Sony's Tough SD cards are pretty stout. Capable of battling against elements that include rain and dust, these cards are designed for shooting out in the field in a wide array of conditions. And with their next-generation cards capable of read/write speeds of up to 277 MB per second, shooters are going to need a card reader that can handle that kind of thru-put.
That's where the MRW-S3 UHS-II USB Hub comes into play.
Sony says that this will enable shooters to connect external monitors without any additional adapters if their computer supports DisplayPort and USB-C. Keep in mind, though, that testing is always done in ideal laboratory conditions, so your mileage may vary. But I'm betting the MRW-S3 will get at least 3/4 that speed.
The MRW-S3 also has an independent 100W power supply, insuring stable connections through Sony's USB PD AC Adapters. Each port also has its own power level indicator, so the user can see if the power levels on any given port drop and become unreliable.
Meanwhile, back to the new SF-M Tough line of SD cards. Sony claims a read/write speed of 277MB/s and 150 MB/s respectively. Alongside this line is the SF-E line which offers 270/120 MB/s read/write speeds as well. However, both the SF-M and SF-E cards are only rated to be a V60 card, which means that minimum write speed you'll actually get will probably be in the neighborhood of 60MB/S.
That's a steep drop from the last year's SF-G cards that were rated at V90 giving them up to 300 MB/s read/write speeds.
I'm not really sure what Sony is doing here, but it seems like more hype and a step backward for their Tough line of cards. But then again, you don't buy these cards for their blazing speed, you buy them because they're more durable and promise to take a licking and keep on ticking, am I right?
Both lines of cards will be available in 64, 128 and 256 GB sizes and will come with file rescue software that supports both Windows and macOS. No word on pricing for the cards, But the current V90 models start at $115 for the 64GB cards. Since these are V60 rated, I'm expecting them to be cheaper in price. But don't quote me on that. Also, the MRW-S3 Card Hub doesn't have a price tag yet, either, but Sony expects them all to ship in the Fall quarter.
Source: Cinema 5D
