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Kingston UHS-I Speed Class 3 (U3) 32GB SDHC Memory Card 90MB/s 80MB/s Review

Kingston UHS-I Speed Class 3 U3 90/80 MB/s 32GB SDHC Memory Card Front

Introduction

The Kingston 90/80 U3 Secure Digital card offers the latest UHS-I Speed Class 3 performance. At the time of review (2014) it was the fastest SD card offered by Kingston. It offers 90MB/s read and 80MB/s write speeds according to Kingston. It is offered in 32, 64, 128 and 256 GB capacities.

The Speed Class 3 (U3) designation signifies a card able to sustain at least 30MB/s continuous write speed for recording 4K Ultra HD video. In addition to video recording, a fast write speed is ideal for continuous shooting applications for DSLR and mirrorless digital cameras. The high read speed facilitates quick file transfers when using a USB 3.0 card reader. Kingston backs their SD card with a lifetime warranty.

Performance

The Kingston 90/80 U3 reached above its advertised read and write speeds in benchmark tests using USB 3.0 card readers. The highest sequential read speed reached up to 98.5 MB/s. The sequential writes peaked at 91.4 MB/s.

Card: Kingston U3 90/80 MB/s 32GB
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

Kingston U3 90/80 MB/s 32GB
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
Lexar LRWM04U-7000 UHS-II Reader98.54190.87285.2783.37411.5032808.41.248304.613.2883244.10.972237.3
SanDisk Extreme Pro SD UHS-II Reader/Writer98.05389.41682.2953.4557.4991830.81.393340.07.8611919.10.861210.1
Sony S1 High Speed UHS-II Reader/Writer98.03489.23381.6353.4937.2391767.21.349329.37.5671847.40.825201.4
Delkin Black Rugged Card Reader97.97089.41682.0153.4697.0801728.41.396340.87.3771801.10.813198.4
SanDisk Extreme Pro UHS-II SD Reader/Writer97.42490.77885.2083.36511.3632774.11.411344.513.2373231.71.010246.6
Kingston MobileLite G4 UHS-II97.33490.69985.1653.49911.3502771.01.412344.813.2723240.21.073262.0
Delkin Dual Slot SD UHS-II and CF Card Reader96.91190.09284.8283.34010.0972465.21.304318.413.1163202.21.006245.6
Delkin Multi-Card CFast SD UHS-II microSD Reader96.80488.77285.1513.37110.8632652.11.277311.813.0273180.40.972237.2
Kingston FCR-HS4 Card Reader96.77789.92285.1653.46110.9062662.71.247304.513.1483210.01.046255.5
Transcend Multi-Card Reader RDF996.75088.94584.7023.3269.9662433.11.268309.612.9603164.10.962235.0
Lexar Professional Workflow SR2 UHS-II96.70587.44088.46519.0926.0401474.70.880214.97.1271740.10.895218.6
Lexar Professional Dual Slot UHS-II Card Reader96.67989.02884.7443.4199.9552430.31.388338.812.8543138.10.989241.6
Delkin Travel Reader96.54588.74283.3583.3339.9722434.71.301317.713.0073175.50.886216.2
Lexar Professional Dual Slot Reader96.48391.42776.7043.45310.0822461.51.299317.111.3782777.80.880214.9
Lexar Professional Workflow SR195.66490.08484.0923.3859.7252374.31.217297.210.7532625.31.043254.6
Transcend SD Card Reader RDF5 Black95.45589.79183.8163.4427.4061808.21.276311.57.4601821.20.967236.2
Delkin Universal Memory Card Reader95.25689.58484.6323.6609.0542210.41.391339.611.3022759.20.898219.3
SanDisk ImageMate Pro Multi-Card Reader/Writer95.10086.11880.4443.3656.6021611.91.319322.17.4031807.31.002244.7
SanDisk ImageMate All-In-One USB 3.094.73988.86277.0513.3805.5771361.51.428348.65.5981366.70.875213.6
Sony MRW-E90 XQD 2.0 / SD UHS-II Card Reader92.50885.05081.4063.3169.5662335.41.316321.411.5092809.80.948231.4
Kingston Multi-Card Reader FCR-HS391.41982.40961.3303.44211.3702775.91.310319.713.2433233.10.991241.8
Transcend Multi-Card Reader RDF8 Black85.24381.27976.6783.54310.0972465.21.312320.411.3472770.31.014247.5

In camera tests it performed among the fastest SD cards. In the Nikon D750 it reached 67.1 MB/s write speed, good enough to rank as the second-fastest SD card tested in that camera, only trailing the SanDisk Extreme Pro SD card by a small margin. In the Canon 7D Mark II it reached 70.8 MB/s, trailing only the SanDisk Extreme Pro and Toshiba Exceria Pro SD cards. If you are looking for a high-performance UHS-I SD card, the Kingston 90/80 U3 card deserves consideration.

Kingston U3 90/80 MB/s 32GB
Tested in Camera
Write Speed
(MB/s)
Nikon D50080.1
Canon Rebel T7i78.9
Canon 77D78.6
Canon 80D78.5
Nikon D750077.7
Canon 5D Mark IV76.3
Fuji X-Pro276.1
Canon EOS M576.0
Sony A975.8
Nikon D560075.2
Nikon D720072.2
Canon Rebel T6i/T6s71.5
Canon 7D Mark II70.8
Nikon D550069.9
Canon 5Ds69.4
Nikon D710068.3
Nikon D75067.1
Fuji X-T1054.6
Samsung NX153.1
Olympus E-M1 II40.0
Olympus PEN-F39.3
Olympus E-M5 II37.7
Sony A7R II36.0
Panasonic GH535.5
Pentax K-3 II35.5
Sony A600035.1
Canon 70D34.9
Sony A630034.7
Canon 6D34.5

Cameras tested with this card: Canon 5D Mark IV, Canon 5Ds, Canon 6D, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon 70D, Canon 77D, Canon 80D, Canon EOS M5, Canon Rebel T6i/T6s, Canon Rebel T7i, Fuji X-Pro2, Fuji X-T10, Nikon D500, Nikon D750, Nikon D7500, Nikon D7200, Nikon D7100, Nikon D5600, Nikon D5500, Olympus E-M1 II, Olympus E-M5 II, Olympus PEN-F, Panasonic GH5, Pentax K-3 II, Samsung NX1, Sony A7R II, Sony A9, Sony A6000, Sony A6300

The following table contains information encoded in the SD card.

Kingston U3 90/80 MB/s 32GB SD — Internal Card Information
Serial number (PSN)32507290
Product Name (PNM)SD32G
Product Revision3.0
Manufacturer ID (MID)0x000041
OEM ID (OID)42
Manufacture Date (MDT)06/2014
Total capacity32,090,619,904 bytes

Available sizes and prices

Compare prices on the Kingston UHS-I Speed Class 3 SD card. The lowest prices are highlighted in the table below. Prices are updated daily.

CardSize
GB
Lowest
$ / GB
Prices
AmazonB&H PhotoAdorama
Kingston UHS-I Speed Class 3 SD32$2.19$69.95Check priceCheck price
Kingston UHS-I Speed Class 3 SD64$0.93$59.40Check priceCheck price
Kingston UHS-I Speed Class 3 SD128$0.39$49.28Check priceCheck price
Kingston UHS-I Speed Class 3 SD256$0.56$144.00Check priceCheck price