Camera Memory Speed
Memory Card Comparison & Performance Tests for Digital Cameras

PNY Elite Performance UHS-I U3 128GB SDXC Card Review

PNY Elite Performance U3 128GB SDXC Card

Introduction

The PNY Elite Performance 128GB SDXC memory card provides UHS-I performance and is rated U3 for full HD and 4K video recording. The card offers a 95MB/s read speed for fast downloads of pictures and video. The UHS Speed Class 3 (U3) rating assures the card can maintain at least 30MB/s continuous write speed for uninterrupted video recording, but PNY does not state a maximum write speed. Elite Performance 95MB/s cards are available in several capacities: 32, 64, 128, 256 and 512 GB. All are rated U3 except for the 32GB size which is rated U1. The 128GB SDXC card (P-SDX128U395-GE) is tested in this review.

PNY memory cards have a lifetime warranty in USA and a 5-year warranty in Europe. The card is marked on the back, "made in Korea."

PNY Elite Performance U3 128GB SDXC Card back

Performance

In benchmark performance testing in card readers, the PNY Elite Performance 95MB/s card provided 96.8 MB/s sequential read speed. The sequential write speed reached 69.2 MB/s, which is significantly faster than the 56.3 MB/s measured in the 256GB capacity card test, and nearly the same speed as the 67.3 MB/s measured in the 64GB version.

Card: PNY Elite Performance U3 128GB
Benchmark: CrystalDiskMark 3.0.3 x64
Program settings: 1000 MB, 5 passes, random test data
Operating system: Windows 10 Pro
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD3H
Processor: Intel Core i7-3770K @ 4.40GHz
RAM: 32GB DDR3 1600

PNY Elite Performance U3 128GB
Card Reader Benchmarks
Seq.
Read
1000MB
MB/s
Seq.
Write
1000MB
MB/s
Rand.
Read
512KB
MB/s
Rand.
Write
512KB
MB/s
Rand.
Read
4KB
MB/s
QD1
Rand.
Read
4KB
IOPS
QD1
Rand.
Write
4KB
MB/s
QD1
Rand.
Write
4KB
IOPS
QD1
Rand.
Read
4KB
MB/s
QD32
Rand.
Read
4KB
IOPS
QD32
Rand.
Write
4KB
MB/s
QD32
Rand.
Write
4KB
IOPS
QD32
Sony S1 High Speed UHS-II Reader/Writer97.88869.13185.60511.6314.1711018.30.791193.25.1351253.70.772188.5
SanDisk Extreme Pro SD UHS-II Reader/Writer97.88867.94885.99111.7294.2821045.40.623152.05.3691310.80.786192.0
Delkin Black Rugged Card Reader97.75169.14485.17911.6254.1281007.80.825201.45.2091271.80.766187.0
Lexar Professional Workflow SR2 UHS-II96.78668.51689.07025.0265.7061393.10.702171.47.4921829.10.876213.9
Lexar LRWM04U-7000 UHS-II Reader96.75969.19588.75925.6185.7241397.50.700170.97.4551820.10.872212.9
Delkin Multi-Card CFast SD UHS-II microSD Reader95.97168.67488.26125.5325.8211421.10.702171.37.4611821.50.861210.2
Lexar Professional Dual Slot UHS-II Card Reader95.19567.54188.90725.2105.6301374.50.679165.87.3811801.90.849207.3
Kingston MobileLite G4 UHS-II95.16968.68788.80341.3515.7001391.50.702171.57.4231812.20.873213.2
Delkin Dual Slot SD UHS-II and CF Card Reader95.14368.61188.81832.3535.6801386.70.699170.87.4371815.80.876213.8
Transcend Multi-Card Reader RDF995.06668.03689.18835.6025.7041392.70.700171.07.4201811.50.883215.5
Delkin Travel Reader94.98067.64186.73126.1215.6841387.70.700170.97.3901804.30.876213.8
SanDisk ImageMate Pro Multi-Card Reader/Writer94.93768.00183.92711.5453.993975.00.807197.15.2111272.30.780190.5
SanDisk Extreme Pro UHS-II SD Reader/Writer94.88568.46388.43634.7275.6941390.20.708173.07.5101833.60.884215.9
Kingston FCR-HS4 Card Reader94.79168.55788.37829.8275.6601381.80.700170.87.2681774.50.874213.4
Lexar Professional Workflow SR194.76568.48187.12025.1905.1761263.60.697170.16.8081662.10.864210.9
Lexar Professional Dual Slot Reader94.70568.98187.91325.0225.3521306.70.698170.47.0851729.80.872212.8
Transcend Multi-Card Reader RDF8 Black94.62868.76888.04338.3035.2761288.20.648158.36.9101686.90.838204.6
Delkin Universal Memory Card Reader94.55168.23688.02911.8875.4091320.60.860209.96.8931682.80.845206.3
Transcend SD Card Reader RDF5 Black94.23768.41486.88923.6014.4761092.70.635155.05.3071295.70.798194.8
SanDisk ImageMate All-In-One USB 3.092.45168.07678.59126.2353.724909.10.699170.74.2461036.60.753183.9
Sony MRW-E90 XQD 2.0 / SD UHS-II Card Reader92.19966.52684.59030.0605.1211250.20.639156.16.8561673.90.839204.9
Kingston Multi-Card Reader FCR-HS389.21864.69161.36011.0735.5811362.60.904220.87.2351766.40.868211.8

