Introduction

My recent purchase of a Nikon D200 forced me to update my SanDisk Extreme III 1 GB compactflash card to something with more capability. Since this card has performed flawlessly, I decided to try its big brother. Because I work outdoors in all conditions, I choose not to mess around with my memory cards. Truth be told, CompactFlash cards are all fairly durable; I've never had any model of any brand of CompactFlash card physically break or wear out. Some brands may be more reliable than others, but that's a different characteristic. The media itself is pretty stable, at least for short periods of time (less than five years). Still, when it's 0 degrees F outside, I don't want to be worrying about my CompactFlash card - my fingers are more important.

Features

From SanDisk's website, this is what the manufacturer claims:

- Designed to meet the critical speed and performance needs of serious professional photographers—lets you quickly capture, view, upload and transfer large image files
- Ideal for demanding photo shoots under severe weather conditions—heat, cold, wind, rain, snow, etc.
- Built to perform in the most extreme environments and temperatures—from -13 degrees F to 185 degrees F (-25 degrees C to 85 degrees C)
- Min 20MB/second** sequential read and write speed
- Durable, reliable and thoroughly tested—temperature tested (heat and cold); shock and vibration tested (industrial-grade RTV included for CompactFlash)
- Data recovery software—ensures your photos will always be there (even if you delete them accidentally)
- Dedicated, priority technical support hotline for direct customers of SanDisk Extreme products
- Included travel case keeps your memory cards organized
- Lifetime limited warranty***

**Based on SanDisk internal testing
***Except Europe

Note: 1 megabyte (MB) = 1 million bytes; 1 gigabyte (GB) = 1 billion bytes. Some of the listed capacity is used for formatting and other functions, and thus is not available for data storage.

What else is in the box? A brief SanDisk user guide written in so many languages you need to dig for awhile to find English, a mini CD installation of RescuePRO, and a travel case.

Performance

Reliability and Durability

I've had no compatibility issues with this memory card. In my Nikon D200, it has performed flawlessly from the start. Likewise, this memory card is easily accessed from my Lacie memory card reader/writer without any problems.

Since I've never had data retrieval problems with this card, I've never had to use the data recovery software. Still, it's nice to know it's there if I do something stupid. I also like the idea of the priority support line, for the same reason, but I haven't yet had the opportunity to use it.

I've used the SanDisk Extreme III in western deserts with high heat and extremely dry air. I've also used in at high elevations (above 8000 feet) with temperatures down to freezing. On a recent assignment, it was subjected to high humidity and heat levels for several hours. Again, no problems. Regardless of the conditions of my shooting environment, I've noticed no measurable decreases in read or write speed. So far, this Extreme III has lived up to its billing just as my other one has.

Speed

And now for the question that seems to be on everyone's mind: how fast is it? In this case, that question is relevant only for professional SLRs simply because its write times are faster than any compact or pro-sumer digital cameras can really take advantage of, as of summer 2006. In my Nikon D200, this card had noticeably faster write speeds than any other card I tried, including the best from Viking and Verbatim. I had a similar experience when writing image data to the SanDisk Extreme III via my Lacie memory card reader/writer. This memory card is particularly well-matched to the Nikon D200 because of the very fast processing of this camera. For this reason, I highly recommend it to Nikon D200 users.

Read speeds also seem to be faster than other CompactFlash cards I've used, but here the limiting factor is probably my computer and the memory card reader so this is a difficult claim to make. For reference, my Lacie reader/writer is connected via USB 2.0 to a Dell Dimension 8400 with 1GB of RAM and a 3.4 GHZ Intel Pentium IV processor. On this same system, my Viking and Verbatim cards may have had ever so slightly slower read times. Read speeds in the Nikon D200 were also very fast and again, obviously limited by the camera's processing operations and not the memory card; I've experienced similar read times with recent CompactFlash models from other memory card manufacturers.

SanDisk describes this card as having a "133X" speed, which is based on a standard of 150KB/second equal to 1X. This means that "133X" is not 133 times faster than some other manufacturer's card, unless their card was manufactured several years ago and they're still making it. In other words, don't be seduced by this "100000X" game.

Compared to my 1 GB SanDisk Extreme III, I have not noticed any difference in write speed or read time in the Nikon D200. I've heard that the 8 GB model is a little slower, but I haven't encountered any speed difference yet with this 4 GB card.

Everything Else

The included travel case actually works pretty well. I thought it was a little gimicky at first but after using it in the field, it does provide that extra little bit of protection, which provides piece of mind. It is plastic lined, presumably to help keep out moisture, and has a 270 degree zippered side for easy access. A fairly large key ring allows for attachment to just about anything, which does come in handy from time to time.

Conclusions

I can easily recommend this card for use in any SLR digital camera. As of summer 2006, you're unlikely too find anything faster or more durable. Compact consumer cameras are unlikely to be subjected to the conditions this card was designed for, nor are they likely to be able to take advantage of its speed, nor are they likely to need 4 GB of memory. In this case, go for something less expensive.

Are there alternatives to the SanDisk Extreme III? Consider Kingston's Elite Pro CompactFlash, as well as Lexar's Professional Series with Write Acceleration. For the latter, make sure your camera can utilize Write Acceleration. Both of these are priced a little lower for similar read and write speeds. However, they may not be engineered to perform as well under the extreme environmental conditions that the SanDisk is designed for.

Recommended: Yes