New Panasonic UHS-1 (Ultra High-Speed) SDHC Cards

[Stephen Mick]

Anyone who has bemoaned the lack of reliability or "pro" features included in SDHC cards, take note.

Panasonic is announcing (and very, very shortly shipping) a new line of SDHC cards especially made for Professional applications. The UHS-1 (Ultra High Speed) memory cards are fully SDHC compliant (meaning they'll work in your HMC-150, HMC-40 or any other SDHC camcorder), and come in 8GB, 16GB and 32GB sizes.

What's so great about these new cards? Two things: speed and security.

They've got a transfer rate of 90MB/s, which is four-and-a-half times the speed of current Class 10 cards. This means that you can offload 32GB of data, or 3 hours of recorded footage, in 6 minutes. That's the speed.

The security features are equally impressive. Each card has a controller chip that has a kind of "smart-write" technology. Most cards will write from the beginning of the card, and when formatted, will return to the beginning of the card to write again. The UHS-1 cards will write new data where the previous recording ended, even if you reformat the card. This helps keep cards "fresher" longer and extends the useful life of the card.

(In best infomercial tone) But wait…there's more.

The UHS-1 cards also have the ability to "save" clips that would otherwise be corrupted due to power loss. So, let's say you're shooting. Someone dislodges the battery, or the AC cord gets pulled. However it happens, you lose power. When power is restored, the UHS-1 cards (if left in the camera) will close the previously-recorded files and complete the writing so the files will not get corrupted.

For additional security, Panasonic is also going to offer software that helps determine remaining card "life" (Card Checker), and AVCCAM File Recovery Software. According to Jan Crittenden of Panasonic, these cards give users "a failsafe and backup should something go wrong." Since these are true SDHC cards, all of these features should be compatible with not only Panasonic cameras, but any camera that uses the SDHC standard.

There's also a QR code on the surface of the card, and a unique serial number, meaning it will be possible to scan the card and pull up the card details in a database/archive. (This is not software that Panasonic is creating, I think they just put the QR code on their to make that a possibility in the future.) Each UHS-1 card also comes with a full 1-Year warranty.

There's plenty more in the press release, which I'll be posting below, including details on pricing.

[Stephen Mick]

PANASONIC INTRODUCES NEW ULTRA HIGH-SPEED SDHC MEMORY CARD LINE FOR PROFESSIONAL APPLICATIONS

Smarter, More Robust SDB Media Offer Transfer Rates of Up to 90MBs

SECAUCUS, NJ (May 25, 2011) – Panasonic Solutions Company today announced a new line of SD High Capacity (SDHC) full Class 10 UHS-1 (Ultra High Speed) Memory Cards with transfer rates of 90MBs, four-and-a-half times as fast as the previous generation of SDHC media. With storage capacities of 8GB, 16GB and 32GB, this new RP-SDB series of cards is faster, smarter and more robust than current SDHC media and has been fully optimized for professional use, notably with Panasonic’s broad AVCCAM line of affordable HD camcorders.

The new UHS-1 media facilitate offload speeds of as low as one-and-a-half minutes from the 8GB card, to three minutes from the 16GB card, and six minutes from the 32GB card. To achieve the SBD Series UHS-1’s media’s high-speed transfer, a user must have a computer embedded with USB 3.0 technology and equipped with either a Panasonic UHS-1 USB adapter or with an SDHC card slot that supports the UHS-1’s chip.

The SDB series incorporates a powerful Super Intelligent Controller System (SICS) that extends the archive shelf life of the card and its respective recordings, provides power failure protection, and controls the data writing to the card so that the entire card is used fully over its lifetime.

SICS automatically refreshes data because repeated playback of the same data without refreshing can introduce errors. This refreshing functionality optimizes data playback performance and has the effect of boosting archival life by a factor of 10. In the event of a power failure, SICS saves original data back to the card so there is no corruption or loss of material. SICS also equalizes the rewrite areas on the card so that data writing begins at the point where the previous recording ended, even on a reformatted card. This ensures that a card is totally used in one full rewrite cycle, which minimizes to the greatest extent possible the depletion of flash memory’s finite program-erase capacities.

These new professional UHS-1 cards deliver impressive Proof 5 durability encompassing resistance to water, shock, magnetization, X-rays and temperature extremes (cards are operable from -13 to 185 degrees Fahrenheit). Other valuable features exclusive to the SDB series include QR Code Tracking for archival location tracking and management of content, and free, downloadable AVCCAM File Recovery Software, compatible with Windows 7, XP and Mac.

Panasonic will also offer free Card Checker software that assesses professional UHS-1 media for remaining card life. Available for download next month, the Card Checker software is compatible with Windows 7, XP and Mac, and requires operation with a computer embedded with USB 3.0 technology and equipped with a Panasonic UHS-1 USB adapter. In addition, the SDB series carries a one-year warranty covering professional use of the card.

The 8GB, 16GB and 32GB SDB cards are immediately available at suggested list prices of $60, $129 and $245, respectively. The UHS-1 USB adapter (model BN-SDCMAB) is also available at a suggested list price of $60.

[Stephen Mick]

And some pictures…

[TheDingo]

Thank god they make a high-speed reader! ...I am guessing that this is a USB 3 reader, with USB 2 compatibility. ( high-speed with USB 3, slow-speed with USB 2 )

[Stephen Mick]

Thank god they make a high-speed reader! ...I am guessing that this is a USB 3 reader, with USB 2 compatibility. ( high-speed with USB 3, slow-speed with USB 2 )

It is a USB3.0 reader, and yes, it is 2.0 compatible.

[daihard]

Great... something else I cant afford at the moment :P
Alas! Least the cheaper Class 10s will go down in price! ;)

[James Fisk]

Expect the next set of video cameras[AF200] to have 4:2:2 internal recording at really high bit rates 150mbps+

That means:

1.) no more external recorders[BlackMagic, Atomos Ninja...sorry but bye bye]
2.) internal codecs will finally break the 24mbps garbage
3.) HD-SDI out? no needed
4.) Clean HDMI out, because the internal codec will always win out.
5.) 3K could be in the works with & later with UHS II having a max throughput of 350MBps, 4K will come to the AF300

6). So dont mortgage your house on a RED Epic, 4K will come to the masses within 3 years.

[TheDingo]

6). So dont mortgage your house on a RED Epic, 4K will come to the masses within 3 years.

:-)

...1080P still has lots of issues to be sorted out, so I would not plan on consumer level 4K any time soon.
( I will be happy if global shutters become the norm in 3 years )

[Jarek Zabczynski]

I was kinda hoping they would be made of metal.

[HHL]

If I don't say it someone else will: Exciting times!!