MicroSD Express: Essential Upgrade for Nintendo Switch 2

Last week, Nintendo unveiled the Nintendo Switch 2, revealing that it exclusively supports expansion through MicroSD Express cards. This decision might be frustrating for those with existing MicroSD collections, but it's a strategic move due to the superior speed of MicroSD Express. These cards leverage a PCIe 3.1 interface, enabling read/write speeds comparable to the UFS (Universal Flash Storage) used in the Switch 2's internal storage. This means games stored on an expansion card can theoretically load as quickly as those stored internally, though it does mean you can't use slower, less expensive non-Express MicroSD cards.

MicroSD vs. MicroSD Express

Over the years, MicroSD cards have evolved through six different speed ratings. Starting with the original SD cards at a modest 12.5MB/s, speeds have progressively increased, reaching up to 312MB/s with the SD UHS III standard. However, the introduction of the SD Express standard five years ago marked a significant leap forward. Unlike previous standards that used the UHS-I interface, SD Express utilizes a PCIe 3.1 interface, similar to that of high-speed NVMe SSDs. This allows full-sized SD Express cards to achieve transfer speeds up to 3,940MB/s. While MicroSD Express cards don't reach these peak speeds, they still offer impressive performance, topping out at 985MB/s—three times faster than the fastest non-Express MicroSD cards.

Why Does the Switch 2 Require MicroSD Express?

Although Nintendo hasn't explicitly detailed its reasoning, the requirement for MicroSD Express cards on the Switch 2 is likely driven by the need for speed. With games installed on both traditional UHS-I MicroSD cards and MicroSD Express cards, the latter will load significantly faster due to the PCIe 3.1 interface. This could set a precedent for future handheld gaming PCs as well.

The internal storage of the Nintendo Switch 2 has been upgraded to UFS from eMMC, aligning with the need for faster external storage. Early demos suggest that load times for games like Breath of the Wild have improved dramatically, with fast travel times reduced by 35% according to Polygon, and initial load times improved by a factor of three as reported by Digital Foundry. These enhancements could be attributed to the faster internal storage, but also to the improved CPU and GPU, which can process data more efficiently. The key takeaway is that Nintendo needed its external storage to match these speeds to prevent future games from being bottlenecked by slower SD cards.

Moreover, this move future-proofs the console, as the current fastest SD card standard, SD 8.0 Specification, supports speeds up to 3,942MB/s for full-size SD Express cards. While MicroSD Express cards aren't there yet, they could reach these speeds in the future, provided the Switch 2's hardware supports it.

MicroSD Express Capacity Options

Currently, MicroSD Express cards are not widely available, but this is expected to change with the launch of the Nintendo Switch 2. Lexar offers a single MicroSD Express card in 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB capacities, with the 1TB variant priced at $199.

Lexar Play Pro MicroSD Express

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SanDisk, on the other hand, has a single MicroSD Express card available, topping out at 256GB, which matches the internal storage of the Switch 2. As the Switch 2 hits the market, we might not see many MicroSD Express cards with capacities beyond 512GB initially. However, as demand grows, companies like Samsung are likely to increase production of these high-speed memory cards.

SanDisk MicroSD Express 256GB

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