Anyone who uses a dedicated camera body for photography or video capture is likely to be familiar with the tried-and-true SD card. This compact form of media storage comes in various capacity options at a fair price. But when using higher-end dedicated camera bodies, you may notice an entirely different memory card slot inside: CFExpress Type B.
CFExpress Type B lends a host of benefits over traditional SD cards, including faster data transfer speeds and improved heat dissipation. But not all CFExpress Type B cards are created equally. Like SD cards, CFExpress Type B cards come in different storage capacities and are offered in different speed ratings to suit your needs.
Sabrent – Affordable and capable
While I’ve been hands-on with several different CFExpress Type B cards, one brand that consistently stands out to me is Sabrent. Their CFExpress Type B card lineup offers one of the most flexible in terms of storage capacities, and at mind-blowingly low prices compared to other brands. Best of all, I haven’t noticed any reliability differences when compared the bigger brand names, making Sabrent a tempting option.
Sabrent is known for their Rocket CFX line of CFExpress Type B cards, which come in flavors of 512GB or 1TB storage capacities and provide up to 1,700/1,500 MB/s read/write speeds peak, or 1,600/400 MB/s read/write speeds sustained. When reading these stats, the sustained numbers are the ones that most users are concerned with, as these are the speeds that will be most prevalent during continued use.
In our testing, we were able to achieve 1,460/600 MB/s read/write speeds with the Rocket CFX line in a 1TB flavor:
Sabrent’s Rocket CFX line of CFExpress Type B cards is most discernible by its blacked-out color scheme and blue stripes on the sticker; but more recently, Sabrent launched a new line of CFExpress Type B cards called the Rocket CFX Pro line that are discernible by its gold-on-black color scheme.
Sabrent Rocket CFX Pro
As you might come to expect from a CFExpress Type B card that adds the “Pro” designation to its name, Sabrent’s Rocket CFX Pro CFExpress Type B cards lend serious spec boosts when compared to the non-Pro line. They come in flavors of 512GB, 1TB, and 2TB storage capacities and provide up to 1,800/1,700 MB/s read/write speeds peak, or 1,700/1,300 MB/s read/write speeds sustained (on 1TB and larger cards).
In our testing, we were able to achieve 1,525/1,207 MB/s read/write speeds with the Rocket CFX Pro line in a 1TB flavor… a fantastic step up from the write speeds in the ordinary Rocket CFX line:
For most photographers, Sabrent’s regular Rocket CFX CFExpress cards will be more than enough, but if you’re rocking more demanding camera hardware like what’s found in the Nikon Z9, and you’re pushing the camera to its limits in terms of video capture and rapid photo clicks, then you’re likely going to want a faster option such as the Rocket CFX Pro in order to keep up with the camera’s top-end image capture capabilities.
Sabrent’s slower Rocket CFX line of CFExpress Type B cards are affordably priced $149 for 512GB and $249 for 1TB (just compare these storage capacity options to the prices offered by other brand names…), but you can expect to pay a bit more for enhanced speed capabilities. The faster Rocket CFX Pro line of CFExpress Type B cards come with price tags of $269.99 for 512GB, $449 for 1TB, and $649 for 2TB.
While it seems like a bit much in terms of cost at first glance, finding a 2TB storage option with these sustained write speeds isn’t particularly easy in today’s market, and most other brands are charging more for smaller 750GB CFExpress Type B cards with similar sustained read/write speeds. For this reason, we think that Sabrent is a reasonable way to go for anyone who desires pro-grade hardware capabilities on a budget.
CFExpress Type B – Camera storage of the future
As dedicated camera bodies become more capable in terms of photography and videography by way of higher resolution image and video capture and faster shutter speeds (especially in terms of electronic shutters), it seems clear that CFExpress Type B will eventually overtake SD cards as the default storage medium given their higher-performing specifications. While this won’t happen overnight, we can already see it happening in higher-end cameras today, like the Nikon Z9 mentioned earlier.
If you’re on the fence about CFExpress Type B because of the cost, then Sabrent is a great brand to start with. With them, you get reliable storage offered in smaller or larger capacities, in addition to the choice between slower Rocket CFX or faster Rocket CFX Pro cards. For most non-flagship dedicated camera bodies, we think that the Rocket CFX line of CFExpress Type B cards will be enough, but those using flagships that demand more out of their storage cards should really consider Sabrent’s Rocket CFX Pro line instead.
Sabrent CFExpress Type B card readers
Sabrent also has you covered in terms of file transfers. They offer both USB-C-based and Thunderbolt-based CFExpress Type B card readers that are blazingly fast when transferring files to USB-C or Thunderbolt-equipped Macs or Windows PCs.
If you do any kind of creative work, either for hobby or for professional reasons, then these readers can cut down on file transfer times by utilizing the full read speeds of your CFExpress Type B cards rather than the bottleneck speeds of your camera’s integrated USB port (if it even has one).
Where to get one
If you’re in need of CFExpress Type B storage media for your dedicated camera body, and Sabrent’s offerings look attractive to you, then you can check out the company’s cheaper Rocket CFX cards on Amazon. Prices range from $150 to $500 depending on whether you need a single 512GB card or a two 1TB card bundle. Sabrent’s slower USB-C-based CFEXpress Type B card reader is also available on Amazon for $57 and works with any brand of CFEXpress Type B card.
On the other hand, if you’re using a more demanding dedicated camera body and require faster storage media, then Sabrent’s faster and more expensive Rocket CFX Pro cards can also be had on Amazon. Prices range from $270 to $650 depending on whether you need a 512GB card, all the way up to a massive 2TB card. You can also find Sabrent’s faster Thunderbolt-based CFExpress Type B card reader on Amazon for a modest $130, which works with any brand of CFExpress Type B card and will utilize the CFExpress Type B card’s speeds to its fullest.
My thoughts on Sabrent CFExpress Type B cards
Having lots of storage is going to be important if you’re a photographer, and in many cases, you may want more than one storage card so that you can have redundant backups of your work when shooting photos or video for compensation. For this reason, affordable and reliable storage has a lot of value for amateur and professional photographers and videographers alike.
Sabrent fills an important niche in the market by providing affordably priced storage options. It seems to me that while they aren’t the fastest cards on the market, they are good enough to get the job done for most users and are offered at a fair price point compared to much of the competition, especially per gigabyte (or terabyte!). That said, you could get yourself a couple of Sabrent cards for the price of one bigger brand name card of the same storage capacity, which could be a wiser choice.
I’ve had no issues with Sabrent’s CFExpress storage cards keeping up with my camera’s shooting capabilities, nor have I had any reliability problems with the cards’ onboard data corrupting with extended use as you may have heard about other smaller-brand storage cards.
Here’s a brief rundown of pros and cons relating to the Sabrent Rocket CFX and Rocket CFX Pro cards:
Pros:
- Affordable storage per gigabyte compared to other CFExpress Type B cards
- Cards are reliable with extended use
- More appealing storage sizes up to 2TB
- Available in low-cost budget options, or high-cost performance options
- Each card comes in a slick magnetically clasped enclosure
- Will work with any CFExpress Type B-supported camera body
- All-metal casing dissipates heat effectively
Cons:
- Not as fast as some of the more expensive performance brands
- Not as affordable as SD cards
Conclusion
There isn’t a lot of bad that I can say about the Sabrent CFX Rocket and CFX Rocket Pro CFExpress Type B cards. For the price, you get a lot of bang for your buck – lots of storage space, and high read and write speeds to keep up with your camera body’s workflow.
What kind of storage media is your dedicated camera body using, and will you be giving Sabrent a try? Let us know in the comments section down below.