Express

If you haven’t picked up a microSD Express Card for your Nintendo Switch 2, you should check out the 512GB SanDisk Gameplay at Walmart. The SanDisk Gameplay has the same specs as the $120 SanDisk card found at Amazon, Best Buy, and even Walmart. The key difference between the two is price: The SanDisk Gameplay 512GB microSD Express is just $78.

The SanDisk Gameplay is only sold at Walmart. Due to its exclusivity and low price, the card has sold out numerous times in recent weeks. It’s in stock as of August 22. The SanDisk Gameplay is one of only two 512GB microSD Express Cards priced under $100 right now. The other one is from Walmart-owned budget tech brand Onn. The 512GB Onn microSD Express is only $65.77. If you don’t think you need 512GB of extra storage, Onn’s 256GB model is only $35.77, roughly $25 less than the officially licensed Samsung 256GB microSD Express Card.

The Onn Express Cards regularly sell out, but Walmart consistently replenishes its inventory. Sometimes these cards are only sold to customers located in specific US regions, so availability near you can vary on a day-to-day basis.

microSD Express Cards for Nintendo Switch 2

Nintendo Switch 2 only reads microSD Express Cards

We rounded up every microSD Express at Walmart and Amazon that we could find below. At this time, the only officially licensed option is the 256GB Samsung microSD Express. SanDisk is making its own Nintendo-themed edition, but it’s still unknown when it will arrive and if it will move beyond. 256GB. The microSD Express market is still quite small, but the Switch 2 is the first major consumer device to use the ultra-fast format. The number of options has doubled multiple times over since Nintendo announced the Switch 2 requires microSD Express to expand storage.

microSD Express Cards at Walmart

microSD Express Cards at Amazon

Nintendo Switch 2 storage space can disappear fast

The Nintendo Switch 2 has a 256GB onboard SSD. On the surface, this is a big leap forward, since it’s four times larger than the Switch OLED (64GB) and eight times larger than the original Switch and Switch Lite (32GB). But the Switch 2’s ability to run more graphically intensive games also means larger file sizes. For example, the upcoming Switch 2 exclusive Kirby Air Riders is listed at 25GB, Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom’s Switch 2 edition is 20GB, and Mario Kart World is 22GB.

You can save your storage space for those first-party games by grabbing physical editions, because Nintendo-published games have the full game file on the card. For third-party titles, outside of rare exceptions like Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition, physical games for Switch 2 are using Game-Key Cards. These are low-capacity cards that essentially serve as unlock keys to download the game from the eShop. So if you buy the physical edition of Madden NFL 26, you’ll still need to download the majority of the game’s 55.3GB file from the eShop. A bunch of notable upcoming Switch 2 games with Game-Key Card editions also have large file sizes, including Borderlands 4 (48.8GB), Persona 3 Reload (25.4GB), and Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero (25GB).

Because of Game-Key Cards and larger file sizes for AAA games, some Nintendo Switch 2 owners will run out of storage space faster than they did on the original Switch.

microSD Express: What is it?

The Express format is a recent advancement in the semiconductor industry that hasn’t been widely adopted by manufacturers just yet. If you’re wondering why Express cards seem so expensive compared to the UHS-I cards you used on the original Switch console and most devices, it all comes down to speeds. For example, the SanDisk Ultra 512GB microSD Card has up to 150MB/s read speed, and the SanDisk Gameplay 512GB Express Card has 880MB/s–it’s nearly six times faster. Express cards are markedly faster than SATA SSDs; the prices make more sense with this context.

You can take a closer look at many of the microSD Express Cards from the lists in the gallery below.

$59 | Officially licensed

• Read: 800MB/s
• Write: 400MB/s

Samsung’s officially licensed model has a Mario red color scheme and M logo. Unsurprisingly, it’s by far the most popular microSD Express Card for Switch 2. Samsung and SanDisk are widely considered the top brands for microSD cards. Since SanDisk’s Nintendo-licensed card isn’t available yet, Samsung is the only “official” option.

At $60–or $59 at Walmart–the Samsung microSD Express is far more reasonably priced than the pricey Nintendo-themed SanDisk cards for original Switch. If you opt for a 256GB Express, we’d go with this one or the Onn Express Card at Walmart–if it’s available in your region. The Walmart-branded card saves you about $25, and it technically has better specs.

We’ve included read/write speeds for each card on this list. Read speeds range between 800-900MB/s, but it’s unlikely you’d ever notice a difference between Samsung’s 800MB/s read speed and Lexar’s 900MB/s speed.

The Nintendo-licensed Samsung card has the slowest write speed on this list. At face value, this sounds bad, but really it signifies what’s important and what isn’t. If the officially licensed card can write 400MB/s, that means the Switch 2 doesn’t benefit from higher speeds.

While it won’t matter for Switch 2, if you think there’s a chance you’ll upgrade to a higher-capacity card and repurpose this one for a different Express-compatible device, write speeds could become more of a consideration. But to be clear, 400MB/s is still pretty fast.

