1TB simply but. It’s additionally price noting that GameStop and Onn (Walmart’s in-house electronics model) aren’t producers, so it’s unclear who precisely is making their playing cards.
Inventory for these playing cards stays considerably patchy, significantly for the higher-capacity choices. However most of the 128GB and 256GB fashions seem like steadily out there as of the Change 2’s launch week. Simply be warned that you could have to take care of prolonged ship instances in some instances. SanDisk’s microSD Categorical Card has additionally elevated in worth because it first went up on the market in February; initially, it value $45 for 128GB and $60 for 256GB.
Both approach, all of those playing cards are far pricier than conventional microSD choices. The Samsung Professional Plus, for instance, prices $17 for 128GB, $25 for 256GB, $43 for 512GB and $90 for 1TB as of this writing.
Bear in mind: You’re on the lookout for microSD Categorical, not “Excessive,” just like the branding SanDisk makes use of for a few of its standard microSD playing cards. A microSD Categorical card could have an enormous “EX” brand printed on it — for those who see that, try to be good to go.
We’ve already examined SanDisk’s Categorical card and the Lexar Play Professional for our broader information to the greatest microSD playing cards. Between the 2, SanDisk’s card has a lot quicker sequential learn speeds — as much as 899 MB/s vs. 712 MB/s in CrystalDiskMark, to call one benchmark — which theoretically makes it higher outfitted to scale back load instances.
The Play Professional is faster for sequential writes (as much as 720 MB/s vs. 650 MB/s), out there in additional sizes and must be cheaper at 256GB at any time when it’s in inventory. (SanDisk says the 128GB model of its card has slower sequential writes than the 256GB mannequin, too.) Random efficiency is about equal, so the 2 must be equally adept at preserving giant video games like Mario Kart World operating easily.
We primarily examined these playing cards on a Home windows PC and Mac, although. How they carry out on the precise Change 2 stays to be seen. Nintendo didn’t ship out early assessment items to press, and we have solely simply acquired our personal retail mannequin. So we’ll want a number of extra days to complete testing.
For now, although, we will’t say for positive if the console renders all microSD Categorical playing cards to comparable speeds. That was largely the case with the primary Change: As soon as a (common) microSD card hit a sure threshold of efficiency, there wasn’t that a lot sensible distinction between it and different alternate options. The Change 2 is working with a distinct normal, but when one thing comparable had been to occur once more, the “greatest” microSD Categorical card would merely be probably the most inexpensive one from a good model within the capability you need.
That brings us to our most important piece of recommendation: When you can maintain off on shopping for certainly one of these items early on, that’s in all probability a good suggestion. It’s not simply in regards to the lack of testing — honestly, we’d be stunned if any of those playing cards are really “dangerous.”
It is extra about worth: Barring extra tariff shenanigans, all of those playing cards are as costly as we speak as they’re ever more likely to get. The Change 2 is already fashionable and can proceed to be, thus extra microSD Categorical playing cards will should be made and costs will (ultimately) come down. Attempt to use all 256 of the gigabytes baked into the Change 2 first, even when it means having to delete a recreation or two. However for those who’re completely positive you need extra space instantly, the playing cards above ought to be ok.
What are microSD Categorical playing cards?
Most microSD playing cards are based mostly on an ordinary referred to as Extremely Excessive Velocity (UHS), of which there are three variations: UHS-I, UHS-II and UHS-III. The overwhelming majority of playing cards you could have purchased prior to now make the most of UHS-I. These have one row of pins within the again and a theoretical most knowledge switch velocity of 104 megabytes per second (MB/s). (Although many playing cards are in a position to surpass that restrict with proprietary tech and card readers.) The unique Change has a UHS-I microSD slot, as do most different gaming handhelds like Valve’s Steam Deck.
UHS-II playing cards add a second row of pins and may attain as much as 312 MB/s. These are pricier and far much less widespread than playing cards based mostly on UHS-I, however they’re supported by some cameras and higher-power handhelds just like the ASUS ROG Ally X. UHS-III, in the meantime, is twice as quick as UHS-II in concept (624 MB/s), however no microSD playing cards have truly used it.
UHS-I playing cards have held on over time as a result of they’re low cost, broadly supported and quick sufficient for the issues most individuals want them to do: file 4K video, stash pictures and so forth. However with the Change 2, Nintendo wants extra. The brand new console is dramatically extra highly effective, which permits it to run demanding video games that will have initially been constructed for stronger {hardware} just like the PlayStation 5, Xbox Sequence X or gaming PCs. The gadget additionally makes use of UFS 3.1 storage internally, which is far speedier than the eMMC storage utilized by the unique Change. (A customized file decompression engine helps enhance load instances as nicely.) So if the Change 2 goes to just accept microSD playing cards, it wants ones that received’t deliver a severe drop-off in efficiency and may maintain up with fashionable video games.
Therefore, SD Categorical. This normal has technically been round since 2018 however principally went nowhere till the Change 2 got here alongside. It additionally makes use of a second row of pins, but it surely lets microSD playing cards reap the benefits of the PCI Categorical (PCIe)/NVMe interface, which is similar underlying tech utilized by fashionable SSDs. Consequently, it could produce significantly quicker learn and write speeds, with a present theoretical most of 985 MB/s.
As famous above, real-world efficiency received’t be fairly that quick. Even when it was, the perfect microSD Categorical playing cards would nonetheless be a lot slower than the NVMe SSDs used by the PS5 and Xbox. (Sony recommends SSDs with sequential learn speeds of not less than 5,500 MB/s.) They usually’ll fall nicely under their peak speeds below sustained hundreds: SanDisk, as an illustration, says sustained write speeds for its 128GB Categorical card can drop as little as 100 MB/s.
However they’re nonetheless a marked enchancment over previous UHS-I playing cards, and in concept, they need to be faster than some older SATA-based SSDs when it comes loading recreation ranges, asset streaming, retrieving saves or copying video games to exterior storage. Whereas SanDisk’s microSD Categorical card can produce sequential learn speeds round 900 MB/s, Lexar’s Skilled Silver Plus — the highest UHS-I decide in our common microSD card information — topped out simply over 200 MB/s, and that’s with a proprietary reader. (On the primary Change, it’d be nearer to 100 MB/s.) Sequential writes and random speeds had been three to 4 instances higher as nicely, and generally much more relying on the benchmark we used.
It stays to be seen how nicely these Categorical playing cards will maintain up with prolonged use, and there’s no method to know precisely when their sky-high costs will drop. Non-Change 2 gadgets that assist microSD Categorical are nonetheless exceedingly uncommon, and the usual itself isn’t backwards appropriate with UHS-II, so that you’ll be restricted to UHS-I speeds if you wish to use your card with one other gadget (until you purchase a dear exterior reader). Nonetheless, whereas the elevated prices and restricted choice are annoying, the tech itself appears worthy of a next-gen Change.
