PSA: A 1TB microSD Express card has entered the market — I hope future handheld gaming PCs are compatible with this speedy storage option

Today, Silicon Power (SP) released its new line of Hypera microSDXC Express Cards, which are specifically marketed for the Nintendo Switch 2 and available in 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB capacities.

There are already microSD Express Cards available from SanDisk, Samsung, PNY, and other tech companies; however, it appears that SP is the first (or one of the first) to release a 1TB option.

For those who don't know, the release of the Nintendo Switch 2 accelerated demand for these newer cards, since it's the only form of removable memory that works with the brand-new console's slot.

While microSD Express cards initially also sound like a no-brainer choice for handheld gaming PCs like Lenovo Legion Go, ASUS ROG Ally, MSI Claw 8 AI+, and Steam Deck, they actually cannot reach their full potential in these handhelds.

As such, it's in your best interest to get a standard microSD card if you are a gaming handheld PC owner.

However, I hope future portable gaming hardware impliments this newer storage tech if it can be proven to be a reliable option.

Why future handheld gaming PCs should be designed for microSD Express Cards

There are a lot of improvements I hope to see in the next-gen wave of PC gaming handhelds, but one of the biggest ones is microSD Express Card readers.

Of course, you can always upgrade a PC gaming handheld's internal SSD, but most people feel more comfortable using an external storage solution.

In case you didn't know, microSD Express cards are basically next-gen microSD cards. They might have the same overall physical shape as standard microSD cards, but they tend to offer significantly faster read and write speeds in compatible readers, which is exactly what you want for gaming.

For instance, the new SP microSD Express cards boast a read speed of up to 880 MB/s and a write speed of up to 750 MB/s, which is eight times faster than some standard microSD cards out there.

Faster read and write speeds translate to faster loading and saving times while you game. Who doesn't want that?

RELATED: microSD Express Card vs microSD Card: What's the difference?

The thing is, most PC gaming handhelds on the market right now were designed with standard UHS readers and can't get the most out of the Express variety, with its PCIe/NVMe interface.

Now that microSD Express Cards are out there, I fully expect to see compatible readers in future gaming handheld PCs. It feels like the obvious next step for portable devices that play AAA games.

Of course, technology continually changes. It's possible another storage option will present itself in the near future. I just hope one way or another we can see some increased speeds with next-gen handheld PCs.