What’s the difference between Sony CFexpress Type A, CFexpress Type B and XQD-G?

Sony recently released the CEA-G Series CFexpress Type A Memory Card. So, how does this new product compare to the similar CEB-G Series CFexpress Type B and XQD-G Series?

You can find out in the comparison guide between the three Sony memory cards.

Quick Summary

The Sony CEB-G Series CFexpress Type B Memory Card is much faster than the CEA-G and XQD-G when it comes to maximum transfer read speed and maximum transfer write speed.

The CEB-G can also tolerate a wider temperature range.

The CEA-G Series CFexpress Type A Memory Card does have a longer drop distance protection in addition to offering IP57 dust and water protection.

If you want the best performance and/or a memory card that can operate at the widest range of temperatures, then you should get the Sony CEB-G Series CFexpress Type B.

If you want the best protected memory card, then the Sony CEA-G Series CFexpress Type A may be the better choice.

Sony CFexpress Type A vs. CFexpress Type B vs. XQD-G Comparison Chart

You can find Seeking Tech’s comparison table between the three Sony memory cards below.

Capacity Options

Both the CEA-G Series CFexpress Type A and XQD-G Series come in two capacity options while the CEB-G Series CFexpress Type B has three capacities. Interestingly enough, there aren’t any matching sizes between the three products.

You can check out the available capacity options for all three, as well as the model numbers, below:

Sony CEA-G Series CFexpress Type A Memory Card: 

• 80 GB: CEA-G80T
• 160 GB: CEA-G160T

Sony CEB-G Series CFexpress Type B Memory Card:

• 128 GB: CEB-G128
• 256 GB: CEB-G256
• 512 GB: CEB-G512

Sony XQD-G Series Memory Card:

• 64 GB: QD-G64F
• 120 GB: QD-G120F
• 240 GB: QD-G240F

Dimensions

The CEB-G and XQD-G memory cards are the same size, which is bigger than the newer Sony CEA-G.

You can find the full measurements below:

• Sony CEA-G: 0.79 in x 1.10 in x 0.11 in
• Sony CEB-G: 1.17 in x 1.52 in x 0.15 in
• Sony XQD-G: 1.17 in x 1.52 in x 0.15 in

Interface 

You can also take a look at the interface used by each Sony memory card below:

• CEA-G Series CFexpress Type A: PCI Express Gen3 x1
• CEB-G Series CFexpress Type B: PCI Express Gen3 x2
• XQD-G Series: PCI Express 3.0, USB 3.1 Gen.1 (Super Speed USB)

Maximum Transfer Read Speed

When it comes to maximum transfer read speed, the Sony CEB-G Series CFexpress Type B has much better performance than the competition. The CEB-G is 112.5% faster than the CEA-G in addition to being 286.4% faster than the XQD-G.

You can check out the max transfer read specifications below:

• CEA-G: Up to 800 MB per second
• CEB-G: Up to 1700 MB per second
• XQD-G: Up to 440 MB per second

Maximum Transfer Write Speed

The story is the same when it comes to maximum transfer write speed with the CEB-G Series CFexpress Type B being 111.4% faster than the CEA-G Series CFexpress Type A Memory Card in addition to being 270% faster than the XQD-G Series Memory Card.

You can find the max transfer write specs below:

• CEA-G: Up to 700 MB per second
• CEB-G: Up to 1480 MB per second
• XQD-G: Up to 400 MB per second

Operating Temperature Range

The Sony CEB-G Series CFexpress Type B Memory Card has the widest operating temperature range.

The Sony CEA-G Series CFexpress Type A Memory Card matches the CEB-G when it comes to being able to operate at the highest temperature but isn’t able to tolerate the same cold temperature range.

The opposite is true for the  XQD-G Series as it can operate at the same lowest temperature as the CEB-G but can’t keep up with higher temperature ranges.

You can check out the operating temperature ranges for the three memory cards below:

• CEA-G Series CFexpress Type A: 14 °F to 158 °F (Non-condensing)
• CEB-G Series CFexpress Type B: -13 °F to 158 °F (Non-condensing)
• XQD-G Series: -13 °F to 149 °F (Non-condensing)

Dust and Water Protection

Only the Sony CEA-G Series CFexpress Type A Memory Card has been rated for dust and water protection.

With an rating of IP57, the card will protect against dust particles from building up enough to hinder operations.

The CEA-G is also protect against being dropped in water at up to 1 meter in depth for up to 30 minutes.

Drop Protection

When compared to the older releases, Sony improved the drop protection with the newer CEA-G Series CFexpress Type A Memory Cards.

The CEA-G can withstand drops that have 50% more distance than the CEB-G and XQD-G.

You can find the drop protection distance for each memory card below:

• CEA-G: 24.6 feet
• CEB-G: 16.4 feet
• XQD-G: 16.4 feet

Other Protection

All three cards in this comparison guide also offer protection against the following elements:

• Electrostatic Radiation
• UV Sunlight
• X-Rays

File Rescue

The CEA-G Series CFexpress Type A, CEB-G Series CFexpress Type B and Sony XQD-G Series memory cards support File Rescue. The software will help you recover deleted files in addition to corrupted photos and videos.

Media Scan Utility

Only the CFexpress Type A and CFexpress Type B cards support Media Scan Utility. This software will scan your flash memory in order to keep track of the current conditions of your memory card.

Compatible Card Readers

You can take a look at the supported card readers for all three memory cards below:

CEA-G Series CFexpress Type A Memory Card:

• Sony MRW-G2 CFexpress Type A / SD Card Reader

CEB-G Series CFexpress Type B Memory Card:

• Sony MRW-G1 CFexpress Type B / XQD Memory Card Reader

XQD-G Series Memory Card:

• Sony MRW-E90 XQD/SD Card Reader
• Sony MRW-G1 CFexpress Type B / XQD Memory Card Reader

Resources:

• https://www.sony.com/electronics/xqd-memory-cards/cea-g-series
• https://www.sony.com/electronics/xqd-memory-cards/cfexpress-type-b-memory-card
• https://www.sony.com/electronics/xqd-memory-cards/xqd-g-serie