While it’s great to buy the fastest media cards available, sometimes you don’t need to spend the extra money if you don’t need the additional speed and performance. Here is where the new Angelbird AV PRO CFexpress A SE fits the bill.
Angelbird’s new AV PRO CFexpress A SE covers a range of production sweet spots for casual content creators to professionals with 160GB or 330GB capacity options.
The AV PRO CFexpress A SE is a CFexpress 2.0 with VPG 200 (Video Performance Guarantee) that guarantees the card’s performance of a minimum sustained write speed of 200 MB/s to capture video without any dropped frames. VPG 400 is 400 MB/s.
At these capacities, Sony shooters get high-performance media cards that support advanced features such as 8K RAW, 4K, and high frame-rate video at up to 120 fps, as well as raw photos and image bursts across a range of Sony cameras.
The cards are rigorously tested and certified for in-camera compatibility with Sony a1, a7S III, A7 IV, A7V, FX30, FX3, and FX6. As of date, no other camera manufacturers are using this type of CFexpress A cards.
With the Sony FX3, the Angelbird AV PRO CFexpress A SE is fully compatible with all recording options. In a nutshell, If the data rate you shoot stays way below 200MB/s, go with the VPG200 card; if it’s above or very slightly below, opt for the faster VPG400 card.
CFexpress 2.0 and 4.0
CFexpress 4.0 cards have dramatically enhanced their performance over the 2.0 variety. They use the PCIe Gen4 interface with NVMe 1.4c specification, which doubles the maximum data transfer rates compared to CFexpress 2.0. While this is great technically, you might be just fine with the less expensive and still very fast Angelbird AV PRO CFexpress A SE that is 2.0 and VPG200 cards. A Type A card can now achieve previously only possible speeds with Type B cards from the 2.0 series. At the same time, 4.0 Type B cards can now reach unprecedented speeds.
Angelbird AV PRO CFexpress A SE Specifications
| Application | High-performance CFexpress Type A media engineered for Sony cameras. Designed for capturing full frame 4K+ resolution video and stills, as well as sequential burst photography in RAW or compressed formats. |
| Sustained Speeds | READ: 750 MB/s WRITE: 650 MB/s |
| Maximum Speeds | Read: 820 MB/s Write: 730 MB/s |
| Capacity | 160 GB 330 GB |
| Compatibility | Sony α1, Sony α7 IV, Sony α7S III, Sony α7R V Sony FX3, Sony FX30, Sony FX6 |
Features of AV PRO CFexpress A SE
Stable Stream
Ensures uninterrupted read/write performance for stable data transfers and consistent photo and video quality throughout the entire capacity of the card.
Advanced Thermal Management
Protects card from overheating by going into a low power safe mode when it’s not in use.
Minimal power drain
High performance with low power demand from host camera.
Rock-Solid build quality
Protection from moisture, x-ray/magnets, shock, dust, and extreme operating temperatures of -10 °C to 70 °C and storage temperatures of -20 °C to 85 °C.
Sticker-Free
Smooth sticker-free card surface.
VPG 200 certified
Ensures a minimum sustained write speed to capture high-quality video without any dropped frames.
Card-Level firmware updates
Maintain compatibility and optimize the performance and lifespan of CFexpress Type A cards with firmware updates performed
with Angelbird CFexpress Card Reader. For more information refer to angelbird.com/firmware-update.
3-year limited warranty and free in-house data recovery service
The extended benefit of Angelbird’s renowned individualized customer service with free in-house data recovery service on
hard- and software levels on for Angelbird products activated via Angelbird website within 30 days of purchase.
Design
I like the design of the CFexpress Type A cards. They are smaller than SD cards and with a much better build quality. I’ve had several SD cards split and open. These don’t look like this issue will happen.
The no-rib design is great. The thin ribs between an SD card’s contacts are fragile, and when they break, the card is unusable. I also like that there is no sticker with the branding and model. Stickers fade over time and can peel off. All in all, this is a major improvement over SD cards.
Speed Test
Testing the speed of a media card is a bit difficult since there are many variables, such as the camera, computer, and the card reader used. In this case, I’m using an Apple M1 Macbook Pro with ProGrade Digital CFexpress Type A & UHS-II SDXC Dual-Slot USB 3.2 Gen 2 Card Reader.
I set the stress test to 5GB file and got the following:
- 804 MB/s WRITE
- 680 MB/S READ
The speed is a bit shy of the stated speeds; however, it can handle 8K RAW, 4K, and high frame-rate video at up to 120 fps, as well as raw photos and image bursts across a range of Sony cameras.
To see how the card performs when close to full, I loaded up 305GB of media and did another speed test.
With 305GB on the card I set the stress test to 5GB file and got the following:
- 788.6 MB/s WRITE
- 673.8 MB/S READ
The AV PRO CFexpress A SE performed very well.
Pricing
AV PRO CFexpress A SE 160GB retails for $129.99 USD / 330GB retails for $229.99 USD.
I checked B&H for compared pricing in the same specifications and found the Angelbird competitive.
Sony CFexpress Type A TOUGH Memory Card 160GB $398.00 USD / 360GB $648.00 USD
Exascend 120GB Essential Series CFexpress Type A Memory Card
160GB $120 USD / 360GB $299 USD
Lexar Professional CFexpress Type A Card SILVER Series
160GB $149.99 USD / 320GB $249.99 USD
ProGrade Digital CFexpress 2.0 Type A Gold Memory Card
240GB $239.99 USD / 480GB $339.99 USD
Free Data Recovery
I like that Angelbird includes free data recovery within the 3-year warranty period. The service covers media that has encountered physical damage and/or software issues, such as data or file corruption. If requested, they extend a non-disclosure agreement to ensure that the privacy and confidentiality of the media’s content is also protected.
Angelbird makes high-quality media with a solid warranty. I have been using their media for many years without issue. While purchasing the fastest media is good for future-proofing, having a less expensive option is nice if you will not utilize the speed.
