Best Nikon D3500 SD Memory Card
SDXC, SDHC, and SD memory cards were designed to be compatible with the Nikon D3500. For video and continuous shooting, it is essential the card you use is fast enough.
An inadequate card can mess up the functionality of your camera.
Just want to have the best? This is my suggestion on the SD card for use with the Nikon D3500:
- UHS-I, U1, and Class 10 Speed Rating. Can sustain 10MB/s write speeds.
- Excellent choice for photos.
- Capable of recording Full HD (1920x1080) Video.
- Inexpensive with more than good enough performance.
- Larger capacities are available for a reasonable price.
Best SD Cards
Since the intro of Nikon D3500, the cost of SD cards has greatly reduced.
Seeing as how affordable costs are, it would not be smart to buy anything besides a professional-quality memory card.
The best SD memory cards I have owned have been the SanDisk Extreme Pro, Lexar Professional, and PNY Elite Performance models. I have under no circumstances suffered from unusable data or a card break with those SD memory cards.
Each and every hassle I have had has been due to no-name unbranded SD memory cards. Trying to save around a dollar isn’t worth the cost if your D3500 will not operate as expected.
To save some money, purchase a lower storage capacity memory card from a quality supplier. That way, you’ll not have to worry about the photographs stored on the SD memory card.
Recommended SD Cards
- UHS-I, U1, and Class 10 Speed Rating. Can sustain 10MB/s write speeds.
- Excellent choice for photos.
- Capable of recording Full HD (1920x1080) Video.
- Inexpensive with more than good enough performance.
- Larger capacities are available for a reasonable price.
- UHS-I, U3, V30, and Class 10 Speed Rating. Can sustain 30MB/s write speeds.
- Good for burst shooting photos and recording 4K video.
- Larger capacity cards are available.
- Reliable & Durable: Magnet Proof, Shock Proof, Temperature Proof, Waterproof.
- Comparatively expensive for faster read speeds.
- UHS-I, U3, V30, and Class 10 Speed Rating. Can sustain 30MB/s write speeds.
- Only makes sense for professional use or if you need the largest storage capacity available.
- Temperature-proof, waterproof, shock-proof, and X-ray-proof.
Nikon D3500 SD Card Compatibility
You can only use SD, SDHC, and SDXC memory cards in the Nikon D3500. Check to make sure that your camera is using the most recent firmware installed.
The newest SDUC (Secure Digital Ultra Capacity) cards, are not going to be able to be used in the D3500.
Four different types of Secure Digital (SD) cards that you should take into consideration. SD cards can be recognized based on the card’s size.
- SD (Secure Digital) - 128MB to 2GB.
- SDHC (Secure Digital High Capacity) - 4GB to 32GB.
- SDXC (Secure Digital eXtended Capacity) - 64GB to 2TB.
- SDUC (Secure Digital Ultra Capacity) - 4TB to 128TB.
Image Capacity
Listed below is a fast estimation of the total number of max-quality JPEGs photographs you should be expecting to be stored on a memory card:
- 16GB - 4,640 images
- 32GB - 9,280 images
- 64GB - 18,560 images
- 128GB - 37,120 images
Speed, Class, & UHS Ratings
Card Speed
The speed rating of an SD memory card is determined by the continuous write and read transfer speeds of the card. The transfer speed of a memory card is very important for video as well as continuous shooting.
A slow memory card can cause a decrease in the number of continuous frames the Nikon D3500 can capture. This is due to the camera’s buffer not being able to write data to the SD card quickly enough.
With video, a slow card can cause a sudden end to the recording. The video file might also end up being corrupted. If you intend to record video, it is crucial the memory card you use meets the requirements of the D3500.
Read speed is important for transferring files to a computer or laptop. If you are filling up cards with images or video, a memory card with a fast transfer speed will save you time.
Speed Class Rating
The sustained write speed of an SD memory card is the criteria for the Class rating. Cards that have a write speed of 10MB/s will be labeled Class 10.
- Class 2 - 2MB/s
- Class 4 - 4MB/s
- Class 6 - 6MB/s
- Class 8 - 8MB/s
- Class 10 - 10MB/s or faster
Every brand-name SD card that you can purchase online will have a Class 10 rating. To determine the class rating of a card, try to find a number inside of a C on the front label.
Ultra High Speed (UHS)
The Ultra High Speed (UHS) bus can often be found in SDUC, SDXC, and SDHC cards. The UHS bus allows for increased file transfer rates.
Three separate versions have been created. They are UHS-I, UHS-II, and UHS-III.
Look at the label to find the UHS rating of a card. If the memory card has UHS, a Roman numeral I, II, or III can be seen on the front of the memory card.
- UHS-I - Maximum transfer rate of 104 MB/s
- UHS-II - Maximum transfer rate of 312 MB/s
- UHS-III - Maximum transfer rate of 624 MB/s