SanDisk: 4TB microSD and 8TB SD Cards Are Coming! Author: Jose Antunes

Western Digital introduces the world’s first SanDisk 4TB microSDUC UHS-I card and the world’s first SanDisk 8TB SDUC UHS-I card, designed for the smartphones, gaming devices, drones, cameras and laptops of the future.

The demand for more storage seems to have no end, which is why companies like Western Digital are constantly developing ways to meet the needs of consumers, whether they are businesses processing large amounts of data, professionals keeping extensive archives, or consumers looking to protect their memories.

As artificial intelligence (AI) technologies continue to advance and become increasingly integrated into various industries and applications, there is a growing need for increased memory capacity to support complex computational processes. Additionally, as the Internet of Things (IoT) grows and generates massive amounts of data, more memory is needed to store and analyze this influx of information in real time. The need for more memory is being driven not only by AI but also by other emerging technologies such as machine learning, deep learning, and big data analytics that rely on massive amounts of data to operate.

It’s not just that AI requires more storage and memory. As technology advances and cameras become more capable of capturing higher resolutions of both photos and videos, the increase in the number of pixels means more detailed images and footage. However, this comes with the downside of requiring more storage capacity to accommodate larger file sizes. This presents a challenge for professional photographers and videographers, as they need to make sure they have enough space to store high-resolution media files.

This often means investing in external hard drives or cloud storage solutions to effectively manage and store their vast collections of high-quality content. In addition, professionals must also consider the processing power needed to efficiently edit and work with these large files. Generally speaking, the demand for higher resolutions requires a corresponding need for increased storage capacity to support the production and distribution of high-quality visual content.

The 16TB SanDisk Desk Drive is coming soon

Flash and HDD storage leader Western Digital showcased some of its solutions to address this problem at the recent Future of Memory and Storage conference in Santa Clara, Calif. The company says these innovations, which raise the bar for performance, capacity and efficiency for transformational AI Data Cycle workloads, address the needs of various market segments, from hyperscale cloud to automotive and consumer storage.

In his opening keynote, Rob Soderbery, executive vice president and general manager of the Flash Business Unit at Western Digital, discussed the strategic advancements that are driving the future of NAND, AI and data storage from the data center to the edge.

“As AI technologies continue to evolve and become more embedded in the world around us, demand for storage will only continue to grow,” said Soderbery. “Western Digital’s product and technology roadmap is strategically aligned to provide our customers with the most advanced, reliable solutions to stay at the forefront of the rapidly changing AI landscape. This holistic approach ensures our customers receive the most energy-efficient, high-performance and high-capacity solutions tailored to their specific needs. We’re excited to showcase our full range of products and new technologies and how they can transform AI now and in the future.”

Technology solutions and demonstrations at FMS 2024 gave attendees an early look at Western Digital’s groundbreaking, high-performance flash-based consumer products that push the boundaries of what’s possible. The company is introducing the world’s first SanDisk 4TB microSDUC UHS-I card and the world’s first SanDisk 8TB SDUC UHS-I card, built for the smartphones, gaming devices, drones, cameras and laptops of the future.

The company also unveiled its super-sized SSDs – the first-ever 16TB portable SSD proof of concept and the 16TB SanDisk Desk Drive, offering unprecedented storage and performance to keep up with the ever-increasing creation and consumption of rich and engaging content. Pricing and availability are not yet known, but one thing is for sure: prices will be high!