Micro SD Memory Cards

Dashcams in general are quite heavy users of memory cards as they are always writing - TLC memory cards are commonly used in devices such as phones or media players where they are mainly reading, but they are not so well suited to writes and will fail earlier than MLC or even SLC cards.

If you don't do much driving then you'll probably never have an issue with your TLC memory cards. However if you have got a BLACKVUE Dash Cam that has parking modes or is recording full time then at some point you'll probably come across these issues.

True MLC based cards usually carry a price premium as they are a higher quality product that will last longer and usually have a longer warranty.

TLC is cheaper and less reliable. Manufacturers increased storage density by putting more information (3 bits/cell) into a memory cell but sacrifices durability. MLC costs more money and is far more durable because it stores less information per cell (2 bits/cell) so wear and tear is greatly reduced.

Flash Memory – It Eventually Fails

Writing data to a SD card physically and permanently damages the NAND chip. Overtime this causes the SD card to fail which can write lock the card preventing your dash camera from recording. TLC cards can overwrite itself 500 times before experiencing failures, a MLC card between 1500 to 3000 times.

MLC cards have a 3-6X increase in durability.

Why this Matters

Your dash camera constantly writes to the memory card and adds a lot of wear and tear not found in other uses such as a secondary storage for your cell phone. MLC cards often have better error correction, wear levelling and controller chips which increase performance and lifespan.

For BLACKVUE cameras it is important that Micro SD Cards are MLC compliant. If they are not then the camera system may not work correctly

Sort by

Product Name +/-