The PNY Elite Performance 128GB SDXC card was tested in several cameras. In the Nikon D500 it averaged 59.2 MB/s write speed while continuously shooting RAW images. Further camera test results can be seen in the table below.

PNY Elite Performance U3 128GB
Tested in Camera
Write Speed
(MB/s)
Canon Rebel T7i60.4
Canon 77D60.4
Nikon D50059.4
Canon 80D59.2
Canon EOS M559.0
Fuji X-Pro258.8
Sony A958.8
Canon 5D Mark IV58.3
Nikon D750057.3
Nikon D560050.0
Fuji X-T1048.6
Olympus E-M1 II40.4
Olympus PEN-F40.1
Panasonic GH537.5
Sony A7R II33.6
Sony A630032.8

Cameras tested with this card: Canon 5D Mark IV, Canon 77D, Canon 80D, Canon EOS M5, Canon Rebel T7i, Fuji X-Pro2, Fuji X-T10, Nikon D500, Nikon D7500, Nikon D5600, Olympus E-M1 II, Olympus PEN-F, Panasonic GH5, Sony A7R II, Sony A9, Sony A6300

The following table contains information encoded in the SD card.

PNY Elite Performance U3 128GB SD — Internal Card Information
Serial number (PSN)250
Product Name (PNM)SD128
Product Revision0.2
Manufacturer ID (MID)0x000028
OEM ID (OID)BE
Manufacture Date (MDT)05/2015
Total capacity128,109,772,800 bytes

The card identification register inside the Elite Performance 95MB/s 128GB card contains Manufacturer ID (MID) 0x00028 and OEM ID (OID) "BE." These identify Lexar as the manufacturer of the card. Additionally, the PNY card performance is very similar to the Lexar Professional 633x 128GB SDXC card.

Available sizes and prices

Compare prices on the PNY Elite Performance 95MB/s card. The lowest prices are highlighted in the table below. Prices are updated daily.

CardSize
GB
Lowest
$ / GB
Prices
AmazonB&H PhotoAdorama
PNY Elite Performance 95MB/s U1 SD32$0.41$12.99Check priceCheck price
PNY Elite Performance 95MB/s U3 SD64$0.32$20.26Check priceCheck price
PNY Elite Performance 95MB/s U3 SD128$0.31$39.99Check priceCheck price
PNY Elite Performance 95MB/s U3 SD256$0.39$99.89Check priceCheck price
PNY Elite Performance 95MB/s U3 SD512$0.31$159.99Check priceCheck price