Olympus E-PL5 Memory Card Compatibility

The Olympus E-PL5 can use SDXC, SDHC, and SD memory cards. Burst shooting and video need SD memory cards with fast write speeds to the card.

The performance of your camera can be ruined by using an inadequate SD memory card.

Don’t care about the technical specs? Below is my suggestion on the memory card to get for the Olympus E-PL5:

• 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

SD memory cards have dropped in price the time since the launch of the Olympus E-PL5.

With prices being affordable, it would not make sense to purchase anything but a professional-quality card.

SanDisk Extreme Pro, Lexar Professional, and PNY Elite Performance cards have excellent performance and dependability. I have under no circumstances experienced a card failure or corrupted data with those memory cards.

Every single hassle I have encountered has been due to low-cost unbranded SD cards. Hoping to save a buck isn’t worth it if your E-PL5 will not work in the right way.

A sensible way to spend less money is to select a lower capacity memory card from a high-quality company. Because of this, you will know your images are safe and sound on the SD 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.

Olympus E-PL5 SD Card Compatibility

The memory cards that will work with the Olympus E-PL5 are SD, SDHC, and SDXC. Check to make sure that you have the current firmware installed on your camera for the best performance.

The newest cards, SDUC (Secure Digital Ultra Capacity), are not usable in the E-PL5.

You should be aware of the 4 different types of Secure Digital (SD) cards that exist. SD memory cards can be told apart from the size of the SD memory card.

• 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

Here is an approximation of the number of max-quality JPEGs shots you can expect to fit 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 dependant on the sequential write and read speeds. The continuous transfer speed of a card is critical for video as well as continuous shooting.

Slows cards can cause a drop in the number of continuous photos the Olympus E-PL5 can capture. This is because the camera’s buffer will not be able to write to the card fast enough.

When recording video, a slow SD card can cause an abrupt end to shooting. The video file may also end up being corrupted. If you intend to shoot video, it is critical the memory card you use meets the required minimum continuous write speed for video.

Read speed is important for file transfers to a computer. If you are filling up cards with images or video, a memory card with a fast read speed will cut down on the amount of time it takes the transfer to complete.

Speed Class Rating

The sustained write speed of an SD memory card is the criteria for the Class rating. Memory cards that have a write speed of at least 10MB/s are rated as 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 of card that you can get today will receive a Class 10 rating. To determine the class rating of a card, try to find a number inside of a C on the sticker.

Ultra High Speed (UHS)

The Ultra High Speed (UHS) bus is a feature that can be found in SDUC, SDXC, and SDHC memory cards. The UHS bus memory cards to have increased read and write speeds.

There are 3 different versions. They are UHS-I, UHS-II, and UHS-III.

You can determine the UHS rating of a card by reading the front of the memory card. A Roman numeral I, II, or III on the front of the SD card, that is the rating of the SD 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

Related Cameras

If you wanted to choose one, the 64GB SanDisk Extreme Pro is the best memory card for the Olympus E-PL5. You are now ready for any future camera you own.

The following are more pages on Olympus cameras with the same specifications as the E-PL5: