Samsung releases 1-terabyte microSD cards for mobile devices

Samsung Electronics Co. on Thursday released higher-capacity memory cards for portable devices that can store up to 1 terabyte (TB) of data, almost double their predecessors’ 512 gigabytes (GB), and transfer them at a faster speed to ensure seamless loading and multitasking.

The latest editions of the PRO Plus and EVO Plus microSD cards are compatible with Android smartphones, tablets and handheld gaming consoles, and feature higher performance and longer battery life than their previous models, Samsung said.

They are also suitable for action cameras and drones to create, edit and save data.

The PRO Plus and EVO Plus, about the size of a fingernail, stack Samsung’s eighth-generation V-NAND in a microSD form factor, resulting in a high-capacity package, previously only possible in solid-state drives.

They apply 12-nanometer (nm) process technology, compared with their previous lineup based on a 55 nm process node.

Nano refers to the width of the chip circuit line. The thinner the circuit linewidth, the greater the number of chips that can be mounted on a substrate or wafer.

“The PRO Plus and EVO Plus 1TB cards offer enhanced durability for a higher volume of write-and-erase cycles, ensuring safer data storage over extended periods,” Samsung said in a press release.

With 1TB of storage, users can support more than 400,000 ultra-high-definition images of 4,000 pixels and 2.3 megabytes each — or more than 45 console games of 20GB each.

“Creators and tech enthusiasts are increasingly using portable devices such as smartphones and handheld gaming devices to store data that demand high performance and high capacity,” Hangu Sohn, vice president of Samsung Electronics’ memory brand product business team, said in the press release.

“The new high-capacity microSD cards — PRO Plus and EVO Plus — are a response to the strong demand for large amounts of high-quality data in a reliable and secure manner,” he added.

With storage options ranging from 128GB to 256GB, 512GB and 1TB, the PRO Plus offers sequential read speeds of up to 180 megabytes-per-second (MB/s) with sequential write speeds of up to 130 MB/s.

By comparison, the EVO Plus can transfer data at speeds of up to 160MB/s. Its storage options vary from 128GB to 256GB to 512GB and 1TB, as well as 64GB.

The PRO Plus’ retail prices range from $24.99 for the 128GB model to $153.99 for one with 1TB storage capacity. The EVO Plus sells for $12.99 to $131.99 for 64GB and 1TB models, respectively. They have a 10-year limited warranty.

Samsung, the world’s largest memory chipmaker, has maintained its leadership in the NAND flash market for more than two decades.

In the second quarter ending in June, Samsung’s operating profit soared more than 15-fold to 10.4 trillion won ($7.5 billion) from the same period last year thanks to steadfast demand for its mainstay memory chip products. The figure was up 58.1% from the previous quarter.

Write to Jeong-Soo Hwang at hjs@hankyung.com
 
Yeonhee Kim edited this article