A real-world review of the PNY 512GB microSD Express memory card for the Nintendo Switch 2.
We look at game load times, file copy times, actual usable storage capacity, and the country of manufacture and ownership.
We also compare the PNY card to 4 other popular microSD Express cards for a true comparison.
If you prefer you can watch our video review. Otherwise just keep scrolling down.
PNY Manufacturers Specifications
First here's a quick look at the manufacturer's specification for the PNY card as well as four other popular cards.
| microSD Express Card | Max Read Speed | Max Write Speed | Sustained Write Speed | Speed Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PNY 512GB microSD Express Memory Card | 890 MB/s | 810 MB/s | NA | U3 / V30 / A1 |
| SanDisk 512GB microSD Express Memory Card | 880 MB/s | 650 MB/s | 220 MB/s | U3 / A1 |
| Samsung 512GB P9 microSD Express Memory Card | 800 MB/s | NA | NA | Class 10 / U3 / V30 |
| Lexar 512GB PLAY PRO microSDXC Express Memory Card | 900 MB/s | 600 MB/s | NA | U3 / A1 |
| Transcend 512GB USD710S microSD Express Memory Card | 900 MB/s | 780 MB/s | NA | U3 / V30 / A1 |
It's very important to note that the maximum read and write speeds that the manufacturers like to provide, don't actually provide a true picture of how the cards perform when used in the Switch 2.
Sustained read and write speeds are slightly more useful, but other than SanDisk nobody is providing these figures.
The maximum speeds are often reduced very quickly due to thermal management, also the Switch 2 limits the maximum speed that cards can read and write, so you'll never see anything close to these numbers when used in the Switch 2.
The only way to find out the true read and write performance is by testing them all in the Switch 2. This is what we are going to do next.
Game Load Times
We tested how long each microSD Express card took to load the first title screen from Mario Kart World, here are the results:
| microSD Express Card | Load Time |
|---|---|
| Switch 2 System Memory | 16s 190ms |
| PNY 512GB microSD Express Memory Card | 18s 530ms |
| SanDisk 512GB microSD Express Memory Card | 19s 080ms |
| Samsung 512GB P9 microSD Express Memory Card | 19s 370ms |
| Lexar 512GB PLAY PRO microSDXC Express Memory Card | 19s 480ms |
| Transcend 512GB USD710S microSD Express Memory Card | 19s 510ms |
The PNY 512GB microSD Express card was the fastest card that we tested, only just over 2 seconds slower than the internal memory. However, the other cards were not that far behind.
Game Read Times
Next we tested how long each it took to copy Mario Kart World (21.9 GB) from each microSD Express card to the internal memory to test the read speeds, here are the results:
| microSD Express Card | Copy Time | Sustained Read Speed |
|---|---|---|
| PNY 512GB microSD Express Memory Card | 3m 26s | 106 MB/s |
| Samsung 512GB P9 microSD Express Memory Card | 3m 41s | 99 MB/s |
| Lexar 512GB PLAY PRO microSDXC Express Memory Card | 3m 42s | 99 MB/s |
| SanDisk 512GB microSD Express Memory Card | 3m 43s | 98 MB/s |
| Transcend 512GB USD710S microSD Express Memory Card | 3m 43s | 98 MB/s |
Again, the PNY came top with the fastest read times. It copied Mario kart World (21.9 GB) from the cards to the system memory in 3 minutes and 26 seconds.
Because we know that this was 21.9GB we can calculate an approximate read speed figure of 106 MB/s. Not exactly the 890 MB/s we see on the card label!
