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The best micro SD memory card for the DJI Mavic 2 Pro and Mavic 2 Zoom

The best micro SD memory card for the DJI Mavic 2 Pro and Mavic 2 Zoom

The DJI Mavic 2 Pro and Mavic 2 Zoom are the latest and most popular DJI drones capable of recording high quality 4K video. They are designed for professionals, aerial photographers and content creators and feature integrated Hasselblad camera for outstanding image quality with superior light and color performance. Both Mavic 2 Pro & Zoom feature high resolution photo and video modes and both drones require fast micro SD memory card in order to work properly.

One of the questions we often get asked is what MicroSD card we recommend for a DJI Mavic 2 Pro and Zoom, as well as all other DJI drones. There are many different micro SD cards on the market and choosing the best option can be difficult.
All the cards we recommend below are the ones we personally use for our drones so you can trust us when we say these are some of the best SD cards for your Mavic 2 Pro and Zoom.

Here are some recommendations that will guide you towards choosing the right memory card for your DJI drone:

Dji Mavic 2 Pro

Memory card type

Both DJI Mavic 2 Pro and Mavic 2 Zoom use a single UHS-I micro SD memory card slot, so you don’t need to buy a more expensive UHS-II card. The Mavic 2 does not have the hardware to support the extra pins in UHS-II cards so there is no reason to spend the extra money on them.

Due to the slot size, SD cards and miniSD cards are not compatible with DJI drones.

Storage capacity

Both Mavic 2 Pro and Zoom support MicroSDHC and MicroSDXC memory cards with capacity up to 128GB. It is possible to use larger memory cards like 256GB although these cards are not recommended.
When it comes to choosing the right size memory card, 128GB cards might be the best choice for most people. Record times roughly give you about 7.5GB of data for 10 minutes of footage and DJI Mavic 2 can fly up to 31 minutes with fully charged battery. If you have three batteries from the fly more combo non-stop recording for three flights would give about 90 minutes of footage so 64GB card will not be enough.

Also, if you plan on using your micro SD card with other devices then we wouldn’t recommend cards smaller than 128GB. GoPro and other action cameras also use the same microSD memory cards and many customers use the same cards for those cameras as well.

Please keep in mind to backup your data regularly because if you crash or lose your drone you may lose the original footage. For this reason, we recommend using multiple microSD cards to prevent losing all the footage in case of some inconvenience.

Dji Mavic 2 Pro

Memory card speed

When choosing the right micro SD card for Mavic 2 drones you need to take write speed or speed class of a MicroSD card into account. For all drones, we recommend a minimum of Class 10, which really means that it writes data at a minimum speed of 10MB per second. Class 10 cards will have a C with a numeral 10 inside of it.

Additionally, newer cards also have a secondary UHS (Ultra high Speed) or VSC (Video Speed Class) classification. UHS will have a U with a 1 or a 3 inside it. U1 icon writes at the same as Class 10…so 10MB/sec. U3 writes at 30MB/sec. Similarly, VSC will be annotated with V10, V30, V60, and V90, representing minimum sustained write speeds of 10MB, 30MB, 60MB and 90MB per second respectively.

The Mavic 2 records 4k and writes to the micro SD card at up to 100 Mbps (or 12.5 MB/s). This means that you need to have a microSD memory card with a minimum write speed of more than 12.5 MB/s. Therefore, regular class 10 microSD cards are not guaranteed to work with DJI Mavic 2 pro or Zoom. Class 10 designation guarantees a minimum write speed of 10 MB/s, but we can’t be sure if the card’s minimum is more than 12.5 MB/s. This implicates that you need a memory card with U3/V30 speed class, which has a guaranteed minimum write speed of 30 MB/s, which is at least 2.4 times faster than these drones require at maximum settings. Memory cards faster than U3/V30 will of course work with Mavic 2, but are not required and therefore not recommended by us since these cards are also more expensive, often significantly. UHS-I U3 microSD memory card is the one to get.

If you’re just shooting video, you will not need the card faster than U3/V30 because all of these cards can handle 4K 100Mbps video bitrate, but if you also take RAW photos you can benefit from faster cards because both Mavic 2 Pro and Zoom have very fast buffers and you will notice the difference in speed since RAW photos are about 40 MB in size each.

Dji Mavic 2 Pro

Detailed Recommendations on micro SD Cards for the DJI Mavic 2 Pro and Zoom

Although DJI Mavic 2 Pro and Mavic 2 Zoom work with almost any UHS-I microSD memory card, there are some models that we always recommend to our customers.

SanDisk Extreme Pro UHS-I, U3, V30

SanDisk Extreme Pro UHS-I microSDXC Memory Card is Sandisk’s highest-end micro SD card and the best UHS-I microSDXC memory card on the market. It is labeled both with V30 for 4K video recording and A2 rating for app speed. It’s rated for 90 MB/s sequential write speed and 170 MB/s sequential read.

