Anybody looked at prices on SD cards lately? I was going to buy a couple of 32 GB SD cards from Amazon. However, the prices are now $20 each (or $52 for two? – couldn’t make sense of that). This is for Sandisk (red ones). Anyway, two years ago the price was $12 for two. Wonder how long this AI bubble is going to last before it bursts?
Yep prices for storage and RAM are crazy at the moment.
I always have some new 32 GB spare SD cards lying around, they used to be around 10 euro per card, price now is 31 euro per card.
A 1 TB SSD was around 50 euro in january 2024 and now the exact same disk is 137 euro. same goes for DDR5 and DDR 4 RAM.
I bought a used pc lately ( I almost never buy new pc’s for my experimenting), the system itself was 100 euro, 32 GB RAM was 175 euro. The RAM was more then the entire system itself.
Western Digital has already sold out their storage stock for 2026 at this point in time, the bubble is going to be there for some time to come.
If you see them cheap, buy it since the prices are not going down anytime soon.
I was trolling thru the financial news this morning and note Sandisk’s 52-week low/high share prices are 37.33/1861.00 USD. Somehow it has been determined the company became 4,985% more valuable in the space of a year.
While searching today, I found very low-cost one’s here 
https://www.temu.com/search_result.html?search_key=16gb%20microsd%20card
Found this one at BestBuy Canada
Price: Canadian $5.99
Shipping: Depends on your address
(For my location, shipping cost is almost double the price)
PHILIPS 32GB Micro SDHC UHS-1 U1 & V10 Class 10 Flash Memory Card with Adapter
I have some of those as well but they are not as good as the sandisk cards. I’ve got quite a number of those Philips ones failing pretty fast 
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The problem is that it’s not sold by Best Buy. It’s another seller listing on the Best Buy page.
I avoid those like the plague. When I search on Best Buy the first filter I setup is “Best Buy Only”.
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@Dxista
@tomvdhorst
@dvsvejk
@jimMerk2
Has anyone of you ever purchased and used damn cheap microSD cards from TEMU?
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Haven’t tried TEMU microSD cards.
However, I have used ONN (Walmart brand) 32 GB microSD cards. They seem to work ok, I see Walmart lists them now at $22.88 for two.
One thing to remember though, these SD cards have a variable amount of actual memory available (in general they don’t have exactly 32 GB). So if you do a backup to an image file from an SD card, you have to restore the backup to the SD card of the same manufacturer (or something larger).
Edit to add:
AI says ONN SD cards not as reliable as standard brands.
AI Overview
Onn micro SD cards are decent for basic, non-critical storage but are generally considered less reliable than premium brands. While they usually work fine for casual use like Walmart onn microSDXC Express Card users report they can fail sooner **[Reddit: Steam Deck]
Nope, I avoid that site like the plague.
I’d rather pay a little more in the local shop or via a decent webshop in my country.
Sometimes I buy electronics from China for testing purposes but disks, ram, SD cards or CPU never via Temu. My mother-in-law loves it for some stuff, only to discover that the dimensions are wrong, quality is crappy and has to start over again
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@jimMerk2
@dvsvejk
@tomvdhorst
@Dxista
It seems none of you have experience of stuff from TEMU (neither do I).
I asked AI:
What does phrase “Temu like” means?
Got following answer:
The phrase “Temu like” is used to describe something that mimics the characteristics of the e-commerce giant Temu. It typically takes on one of three specific meanings, depending on the context:
1. Ultra-Cheap or “Knock-Off” Quality
In internet slang, calling an object “Temu-like” is usually derogatory. It implies an item is a cheap, low-quality, or inferior version of a brand-name product. For example, if someone says “This espresso machine is so Temu,” they mean it looks or feels like a flimsy, unbranded imitation.
2. Chaotic, Gamified Shopping Apps
It can refer to the digital experience of navigating Temu’s interface. Temu is known for its heavily gamified, “discovery-based” feed featuring endless scrolling, pop-ups, flashing discount codes, and aggressive recommendation algorithms. A “Temu-like app” is one that prioritizes constant engagement and flash sales over a traditional, straightforward online store experience
3. Direct-from-China Supply Chain
In business, the phrase describes a retail model relying on ultra-low prices via direct shipping. Companies or business strategies that are “Temu-like” cut out traditional middlemen and ship mass-produced consumer goods straight from overseas manufacturers to the buyer’s door.
Also See :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temu
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I certainly have not and can’t imagine i would ever consider it.
I buy a bit of hardware such as cases, cables, power supplies etc. from ebay and aliexpress where the risk/reward has been reasonable and most problems have been satisfactory in resolution.
Not tempted to buy anything with a cpu or memory.
About every 6 months i find a supply of cheap brand name sdcards from a supply i can trace and stock up so i also have a few on hand.
Unfortunately, the adage that “you get what you pay for” does not seem to apply for memory. Reputation of the seller seems much more reliable.
I have never seen an acceptable recommendation for Temu.
S
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SD Cards and flash drives are among the most counterfeited items I’ve seen. Not just in terms of quality but claimed capacity. In my travels - while I was still working - it was one of the most common item available from street vendors. Not even the big/famous ecommerce platforms are immune/safe, since they open their platforms to 3rd party vendors and are unable and/or unwilling to check for these things.
Generally speaking, one should not buy any electronics and/or semiconductors from these places thinking it’s the real thing. Electronics may work, and if not expensive, they can be a “good” buy. As for semiconductors, it’ll likely disappoint the homebrewer every single time.
Yeah that’s why I usually only buy SD cards from Amazon. I know they allow 3rd party vendors to sell stuff, however I would think they would be on the lookout for fake SD cards since it is a commonly counterfeited item.
While I can’t say for sure, reading the reviews, it does not seem to be the case. After it’s reported to them, maybe?
Far from me to defend billion dollar corporations, but how can they do that? Keeping track of stuff they sell and ship would already be a gigantic task. Stuff they only list and charge for on behalf of 3rd party vendors, impossible.
It’s buyer beware. No ifs, ands or buts.
@Dxista and all others
(@Dxista especially because he is in Ottawa, Canada)
I do NOT purchase microSD, USB Flash, SSD and HDD from on-line sellers. I always purchase these items from a very reliable and well-established computer store in my neighborhood. This store has branches all over Canada, and sells reliable stuff.
Although they have facility to order on-line, I never order on line. I visit the Store, brows items, discuss with their knowledged agents, and decide which brand to purchase.
In the US, as far as I know, we no longer have neighborhood computer stores.
That’s “my” computer store as well. There is one nearby and I used to “visit” them regularly.
Not much of a “buyer” now that I’m retired, but that is the place to go for replacements.
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Over last 10 years, I have purchased 3 number RPis and 2 numbers OrangePiPCs
I purchased all 3 of my RPis from Canadian Supplier PiShop.ca (formerly BuyaPi.ca). They are physically located in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They operate as a local Canadian business. As I am located in Toronto Area, I did not visit their Store, and instead placed orders on-line.
The 2 OrangePiPCs I purchased on-line from Aliexpress.
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MicroCenter is prob the only “computer store” left…10 32 gb card for $90 USA.
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