Game Write Times
Next we tested how long each it took to copy Mario kart World (21.9 GB) from the internal storage to each microSD Express card to test the write speeds, here are the results:
| microSD Express Card | Copy Time | Sustained Write Speed |
|---|---|---|
| SanDisk 512GB microSD Express Memory Card | 4m 00s | 91 MB/s |
| Lexar 512GB PLAY PRO microSDXC Express Memory Card | 4m 12s | 87 MB/s |
| Transcend 512GB USD710S microSD Express Memory Card | 4m 14s | 86 MB/s |
| PNY 512GB microSD Express Memory Card | 4m 16s | 85 MB/s |
| Samsung 512GB P9 microSD Express Memory Card | 5m 12s | 70 MB/s |
Taking 4 minutes and 16 seconds to write Mario Kart World to the PNY microSD Express card gives us an approximate write speed of 85 MB/s. Again, this is some way of the 810 MB/s on the cards label.
So the PNY came in 4th position, with the SanDisk being the fastest card tested here at 91 MB/s.
Actual Usable Capacity
The labels may say 512GB but the actual usable capacity varies a little due to a number of reasons. It's important to understand the basics here to avoid a heart attack when you first insert your card into the Switch 2 and look at the actual usable capacity.
Card manufacturers calculate their Gigabyte (GB) figures using a different style of measurement compared with how computers like the Switch 2 calculate it, this results in different values (lower), being displayed by the Switch 2.
Here is the more technical explanation for those who are interested:
GB (used for marketing by storage manufacturers) is the metric style of measurement where 1GB = 1000³ bytes. Then you have GiB which is the binary method; 1GiB = 1024³ bytes. The binary method is what is used in computers like the Switch 2. So 1GB is effectively 0.93 GiB, or 512GB is effectively 476GiB.
This unfortunately does create a lot of confusion and understandably so. When you buy a 512GB card you expect to see 512GB available, not significantly less. But you are not actually losing this storage capacity, it's just being calculated differently.
With that said, there is often some additional file system overhead that can take away some actual usable storage capacity.
So here are the actual usable storage capacities displayed by the Switch 2 after the cards have been formatted in the Switch 2.
| MicroSD Express Card | Label Capacity | Usable Capacity Displayed in Switch 2 |
|---|---|---|
| PNY microSD Express | 512GB | 476GiB |
| SanDisk microSD Express | 512GB | 456GiB |
| Samsung P9 microSD Express | 512GB | 477GiB |
| Lexar PLAY PRO microSDXC Express | 512GB | 465GiB |
| Transcend USD710S microSD Express | 512GB | 470GiB |
The PNY microSD Express 512GB has a usable capacity of 476GiB. This is only 1GiB less than the Samsung card which has the most of all cards tested at 477GiB.
Country of Manufacture & Ownership
If you like to know where your hard earned money is going, then here is each cards country of manufacture and ownership.
| MicroSD Express Card | Country of Manufacture | Country of Company Ownership |
|---|---|---|
| PNY microSD Express | Taiwan | America |
| SanDisk microSD Express | China | America |
| Samsung P9 microSD Express | Taiwan | South Korea |
| Lexar PLAY PRO microSDXC Express | Taiwan | China |
| Transcend USD710S microSD Express | Taiwan | Taiwan |
The PNY microSD Express memory cards are manufactured in Taiwan and the country of company ownership is America.
Warranty
The PNY 512GB microSD Express has a lifetime limited warranty for the original purchaser, though the specifics depend on the region. Some countries like Germany do not recognise lifetime warranties and usually limit them to a number of years.
This warranty covers defects in materials and workmanship but is void if there is misuse or tampering. PNY is not liable for data loss, and you are responsible for backing up your data.
Conclusion
The PNY microSD Express card does have the edge when it comes to game load and read times, but the performance is not miles off the other cards we compared it to.
Write speeds are a tad slower but than all but the Samsung P9 cards. However, read speeds are much more important for gaming so I wouldn't be too concerned about this.
The actual usable capacity of 476GiB is very respectable, especially when compared to the SanDisk card that offers just 456GiB.
Overall the PNY microSD Express card is a great storage option for your Nintendo Switch 2 and one that we can highly recommend.
