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I need help in deciding which type of memory card is best suited for my Canon 60D. Primarily I will be shooting in RAW pictures mode and I will only occasionally be shooting in HD video mode.

I came across three main type of memory cards: SD, SDHC, and SDXC. What are the differencec between these card types?

Also, do I really need a Class 10 memory card to meet my photography requirements?

Cheers!

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SD vs SDHC vs SDXC has only to do with capacity with respective maximums of 2 GB, 32 GB and 2 TB. This impacts the file-system used on those cards (FAT, FAT32 and exFAT, respecitvely) and which devices are compatible with them.

Performance is governed by the transfer rate of each card. These are either represented by MB/s or by class. For performance of the camera, you are interested in one with a high write-speed, so pay attention to those who only quote a single number.

Memory cards now reach 100 megabytes/s which is probably more than you need. Full HD video from the 60D requires 6MB/s so you will be quite safe with 15MB/s or more. If you shoot continuously in RAW, then go for something even faster.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ The 60D won't use the more advanced protocols so will not go any faster than "Class 10". Faster cards, and a reader that can make use of it, help when it comes time to move the fikes onto the PC. You don't hqve to take another hour to read it back out! BTW, I had a Class 6 card behave erratically for HD video, and woukd drop out of record mode when the card couldn't keep, up. Now in 2015, use Class 10 only and don't bother with anything less. \$\endgroup\$
    – JDługosz
    Commented May 3, 2015 at 4:02

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