Memory Prices Spell Problems for Photographers in 2026 and Beyond.

[scyrene]

Some discussions on here over the years have gone along the lines of, storage is cheap and you can always buy more so there are no downsides to eg higher MP counts, so this is vaguely interesting in that context. Anyway, I'm quite glad I don't have to deal with any of this.

 

[neuroanatomist]

I'm good on CFe cards (have a pair of 256 GB and a pair of 1 TB cards), and also good on SSDs for myself. I did buy a 2 TB SSD for my daughter who starts college next fall. I take care of the backups now (NAS at home, SSDs for backups to the backups), but she'll have to do her own backing up soon.

 

[GirlsAreBeautiful]

I've seen predictions of "The AI Bubble Bursting." Assuming this does happen, wouldn't prices stabilize?

not really, also where is the bubble? a lot of AI is satisfying a real need.

 

[mimbu]

if you tend to fill a card, wipe it and use it again, and do this over and over - just realize there are limits - especially with high capacity cards.

There is nothing wrong with filling an entire card, wiping it, and using it again. This is the best-case scenario for any card as it means the entire card is getting used.

The issue is in using the same area of the card over and over, especially lower quality cards that don't have dynamic wear leveling. Taking a few dozen photos, moving them off the card, then formatting it to start "fresh".

The real key is to always use redundant cards so that when a card eventually *does* fail, you don't end up losing data.

 

[mimbu]

yeah I have a secondary nuc that I was looking to toss Linux on and then went looking for memory. that was a "welp, nope" moment.

I have a NAS with 64GB, a mini server with 64GB, and my main PC with 64GB. A couple of notebooks with 32GB. I should be good for a while.

I did buy UPSes for everything because replacing fried memory would be a lot more expensive than the UPSes were.

 

[mimbu]

I've seen predictions of "The AI Bubble Bursting." Assuming this does happen, wouldn't prices stabilize?

The AI bubble is a nightmare, there is so much circular money going on. There will eventually have to be a reset but when that will be or what it will look like is impossible to predict. When it does happen, there will be a glut of memory & storage in the market and prices should tumble. It could happen next month. It might not happen for a year or more.

I should add, the fact that it's a bubble doesn't make AI worthless or useless. I use it every day for my job, it saves me so much time. The dot-com bubble of the late 90s was a bubble too, but it didn't mean the Internet was useless. AI has value, and it will get better year after year. But the current valuations are insane.

 

[neuroanatomist]

The real key is to always use redundant cards so that when a card eventually *does* fail, you don't end up losing data.

How can I use redundant cards on my R8, M-series or PowerShot cameras? I do write RAW to both cards on my R1, and with the single-slot cameras, at the end of the day I copy the photos from the card to my Mac, and put in then format the other SD card of the pair that I have for each camera. But there's still a risk during the shooting day, while the card is in the camera. Fortunately, I've never had a card fail.

 

[neuroanatomist]

The AI bubble is a nightmare, there is so much circular money going on. There will eventually have to be a reset but when that will be or what it will look like is impossible to predict. When it does happen, there will be a glut of memory & storage in the market and prices should tumble. It could happen next month. It might not happen for a year or more.

If the reason for the spike in consumer memory/storage prices is that manufacturers have shifted production to enterprise products, will a reset really lead to a glut of memory and storage? Can enterprise memory/storage products just be repurposed?

 

[mimbu]

How can I use redundant cards on my R8, M-series or PowerShot cameras?

By not buying cameras without redundant storage slots for anything except fun cameras.

 

[mimbu]

If the reason for the spike in consumer memory/storage prices is that manufacturers have shifted production to enterprise products, will a reset really lead to a glut of memory and storage? Can enterprise memory/storage products just be repurposed?

It's a glut in production capacity rather than a glut in actual products.

Right now manufacturers are moving production (and adding production) for enterprise products. When that market crashes, they will move production back to what is still selling (consumer), and prices will come down.

 

[neuroanatomist]

It's a glut in production capacity rather than a glut in actual products.

Right now manufacturers are moving production (and adding production) for enterprise products. When that market crashes, they will move production back to what is still selling (consumer), and prices will come down.

I'll believe that when I see it. You initially suggested that prices will "tumble" and I doubt that will happen. Come down, yes. Drop precipitously, no.

 

[mimbu]

I'll believe that when I see it. You initially suggested that prices will "tumble" and I doubt that will happen. Come down, yes. Drop precipitously, no.

Yes, they'll tumble. Current prices are not sustainable. Even without the AI bubble bursting, we will see over the next few years an increase in production capacity because companies want to take advantage of the high prices. Then there will be more supply than demand, and prices will drop. This has happened many times in the past, though not *quite* to the current extreme.

I'm glad that my current setup will last me for at least 5 years without need of upgrade. It does everything I need, and I don't game so my needs aren't going to suddenly change. If need be, I can stretch it longer. I lucked out on the timing, and my current home servers are also spec'd well for the next quite a few years. Time to buckle down, cancel subscriptions, and wait everything out.

 

[David the street guy]

By not buying cameras without redundant storage slots for anything except fun cameras.

Even then, if your camera uses a CFexpress and an SD, they can't really be redundant, can they?

 

[P-visie]

ah, you've missed all my lectures on the subject!

Consider a card like a small SSD, there's a finite number of times that you can write to each cell before you start to get problems. and unlike SSD's where alot of the data on them is atypically static, cards typically get their entire contents flushed and re-written frequently. Also some cards have wear leveling, and some do not. it's not something they commonly mention either.

so it's just a bad idea to keep using the same few cards over and over, especially if you use your cameras frequently and take a ton of photos or video. To be fair, this is usually measured in years of use. it's not as if they'll die in 6 months, but if you tend to fill a card, wipe it and use it again, and do this over and over - just realize there are limits - especially with high capacity cards.

it's probably a good topic to discuss on it's own - sounds like an article in there. I may have to blow up a few cards to write it.

You can use Crystal Disk Info to check the quality and wear of your memory cards (windows only).
See: https://crystalmark.info/en/software/crystaldiskinfo/

 

[EricN]

not really, also where is the bubble? a lot of AI is satisfying a real need.

"Bubble" is in that we see advertisements suggesting "you can get rich if you learn AI NOW!!!" and the commercialization of pastiche-like "creative" software. Eventually, people will realize they can't get rich so easily, and pastiche is pastiche.

 

[mimbu]

Even then, if your camera uses a CFexpress and an SD, they can't really be redundant, can they?

RAW to CFexpress, JPG to SD. It does suck for video because there is no great solution.

CFexpress Type B is the wrong size for smaller ILCs. Type A exists and is supposed to be used for small devices. Sony went with this and puts two Type A slots (that can also accept SD cards) into the A7S, A7R, FX3, A9 II, A9 III, A1, and A1 II. It's ridiculous that the R5 II has one Type B and one SD instead of two Type A.

 

[P-visie]

RAW to CFexpress, JPG to SD. It does suck for video because there is no great solution.

CFexpress Type B is the wrong size for smaller ILCs. Type A exists and is supposed to be used for small devices. Sony went with this and puts two Type A slots (that can also accept SD cards) into the A7S, A7R, FX3, A9 II, A9 III, A1, and A1 II. It's ridiculous that the R5 II has one Type B and one SD instead of two Type A.

The speed of the type A CF express cards is half that of a type B CF Express card.

In an ideal world R5 Mk II would have 2 CF Express Type B CF Express card slots, preferably, CF express 4.0.

 

[GirlsAreBeautiful]

I personally have no issues with the current CF SD split.