Mini test: ProGrade Digital 480GB CFexpress 4.0 Type A Iridium card

Posted on Jan 10, 2025 by Pro Moviemaker

When it comes to memory cards for Sony’s mirrorless and cinema cameras, we put the Prograde Digital CFexpress Type A Iridium card to the test

Words Adam Duckworth

Sony camera owners – including those with the mirrorless A7S III, A7 IV, A1 and A9 III, as well as the FX6 and FX9 cinema cameras – have long faced a limited choice of memory cards. The decision to use the smaller CFexpress Type A format meant that, initially, only Sony’s own-brand media was available. This came at a premium and in limited size options.

After several years, the selection has expanded. While it still lacks the variety of CFexpress Type B media, there are now faster and often more affordable options than Sony’s own brand available.

One of the advantages of Type A cards is that, while smaller than standard SD cards, they fit into the same slot. Many filmmakers opt for cheaper SD cards, but this limits frame rate and quality options. To unlock the full potential of your camera, it’s best to go with CFexpress.

Regular readers might recall my horror story of buying a cheap, no-name Type A card that seemed fine but then let me down on an important shoot last summer – I lost some vital footage. I replaced that card with this Prograde Digital CFexpress 4.0 Type A Iridium in a 480GB capacity and haven’t been let down since.

A Type A Iridium card sitting next to an SD card showing how the Type A (left) is smaller

The memory card comes in plastic-free packaging (top). The Type A card is smaller than an SD (above)

The Iridium range offers higher read speeds than the standard range, but it’s largely irrelevant for real-world shooting since no current camera can utilise the CFexpress 4.0 standard. As a result, any Type B 4.0 card runs at CFexpress 2.0 speeds. Call it future-proofing.

The Type A Iridium card provides rapid read speeds of up to 1800MB/s – which helps to quickly offload content to the computer – and write speeds of up to 1700MB/s. The sustained write speed is 800MB/s, and with its VPG-200 certification, minimum write speeds are guaranteed not to drop below 200MB/s. This ensures uninterrupted recording of various codecs, including Raw 4K video, 4K and 6K ProRes 4444, 4K, 6K and 8K ProRes 422 HQ and more.

We pushed it hard for video shoots with the Sony A1 – and also smashed through Raw stills at 30fps with no real slowdown.

Although the 480GB version manages a sustained write speed of 800MB/s, the more expensive 960GB card ramps up to 1450MB/s if you feel the need for speed.

The card is resistant to harsh temperatures, shock, vibration and X-rays. It also uses Refresh Pro software, allowing you to monitor your card’s health, clean the card to bring it back to factory-fresh speeds and upgrade the firmware if needed.

£385/$390

progradedigital.com