monline

Today I've bought two 2GB SanDisk Extreme III CF cards to replace my old 512MB Ultra II cards. I've done a simple comparison on how much faster the new cards are.

I've done two tests, in each taking 80 pictures in a row. In the first test I've used the standard (factory) settings of my Nikon D70, which means auto-focus, auto-exposure ("P" preset aka. programmed automatic), auto white balance, AF assist on. In the second test I've turned off all automatics, which means manual focus, manual exposure ("M" preset), white balance set to "direct sunlight", AF assist off. I've done these two tests because I wanted to see the difference both in normal use (I usually use the cam. with the settings from the first test) and with fastest settings.

The results are the following:

• in the first test (normal settings) I could take the 80 pictures in 86 seconds with the Ultra II card and 67 seconds with the Extreme III
• in the second test (faster settings) the speed was 76 seconds for the Ultra II and 59 seconds for the Extreme III

This means that under normal use with the Extreme III I got a speed increase of (86/67 - 1) = 28.36%, and with extreme settings (optimized for speed) I got a speed increase of (76/59 - 1) = 28.81% (almost the same). To summerize: the Extreme III is approx. 28% faster than the Ultra II considering continuous shooting of several pictures.

The real speed difference between the two cards will show, when I transfer the images to the computer (since in this case I can use the full potential of the card supposed I've got a good enough card reader). However this is not much of an advantage (at least to me) since I never cared about how long it takes. Once I start it I can go and do other things (lunch, etc. ). So the primary advantage of the new cards will be the additional storage ... and actually that was my primary objective with the purchase.