This card is the most expensive among UHS-I microSDXC memory cards and it is our first choice for DJI drones and all other devices that are using microSD cards. This card also comes with a full-sized SD adapter, making it compatible with a wide range of devices from video cameras to laptops. Thanks to its Class 10, UHS Speed Class 3 rating and write speeds of up to 90 MB/s, this card permits you to shoot in full HD and 4K Ultra HD video recording. Plus, this card is shockproof, temperature-proof, waterproof, and X-ray proof, so you can rest easy knowing that you can take it anywhere.

It is available in 64GB, 128GB, 256GB, 400GB, 512GB and 1TB capacity.

SanDisk 128GB Extreme Pro UHS-I microSDXC Memory Card with SD Adapter

SanDisk 128GB Extreme Pro UHS-I microSDXC Memory Card with SD Adapter is Sandisk’s top-of-the-line micro SD card. It is labeled both with V30 for 4K video recording and A2 rating for app speed. It’s rated for 90 MB/s sequential write speed and 170 MB/s sequential read.

Samsung EVO Plus UHS-I, U3

Samsung EVO Plus is high-end microSD card. It isn’t cheap, but you’re getting a winning combination of performance and storage capacity. The EVO+ cards have been rated for read and write speeds of up to 100/90 MB/s respectively.

Samsung Evo Plus is available in 64GB, 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB sizes

Samsung 128GB EVO Plus UHS-I microSDXC Memory Card with SD Adapter

Samsung 128GB EVO Plus UHS-I microSDXC Memory Card with SD Adapter isn’t just big on storage, it is also very fast. The EVO+ 128GB has been rated for read and write speeds of up to 100/90 MB/s respectively. With 128GB at your disposal, users can now record up to 6 hours of 4K UHD video or 16.5 hours of Full HD video or store up to 27,600 photos without needing to change or replace the memory card.

SanDisk Extreme UHS-I, U3, V30

The SanDisk Extreme has blazing fast read speeds of up to 160MB/s and write speeds of up to 90MB/s, capable of handling 4K video, high-res photos, and large files without issue. Sandisk Extreme card is fast and affordable. Comes with an SD adapter and there are plenty of capacity options: 64GB, 128GB, 256GB, 400GB, 512GB and 1TB capacity

SanDisk 128GB Extreme UHS-I microSDXC Memory Card with SD Adapter

SanDisk 128GB Extreme UHS-I microSDXC Memory Card with SD Adapter is designed to provide plenty of storage for tablets, faster app boots for Android smartphones, capturing fast-action photos with action cameras, and recording 4K UHD video with drones. It quotes impressive performance figures up to 160MB/s reads and 90MB/s writes.

Lexar Professional 667x UHS-I U3

Lexar cards are among the best memory cards for many years, and professional 667x series is another great choice for DJI drones. Its performance is rated at 100MB/s read and 90MB/s write speed and features the UHS Speed Class 3 (U3) and V30 rating. The card is available in 64GB, 128GB and 256GB sizes.

Lexar 128GB Professional 667x UHS-I microSDXC Memory Card with SD Adapter

Lexar 128GB Professional 667x UHS-I microSDXC Memory Card with SD Adapter is designed to provide plenty of storage for tablets and mobile phones, capturing fast-action photos and videos with action cameras, and recording 4K UHD video with drones. This card has also been designed with the V30 Video Speed Class rating, which guarantees minimum write speeds of at least 30 MB/s. All of this allows for users to immerse themselves in extreme sports videography and photography in 4K, Full HD, and 3D.

SanDisk Ultra UHS-I U1

Ultra is the most affordable line of Sandisk’s cards and offers the best GB/$ ratio. It is available in 64GB, 128GB, 200GB, 256GB, 400GB and 512GB sizes. Although this card is only U1 certified, our tests showed that this card is able to achieve sequential write speeds of more than 60MB/s, much higher than expected given the card is rated V10 and U1 which only indicates the minimum write speed of 10MB/s.

SanDisk 128GB Ultra UHS-I microSDXC Memory Card

SanDisk 128GB Ultra UHS-I microSDXC Memory Card is designed to provide plenty of storage for tablets and mobile phones, faster app boots for Android smartphones, capturing fast-action photos with action cameras, and recording Full HD and 4K video with drones. It features an impressive read speed of up to 100MB/s

Summary

Not everyone’s storage needs are the same, but speed, reliability, and performance are things that matter for every DJI drone. As long as you pick up a UHS-I U3 (Ultra High Speed) card from a quality manufacturer with a capacity that reflects your needs, it’s hard to go wrong. We always recommend Sandisk and Samsung cards since those are the 2 leading manufacturers of flash memory and chances that something will go wrong are minimal.

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