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Lexar Play Pro microSD Express Card: Review
The Lexar Play Pro microSD Express Card has been my go-to Nintendo Switch 2 Express microSD card since it arrived at TechRadar Gaming HQ a few months ago.
As the first 1TB microSD Express model to hit the market, it's one of your few options if, like me, you need a lot of storage for an absolutely mega Nintendo Switch 2 game library. Combine this fact with its strong benchmark results and brilliant performance in real-world use, and you've got the ultimate upgrade to Nintendo's latest console, as long as you can afford it.
At $58.98 / £59.45 / AU$119.34, the 256GB version of the Lexar Play Pro Micro SD Express card almost beats the price of its biggest competition, the officially licensed SanDisk microSD Express card for the Nintendo Switch 2. Lexar also smartly offers a slightly more affordable 128GB edition, so those with very modest storage needs can save a bit of money.
However, the star of the show is the aforementioned 1TB variant, which is priced at a much more premium $199.99/£199.99. In my opinion, this is very fair for what you get, especially considering the solid 831.97 MB/s read speed it achieved in my benchmarks.
This is very close to the manufacturer's claimed 900MB/s read speed, and the difference can easily be attributed to different testing conditions. However, the card fared much worse when it came to write speeds, hitting 310.03 MB/s, which is just over half of the claimed 600 MB/s.
Sure, some other cards reach higher speeds (much higher, when it comes to write speeds), like the aforementioned SanDisk microSD Express card for the Nintendo Switch 2 or the competing PNY microSD Express card, but you'd be hard-pressed to notice any tangible difference in the real world.
I didn't experience any issues with dropped frames, slow loading resources, or noticeably high loading times in any of the titles I played with this card, which ranged from graphically demanding titles like Cyberpunk 2077: Definitive Edition and Hitman World of Assassination – Exclusive Edition to less intense adventures like Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster.
Nothing compares to the freedom of knowing that you won't have to search for space to install every new game you get, and for that, the Lexar Play Pro MicroSD Express card is highly recommended.
Lexar Play Pro microSD Express card: price and specifications
|
Price |
$58.98 / £59.45 / AU$119.34 (256GB) |
|
Ability |
256GB/512GB/1TB |
|
Quoted reading speed |
900MB/s |
|
Quoted writing speed |
600MB/s |
|
Comparative reading speed |
831.97 MB/s |
|
Writing speed compared |
310.03 MB/s |
Should I buy the Lexar Play Pro Express microSD card?
Buy it if…
Don't buy it if…
Also consider
Want to compare the Lexar Micro SD Express card to its biggest competition? Here are two solid alternatives to weigh.
| Row 0 – Cell 0 |
Lexar Play Pro microSD Express Card |
SanDisk microSD Express Card for Nintendo Switch 2 |
PNY Express microSD card |
|
Price |
$58.98 / £59.45 / AU$119.34 (256GB) |
$59.99 / £49.99 / AU$79.95 |
$59.99 / £59.99 / about AU$100 (256GB) |
|
Ability |
256GB/512GB/1TB |
256GB |
128GB/256GB |
|
Quoted reading speed |
900MB/s |
880MB/s |
890MB/s |
|
Quoted writing speed |
600MB/s |
650MB/s |
550MB/s |
|
Comparative reading speed |
831.97 MB/s |
894.4 MB/s |
893.74 MB/s |
|
Writing speed compared |
310.03 MB/s |
674.1MB/s |
713.42 MB/s |
How I tested the Lexar Play Pro Express microSD card
- Used for several months.
- Tested with other microSD Express cards
- Subjected to standardized benchmark tests
As I mentioned above, the Lexar Play Pro microSD Express card has been my personal Nintendo Switch 2 Express microSD card since it arrived a few months ago. During my time with the card, I used it almost daily with my own Nintendo Switch 2, constantly evaluating its performance across a wide range of games.
I also compared the card to the competition in a series of standardized tests, recording and comparing the results directly. I measured each card's sequential read and write speed using a standardized benchmark via CrystalDiskMark at its default flash memory configuration.
To do this, I relied on the Lexar Play Pro MicroSD Express card reader, which features an active cooling fan. Lexar provided this along with the Lexar Micro SD Express card for the purposes of this review.
Read more about how we test
First review in November 2025
