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Lexar Professional XQD 2.0 USB USB 3.0 Card Reader Review

Lexar Professional XQD 2.0 USB 3.0 Card Reader

Introduction

The Lexar Professional XQD 2.0 card reader LRWXQDU-7000 offers a compact way to read and write XQD cards utilizing a USB 3.0 connection. XQD cards insert fully into the reader and must be pushed slightly past the surface of the reader to click into place. Pushing on the card releases it and it ejects approximately 1/4 inch. The card slot has a very precise fit and there is no fear of damaging the contacts or jamming the card. Since the card reader inserts directly into a USB port its size makes it somewhat cumbersome to use and may block adjacent ports. It measures about 2 3/4 x 1 7/8 x 1/2 inch. It is similar in size to the Sony XQD USB 3.0 Adapter that was included in G-Series 400MB/s card, but unlike the Sony reader, Lexar does not include a USB extension cable.

The Lexar XQD 2.0 reader has plastic case with a combination of glossy and pebble-grain finishes. It seems durable but has a somewhat hollow feeling. There is no card access light. The bottom of the reader is marked Product of China.

Lexar Professional XQD 2.0 USB 3.0 Card Reader Bottom

Performance

The Lexar XQD 2.0 reader only works with XQD 2.0 cards. Older XQD 1.0 cards such as the Sony S-Series will not work in the reader. The highest read speed benchmark was using the M-Series 32GB XQD card and reached 280.9 MB/s sequential read. The highest write speed benchmark was using the Lexar Professional 2933x XQD 64GB card and reached 235.6 MB/s. These benchmarks were obtained using CrystalDiskMark. Other benchmarks may produce higher results.

Reader: Lexar Professional XQD 2.0 USB 3.0 Reader
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

Lexar Professional XQD 2.0 USB 3.0 Reader
Card Benchmarks
Sequential
Read
(MB/s)
Sequential
Write
(MB/s)
Sony M-Series XQD 32GB280.93142.064
Sony G-Series 440MB/s XQD 64GB278.137144.253
Sony G-Series 400MB/s XQD 64GB274.856152.898
Sony M-Series XQD 64GB271.37180.425
Lexar Professional 2933x XQD 64GB269.557235.635
Lexar Professional 1400x XQD 64GB193.858112.424

The XQD 2.0 reader is compatible with USB 3.0 and 2.0, but USB 2.0 is limited to about 35MB/s transfer speed. Operating system compatibility includes Mac OS X 10.6+ and Windows 7/8/10. The Lexar Professional XQD 2.0 USB 3.0 reader is backed by a five-year limited warranty.

Compare prices on the Lexar Professional XQD 2.0 USB 3.0 Reader reader. The lowest prices are highlighted in the table below.

Card ReaderConnectionModel NumberPrices
AmazonB&H PhotoAdorama
Lexar Professional XQD 2.0 USB 3.0 ReaderUSB 3.0LRWXQDU-7000$39.99