When Nintendo unveiled the Switch 2, they made it clear that players looking to expand their device storage would need to use cards based on the microSD Express standard. This announcement caused quite a stir. Retailers, both online and in stores, saw their stock vanish almost instantly. According to snippets from Japanese stores like Hermitage Akihabara, translated reports revealed an astonishing sale rate of over 337 cards per hour. This wave of demand was unexpected, especially given the hefty price tag of microSD Express cards compared to their regular counterparts.
Now, let’s talk prices and performance. A basic Lexar 1TB Play microSD card, usually priced at $129.99 on Amazon, is currently marked down to $69.99. Its read and write speeds hover around 160 MB/s and 100 MB/s, respectively—not bad, but falling short of internal storage speeds. Enter the microSD Express version: boasting a blazing read speed of 900 MB/s and a write speed of 600 MB/s, it leaves traditional cards in the dust. But this speed comes at a cost—the Lexar 1TB Play Pro microSD Express card starts at $199.99. Even with a sale price of $172.63, it’s still a significant investment compared to the basic version.
Interestingly, despite the financial sting the microSD Express demand placed on fans of Nintendo, the cards flew off the shelves. It wasn’t the result of scalpers, though. Reports indicate that 80% of buyers picked up just one card each, with some only stretching to three. This pattern suggests these purchases were largely by gamers eager to ready their setups for the upcoming Switch 2.
Although the microSD Express has been around since 2019, its adoption has been slow—probably due to its higher price tag when compared to regular microSD cards for portable storage or SSDs for larger, fixed setups. Many gaming consoles allow for memory expansion through SSD replacement, but this requires popping open the device and tweaking configurations—a step too far for some.
Nintendo prefers to keep its console hardware untouched by users, making microSD Express cards the simplest way for Switch 2 owners to boost storage while matching the speed of internal memory. Given that the new console is set to welcome several blockbuster AAA games, this upgrade seems necessary. It’s a practical solution for maintaining easy access to all your favorite titles on the fly.
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