Pentax K-50 Memory Card Compatibility
SD, SDHC, and SDXC memory cards are designed to operate in the Pentax K-50. Fast write speeds are an important aspect for video and burst shooting.
You can mess up the performance of your camera by using the wrong card.
If you are in a rush, here’s the best memory card you can buy for the Pentax K-50:
- 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 Pentax K-50, the cost of memory cards has come way down.
Due to prices being so affordable, it will not be wise to spend money on anything but a professional-quality memory card.
SanDisk Extreme Pro, Lexar Professional, and PNY Elite Performance cards are great. I have never encountered a card become inoperable or corrupted data with those cards.
Every single problem I have dealt with has been because of no-name unbranded cards. Hoping to save around a dollar is not worth it if your K-50 is likely to experience problems.
To cut costs, pick a lower storage capacity card from a high-quality company. By doing this, you’ll know your photos are safe 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.
Pentax K-50 SD Card Compatibility
You can only use SD, SDHC, and SDXC cards in the Pentax K-50. For best performance, be sure that your camera is using the most recent firmware installed.
The newest SDUC (Secure Digital Ultra Capacity) memory cards, can not be used in the K-50.
You should know of the four types of Secure Digital (SD) memory cards that there are. They 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
Here is a quick approximation of the volume of high-quality JPEGs photographs you can expect to be saved on a card:
- 16GB - 4,640 images
- 32GB - 9,280 images
- 64GB - 18,560 images
- 128GB - 37,120 images
Speed, Class, & UHS Ratings
Card Speed
Speed ratings of an SD memory card is determined by the continuous write and read transfer speeds. The continuous transfer speed of a card is very important for continuous shooting and video.
Slows cards can cause a reduction in the number of continuous frames the Pentax K-50 can take. This is because the camera’s buffer is not able to write data to the card quickly enough.
When recording video, a slow SD card can cause recording to end. The video file could also end up being corrupted. If you intend to capture video, it is crucial the SD card you use meets the required minimum write speed for video.
Read speed is nice to have for file transfers to a computer or laptop. If you are filling up cards with images or video, a memory card with a fast transfer speed will reduce the transfer time.
Speed Class Rating
The continuous write speed of an SD card is the criteria for the Class rating. Cards that have a minimum write speed of at least 10MB/s will be rated 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 name-brand memory card that you can find for sale today will receive a Class 10 rating. You can verify the class rating of a card by finding a number inside of a C on the sticker.
Ultra High Speed (UHS)
The Ultra High Speed (UHS) bus comes in SDUC, SDXC, and SDHC memory cards. UHS makes it possible offers a way to increase file transfer rates.
There are 3 separate versions. The versions are UHS-I, UHS-II, and UHS-III.
You can find out the rating of a card by reading the front of the SD card. If the memory card has UHS, a Roman numeral I, II, or III will be on the front 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
Taking the facts into consideration, the 64GB SanDisk Extreme Pro is the best memory card for the Pentax K-50. You’re now ready for any future camera you buy.
Here are more pages on cameras with similar specs as the K-50: