Best memory cards for smartphones with lowest prices and maintenance tips15 min read

Before we mention 10 best memory cards, lets see what a memory card or microSD card really is and we can understand the actual capacity of a microSD card. In this article we will talk about 32 GB Class 10 U1 microSD cards for smartphones.

What is a micro SD Card?

microSD or micro Secure Digital is a removable flash memory card. It is a 15 mm × 11 mm × 1 mm solid state device(no moving parts) that you can store information in. This is the smallest card available in the market and can be used in mobile phones and other electronic devices.

Unlike, CDs, DVDs, and Floppy disks, where data is stored on and retrieved from by rotating the disks at high speed, in an SD card, data becomes a part of its circuitry. This technique makes SD cards or microSD cards more reliable and durable than CDs, DVDs and Floppy Disks.

According to Toshiba, the company that invented the technology, the memory cells in the solid-state SD card can only go through about 10,000 write/erase cycles and that is equivalent to completely writing and erasing the entire card’s contents once a day, every day for 27 years.

Know your microSD card

microSD cards can be classified into three categories according to the kind of storage capacity they have:

1. microSD: This type of memory card has a storage capacity of 2GB, a transfer rate of 25MB/s and uses FAT12, FAT16 or FAT16B file systems.
2. microSDHC: You get 4GB to 32GB of storage, transfer rates from 50MB/s. It uses FAT32 file format.
3. microSDXC: You get 64GB to 2TB of storage and transfer rates from 50MB/s. It uses exFAT file format.

And, according to read and write speed, microSD cards can be classified into following categories:

1. Class 2 (C2) – 2MB/s, supports SD recording and playback
2. Class 4 (C4) – 4MB/s, supports 720p/1080p video
3. Class 6 (C6) – 6MB/s, supports 720p/1080p and some 4K video
4. Class 10 (C10) – Ultra High Speed UHS Class 1 (U1) – 10MB/s, supports 720p, 1080p and 4K video
5. Class 10 (C10) – Ultra High Speed UHS Class 3 (U3) – 30MB/s, supports 1080p, 4K video @ 60/120fps

There are two more versions of Class 10, UHS Class microSD cards and they are:

60 MB/s – Video Class 60 (V60), supports 8K video @ 60/120fps90 MB/s – Video Class 90 (V90), supports 8K video @ 60/120fps.

Check out for memory card 32gb best price on this page. We have selected 10 best 32GB Class 10 U1 microSD cards based on user ratings online, here they are:

SanDisk 32GB Class 10 Micro SDHC Memory Card – This Class 10, U1 and A1 rated microSD card is perfect for mobile devices. I enables you to capture stunning Full HD videos and photographs with a transfer speed of 100 MB/s. The card has been designed to deliver faster app launch and performance and smoother smartphone experience. This SanDisk memory card is X-ray proof, waterproof, shock-proof and temperature-proof.

HP 32GB Class 10 MicroSD Memory Card – This Class 10 and U1 rated microSD card is ideal for mobile devices. It enables you to capture brilliant videos and photographs and has a read speed of up to 100 MB/s. This HP memory card has been designed as a waterproof, temperature proof, magnet proof and shockproof high speed memory card that protects your data until you decide to erase it.

Samsung EVO Plus Grade 1, Class 10 32GB MicroSDHC – This Class 10, Grade 1 rated microSD card works beautifully with smartphones. From recording and playing Full HD videos to running apps smoothly on your smartphone, this 32GB memory card has been designed to work in extreme conditions like 72 hours in seawater, extreme temperatures, airport X-ray machines and magnetic fields. Speed and performance is guaranteed.

Kingston Canvas Select 32GB Class 10 MicroSDHC – This U1 microSD card is perfect for recording Full HD and 3D videos with your action camera, drone or smartphone. With a high read, write and transfer speed, this card is perfect for saving and retrieving data from the card. Installing and running apps on the memory card is easy. The card is waterproof, temperature proof, shockproof, vibration proof and X-ray proof.

Sony 32GB MicroSD Class 10 UHS-1 High Speed microSD Card – Fast and dependable, this Class 10, UHS 1 rated microSD card is something the your smartphone will love to work with. This microSD card is supported by a File Rescue tool that you can download and is simple enough to use. The microSD card has been designed to work as an X-ray proof, waterproof, temperature and shock-proof memory card for any smart device.

Toshiba M203 32GB Class 10 microSD Card – This Class 10, Ultra High Speed 1 rated card is something that works flawless with action cameras, smart devices and smartphones. With high quality standard and a five-year limited standard warranty this card has been designed to be reliable and work glitch-free. The memory card is shockproof and waterproof and delivers a read speed of up to 100 MB/s.

Strontium Nitro 32GB Class 10 U 1 Micro SDHC – This Class 10, Ultra High Speed 1 rated memory card offers 95 MB/s read and 85 MB/s write speed, and transfer speed up to 85 MB/s that supports Full HD videos and 4K videos. The card works with drones, smartphones and action cameras. It is waterproof, temperature proof, magnet proof and X-Ray proof and comes with Strontium Lifetime Limited Warranty.

Transcend 32GB Class 10 UHS-I U1 32GB MicroSD – Designed to work is extreme conditions like water, dust, shock, magnetic fields, extreme temperatures, bending and twisting, this Class 10 U1 memory card works well with smartphones. Transcend offers exclusive RecoveRx software, a free data recovery tool that allows you to recover accidentally deleted digital photos, documents, music and videos.

Kodak Extra 32GB Class 10 MicroSD Card – This one is a real high performance microSD card that works wonderfully with drones, smartphones and action cameras. This Class 10 card supports Full HD video recording and high resolution pictures. You can install and run apps too. With high data transfer rate and high read and write speed you can now enjoy your digital world even better than ever. The card works perfectly under extreme conditions.

PNY 32GB Class 10 U1 microSD Card – This Class 10, U1 rated memory card is waterproof, temperature proof, shockproof and magnet proof. It works well with action cameras, drones and smartphones. It enables you to take HD photographs and HD videos and has a data transfer speed of up to 85 MB/s. This memory card works flawlessly with Android, Windows and Mac devices.

Some very useful tips that will help you keep your microSD card and data safe for years

• Use “Eject” or “Safely Remove Hardware” Function To Remove The microSD Card

After connecting the microSD card to our computer and doing necessary works like deleting and transferring file, many of us often forget to follow the proper procedure for removing the hardware. Removing a drive while transferring data corrupts that data and obviously it is no good for you and your microSD card. Simply go to File Explorer, right click on the drive for the card and select “Eject” before removing the hardware in case you are using Mac OS. You may use the “Safely Remove Hardware” option in the system tray in you are using Windows 10 OS.

• Format Your microSD Card In The Device You Want To Use It With

The smartphone, or the camera you will insert the microSD card in knows exactly what kind of file format it needs to save and retrieve data from the card. A card formatted with a camera, may not work properly with a smartphone and vice versa. Therefore, you must always reformat a microSD card in the new device you want to use it with. Formatting your microSD card in the smartphone, or the camera makes sure that the card has the file format required for the device to function properly and no data is lost in future.

• “Unmount” or Switch Your Device Off Before Taking The microSD Card Out

This is a no brainer. Files in your microSD card may get corrupted if you remove the card without unmounting it. You never know if the device is reading, or writing data on the card while you are removing it. A fews years ago, devices like cameras used to give voltage shock to the card corrupting it. Today, technology has improved a lot and now you can safely remove the memory card even while the device in “on” if you unmount the card properly. You should always read the user’s manual and follow the instructions given there.

• Never Forget To Update The Firmware Of Your Smartphone, PC, Or Camera

Smartphone and camera manufacturers release firmware updates whenever needed. These updates come with patches that are important because they ensure better performance, stability and security of your device and the data that it contains. These critical patches fix various performance related issues. Your memory may get damaged if the device you are using it with puts a lot of stress on the card and corrupts its circuitries. Therefore, make sure that your smartphone, pc, or the camera that you are using the microSD card with is always up-to-date.

• Periodically Upgrade Your microSD Card

It has been tested that a microSD card can only last 10000 write and erase cycles. They are very reliable but it is always better to be on the safer side. These days the price of most electronic devices including microSD cards goes down every 6 months or less. Keep a check on the price of microSD cards online and whenever you find a good deal, if possible, replace your old microSD cards with new ones. This practice will ensure that your data is safe and secure. For good deals on microSD cards you may check our list of best microSD cards.

• Recharge Batteries Before They Drains Out

Your smartphone or camera, if suddenly goes off because of low battery, may corrupt the microSD card you have inserted in the device. Unfortunately, if the device shuts down because of power loss while writing data on the card, you may lose valuable data or the card may show error or get corrupted. Therefore, it is always safe to recharge the batteries before they die completely while your device is interacting with the card. If you are using a camera you may replace batteries from time to time.

• Reformat Your microSD From Time To Time

Simply erasing, or deleting, images on your memory cards doesn’t empty you card completely. Therefore, it is always better to format your microSD card whenever you need to because it prepares your card for further use and reduces risk of data loss. But remember that formatting is irreversible in most cases. However, you may be able to recover any lost data after formatting using data recovery tools or services. And always remember that it is always better to format a microSD card in the device you want to use it with.

• If You See Any Error, Stop Using The Card Immediately

At times it happens that we delete some files accidentally or get an error message like “Blank SD Card or Has Unsupported File System”, “SD Card With Fatal” or  “Folder is Empty“. If you face such issues, you must stop using the card as it may destroy the possibility of recovering any data from the card afterwards. Remember that even if the micro SD card malfunctions or files get deleted, there is always a chance of getting some of the files back in future. You may use a data recovery service or tools to recover your files.

• Avoid Deleting Files In Camera Or Smartphone, Use A Computer To Do So

Every microSD cards have limited read and write cycles(10000 times approx.). Everytime you delete a picture from your camera or smartphone, it shortens the life of the microSD card you are using. Therefore, connect the microSD card to your PC or laptop and get your files transferred to your PC before formatting your memory card. You may select multiple files that you want to be deleted and delete them in one go. To delete all the files from your smartphone or camera, simply format the card instead to deleting files one by one.

• Don’t Force Shut Down Your Device Ever

Don’t force shut down your smartphone, camera or PC immediately after taking photos, recording videos or downloading a file. This is because, any device will take some time to write the data on the microSD card it is interacting with. And if you shut the device down from the power source or force it to shut down immediately while the device is still interacting with the card, it may corrupt the data and the card may start malfunctioning. Therefore, you must wait for sometime before you shut the device down properly.

• Use Multiple microSD Card If You Are Using A Camera

The more you use a memory card the shorter its life becomes. Therefore, it is always a good idea to use multiple cards if you are using it with a camera. And it is always better to carry multiple SD cards while you are on a trip and save images on multiple cards. This is because if one card malfunctions or if you accidentally delete data from one card, you will still have some images on other cards. Therefore, relying on a single microSD card is simply not a good idea if you are a professional photographer or if you think that travel photos are precious.

• You Should Not Delay Transferring Data Until The Card Is Full

It may sound strange, many of us have experienced that a memory card might stop functioning optimally if it is full. In most cases a microSD card works perfectly even if it runs out of memory but it’s worth keeping in mind the issue. Therefore, you must keep transferring your data from time to time and not wait until the card is full. Moreover, it is always better to take backups often than losing thousands of photographs if you lose the card or the device you have inserted it in. It is always better to play it safe.

• Treat Your microSD card Like A Baby

You can protect, encrypt, and write-protect the data saved in a microSD card, but all your efforts will go in vein if the card gets damaged physically. microSD cards are tiny, flimsy and too fragile for rough handling. Therefore they come with plastic casing that protects them from physical damage. This plasting casing provide extra layer of protection to the card. You must make sure that you put the microSD card inside the casing when you are not using it. Always keep the card away from strong electric fields, magnetic fields, heat and water.