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I've been poking around various sites for name brand (Lexar, Sandisk, etc) CF cards as the ones I'm using now are long in the tooth and a bit on the smallish side. I've been looking at 8 and 16 GB cards. It seems like no matter where I look, even the 8 gig cards are > $100 for a decent speed.

What the heck is going on? I thought prices on flash memory were falling through the floor?!

The price/performance between CF and all other forms of flash media is definately at a noticable disparity.

I for one can not really think of a logical reason why.

Canada's prices on memory cards is horrible! Some are double the price you get from the US for the same card. I bought 2 16GB Sandisk Extreme 60MB/s cards from a reputable retailer in Hong Kong for $94CDN each. They sell for $229. each at Henrys! BH sells them for $120. each. Still a lot cheaper than Henrys/Vistek.

I buy mine on ebay. Use reputable sellers cause there are clones floating around.

+1
I actually bought mine from eBay too. Much cheaper than Canadian retailers. Unless of course you're kind of in a hurry

You mean "counterfeits", using the original company's trademarks and logos in a poorer quality card that may not have passed reliability tests.
http://reviews.ebay.com/FAKE-SanDisk-Extreme-Compact-Flash-Cards-Exposed_W0QQugidZ10000000001456539

As long as they're authentic... I'm ok with that. You got any reputable sellers you'd recommend? Otherwise, I may just opt for getting it at B&H now that they ship to Canada at better prices...

Thanks for the link, that's a good guide. Seems to list a couple of reputable sellers too.

I don't think I can post the link here, but Canada Computers seems to have the best Canadian price for the 16gb Sandisk Extreme (400x) CF at $139.99.

$120 U$D plus a $30 rebate for an Extreme 16GB - that is pretty good.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/6 ... emory.html

^ Rebate fine print: US residents only.

You with the details!!!

I ordered from B+H for my CF cards (400x Lexar) for a great price...so much cheaper than the Canadian prices. Maybe PM some of the users that cited EBay to see who they deem as authentic sellers if you want to try that route.

there is an equivalent rebate for Sandisk cards with their approved retailers in Canada as well.

For relative speed rates to 2 yrs ago, they have fallen through the floor. I don't consider the pricing unreasonable at all. Sure, it would be great for it to be cheaper, but compared to even 3 yrs ago ... pricing is a fraction of the past.

Only unreasonable when we pay significantly more than in the US, as logistics shouldn't differ extremely on such a small item.

I don't mean to hack this thread, but I do have a question.

In your experience, is it really making really a difference that the CF card is at 60MB/s level?
I'm using CF 30 MB/s currently and I don't feel any problem while taking photos (and partly I think because if the photo size is about 15MB, it takes half second to write). If you do feel the difference, can you share in what situation does the CF 60 MB/s one fit better?

I noticed that the price difference between this 30 MB/s and 60 MB/s is pretty high. In that sense, could CF 30 MB/s be a solution to the high CF cards price?

The difference is probably not as noticeable with the write times unless you are shooting 7fps or greater. However, it's not the write speed I focus on, it's the associated read speed ... which is usually hand in hand with the higher read speed cards. To be able to offload 8Gb of data from more than 3 cards can really help workflow.

It definitely makes a difference in two scenarios:
- burst shooting: How quickly your camera will clear the buffer and let you keep shooting. I shoot at motorcycle races twice a year and have definitely noticed a difference.
- image downloads: How quickly you offload your images off your card onto your computer/backup device. This is less of a big deal, but still nice to have.

Having said that, I'm going to stick with 60mb/s cards for now. I'm only shooting with a 5D so it's not like I'm dealing with huge images. Not going to 90mb/s cards yet.

I've had a look at the prices at B & H and I gotta say you guys are right, those prices are so much more attractive than what we're seeing here. Even for 8GB Sandisk 60mb/s card, Vistek is $130, B & H is $70 (- rebate if you can get that). Similar difference on larger cards and Lexar cards.

Edit: B & H has a a 16GB 60mb/s Lexar for $80 (no rebates necessary or anything)... Wow.

Thanks qualdoth. That makes sense. I don't do a lot of burst, I think that's why I have no problem with the 30MB/s. I think 30 MB/s is an economical option if you don't shoot a lot of burst mode.

For CF and SD cards, go to tigerdirect.ca or canadacomputers.com if you want them local. They are much cheaper. B&H is a better deal if you don't mind getting them shipped.

I use PhotoFast GMonster CF cards. They write speeds are quite good and good pricing. Sabesh recommended them to me a while back and the write speeds are quite good - which I use and need fast writing on my 5D2 RAW bursts. There's cameracard.ca in Canada that sells them.

Ummm, no. I was at Tigerdirect on Wednesday in Markham. The largest CF card they had was an 8GB Kingston of unknown speed or rating.

I bought a 4 gig card at the Henrys show.... At not a bad price. I don't use large cards as a general rule, just in case something goes wrong with the data. I have had cf cards go south on me in the past.

[quote="vkhamphiUmmm, no. I was at Tigerdirect on Wednesday in Markham. The largest CF card they had was an 8GB Kingston of unknown speed or rating.[/quote]

If you look on their website they have all sorts. What each store carries may be different. Calling first would save some time, which I always do. Also, the online inventories of some web stores are never accurate. So calling first is the approach.

What TigerDirect shows for sale on their website is inventory in their main distribution centre and totally separate from what they carry in the store. The stores are left to carry inventory based on their on what they think they can have a fast turnover on ... their basically run as a separate business. Essentially, the website doesn't reflect what a store sells ... it is its own entity.

If you look on their website they have all sorts. What each store carries may be different. Calling first would save some time, which I always do. Also, the online inventories of some web stores are never accurate. So calling first is the approach.[/quote]

I'm aware of that, but you said if you want them local then go to Tigerdirect and if you don't mind waiting then B&H. I'm just saying if you want anything good from Tigerdirect you have to order online.