Memory cards continue to play an important and essential role alongside the gadgets we buy. Budget laptops need them to expand storage beyond the paltry 32GB and 64GB eMMC drives, digital cameras rely on them for storage, and even Nintendo’s Switch ($299.99 at Target)(Opens in a new window) hybrid console can’t function for long without one.

Until now, the biggest available microSDXC card was a 400GB card from SanDisk, but 200/256GB is the much more common upper limit on storage. However, that all changes next month as Integral is set to launch the world’s first 512GB card(Opens in a new window).

The Integral 512GB microSDXC V10 UHS-I U1 card(Opens in a new window) meets the Video Speed Class 10 (V10) standard and can achieve up to 80MB/s read speeds for the 512GB card (90MB/s for the smaller Integral cards in the range), with the write speed not stated other than to say it will be lower. Included with card is a microSD card adapter, a protective case, and a five year warranty.

There’s no word on pricing yet, but don’t expect it to be cheap. SanDisk’s 400GB card costs around $250(Opens in a new window), so Integral’s card will likely cost significantly more than that. With the speed on offer and 512GB of storage, it should be the only card you ever need, especially if you are looking for a big card to stick inside a Switch or laptop.

The MicroSDXC format will support cards up to 2TB in size, but it’s going to take a while to get there. I’d like to think the next storage bump will take us to 1TB, but 750GB cards may appear before that happens.

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