$78 | Only at Walmart

• Read: 880MB/s
• Write: 650MB/s
• Sustained Write: 220MB/s

As mentioned, the SanDisk Gameplay 512GB microSD Express Card is currently only available at Walmart. It appears to be an exclusive card with small branding alterations. The regular SanDisk model has “microSD Express” written across its red stripe, whereas this one has “Gameplay” on the red stripe and “Express” below it on the right. Do this differences matter at all? Not in the slightest.

Here’s what matters: the SanDisk Gameplay is exactly the same as the regular 512GB model from a technical and performance perspective. And yet, you save around $40 by purchasing the Gameplay version.

The 512GB Gameplay is only six bucks more than the 256GB regular edition and less than $20 more than the 128GB model. The Gameplay edition is only available with 512GB.

If you go with SanDisk, the Gameplay is the obvious choice. In terms of 512GB microSD Express Cards, only Walmart’s Onn brand is cheaper, and that one isn’t always available in all regions and has slightly slower speeds.

256GB – $35.77 | 512GB – $65.77

• Read: 800MB/s
• Write: 600MB/s

Note on availability: These cards often sell out and are sometimes only available in certain regions across the US. If you want one, we’d recommend checking Walmart daily, because both models have sold out many times since the Switch 2’s launch.

The Walmart-owned tech brand Onn is known for its budget prices, and that remains true with its microSD Express Cards. The 256GB model is the cheapest microSD Express Card you can by today. The 512GB edition cost less than most 256GB Express cards from other brands.

If you’re thinking the prices are too good to be true, it’s worth noting that these cards are made by Lexar. The Onn cards have the same write speed as the Lexar Play Pro, but the Play Pro is 100MB/s faster for reading. That said, the 512GB Lexar costs close to double the price.

Anecdotally, I’ve been using the 512GB model since launch day and haven’t experienced any issues.

Walmart says the cards are “water, shock, temperature, and magnet proof.” Your purchase includes a one-year limited warranty.

Available in 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB

• 128GB
  • Read: 880MB/s
  • Write: 480MB/s
  • Sustained Write: 100MB/s
• 256GB
  • Read: 880MB/s
  • Write: 650MB/s
  • Sustained Write: 210MB/s
• 512GB
  • Read: 880MB/s
  • Write: 650MB/s
  • Sustained Write: 220MB/s

SanDisk’s regular microSD Express Card is available in 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB models. All three capacities offer the same 880MB/s read speed, but, as noted above, there are differences in write and sustained write speeds.

At the moment, the prices for all three are pretty high compared to other cards on this list. Ironically, the main reason why these don’t offer solid value is because SanDisk’s 512GB Gameplay Express Card exists.

SanDisk will be releasing a Nintendo-licensed microSD Express Card with a Mario red color scheme and logo, but a release date still hasn’t been revealed. We do know that the licensed edition is the same card with a different look–just like the SanDisk Gameplay situation.

SanDisk currently manufactures 128GB and 256GB models of its microSD Express Cards.

Available in 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB models

• Read: 900MB/s
• Write: 600MB/s

The Lexar Play Pro is the only microSD Express Card from a major brand that currently has a 1TB model. The 1TB Play Pro is sold out more often than not, and restocks for the $200 card go fast. We found a listing on Walmart for a 2TB Play Pro, so it will be interesting to see how much that one sells for.

128GB – $44.41 | 256GB – $53.32

• Read: 890MB/s
• Write: 550MB/s

Popular budget tech brand PNY has 128GB and 256GB microSD Express Cards. Both models are the cheapest in their respective capacities on Amazon.

Available in 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB models

• Read: 800MB/s
• Write: Unavailable

GameStop sells branded microSD Express Cards, too. It’s unknown which manufacturer makes the card, but we’d stay clear of these because the write speed isn’t included on the product page. Even though the read speed is what matters most for Switch 2, we’d never recommend buying a storage device without knowing the write speed. Plus, you can get 256GB and 512GB models from known brands for less.

GameStop is one of the few companies offering a 1TB model, but it’s almost always sold out. The 512GB model is routinely sold out, too. We suspect this stems from very small print runs, not popularity. These cards only have a handful of customer reviews.

128GB – $48 | 512GB – $115

• Read: 800MB/s
• Write: 500MB/s

TeamGroup is a well-regarded budget manufacturer of microSD cards. The Apex is TeamGroup’s first card with Express tech. The Apex has only been available for a few weeks, but the 128GB and 512GB models are worth keeping on your radar for price drops.

TeamGroup’s prices are often noticeably lower than competitors. That’s not the case right now, but we wouldn’t be surprised if that changes in the future. For example, TeamGroup’s A2 Pro Plus 1TB microSD card regularly sells for around $60. To be clear, the A2 Pro does not work on Switch 2–though it is a solid option for the original Switch and Steam Deck.

Source link