Sony unveils its range of rugged SD cards for adventurous photographers

Memory cards are amongst the dullest purchase you can make, but you quickly know about it if you cheap out and buy a flimsy, unreliable one. For those that can’t afford to learn that lesson the hard way, Sony has a new line of SD cards aimed squarely at photographers.

The Tough series of SD cards come in three sizes: 32GB, 64GB and 128GB, and each one offers fast write speeds of 299MB/s, which should be fast enough to deal with high-resolution burst photography. Read speeds are even faster, clocking in at 300MB/s.

More importantly, they’re built to survive anything nature or the perennially clumsy can throw at them, and Sony says they’re 18 times stronger than a traditional SD card. You can get a taste of how much stronger that is in the video below, where two cards are pushed to their physical limits in a cruel bit of torture.

Waterproof with an IP8X rating, and dustproof to IP6X levels, the cards are made from a one-piece moulding process that leaves them less susceptible to common problems like broken casing, or damaged connector ribs. This does come at the cost of the write-protection switch, but for professionals that’s probably a sacrifice worth making.

Unlike regular SD cards, the Tough range comes with a bright yellow hi-vis splash, which should make them stand out more if dropped during a wet, muddy shoot.

All these features combine for a memory card that’s certainly not cheap. The Tough memory cards go on sale in October, costing $72.99 (~£57) for 32GB, $131.99 (~£102) for 64GB and $275.99 (~£214) for 128GB. That’s pricey enough to put most people off, but for the professional that can’t leave anything to chance, that could well prove cheap for extra peace of mind.

Will you be buying Sony’s Tough memory cards? Let us know on Twitter: @TrustedReviews