CFexpress vs. CompactFlash
Comparing 2 standards across 14 specifications. 13 key differences identified.
CFexpress is an ultra-high-speed removable solid-state storage media standard developed by the CompactFlash Association (CFA). Built directly on the PCI Express (PCIe Gen 3/Gen 4) physical bus and NVM Express (NVMe) command set, it is the dominant storage medium for high-end professional digital cinema, mirrorless photography, and broadcast video.
CompactFlash (CF) is the pioneering solid-state removable memory card standard introduced by SanDisk in 1994 and maintained by the CompactFlash Association (CFA). Based on a 50-pin Parallel ATA (PATA / IDE) interface, it dominated professional DSLR photography and industrial computing for two decades, scaling through CF+ specifications up to UDMA 7 (167 MB/s).
Specification Comparison Table
14 Parameters| Parameter / Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Governing Body
|
CompactFlash Association (CFA) | CompactFlash Association (CFA) |
|
Underlying Storage Architecture
|
PCI Express (PCIe Gen 3 / Gen 4 / Gen 5) + NVM Express (NVMe v1.3/1.4) | — |
|
Type A Dimensions & Bus
|
20.0 × 28.0 × 2.8 mm | 1-lane PCIe (1 GB/s PCIe 3.0 / 2 GB/s PCIe 4.0) | — |
|
Type B Dimensions & Bus
|
38.5 × 29.6 × 3.8 mm | 2-lane PCIe (2 GB/s PCIe 3.0 / 4 GB/s PCIe 4.0) | — |
|
Type C Dimensions & Bus
|
54.0 × 72.0 × 4.4 mm | 4-lane PCIe (4 GB/s PCIe 3.0 / 8 GB/s PCIe 4.0) | — |
|
Type B XQD Compatibility
|
Physically identical exterior shell to Sony XQD (host backward-compatible via firmware) | — |
|
Operating Power Tiers
|
Up to 1.7W (Type A) / Up to 3.0W (Type B) / Up to 6.0W (Type C) | — |
|
Introduction Year
|
— | 1994 (SanDisk) |
|
Physical Dimensions
|
— | 36.4 mm × 42.8 mm × 3.3 mm (Type I) / 5.0 mm (Type II) |
|
Physical Connector Form Factor
|
— | 50-pin female socket receptacle (2 rows of 25 pins on 1.27 mm pitch) |
|
Interface Protocol
|
— | Parallel ATA (PATA) / True IDE Mode / PCMCIA Memory Mode |
|
Max Bus Speed Tier
|
— | UDMA 7 (167 MB/s @ 133 MHz PATA clock in CF 6.0) |
|
Operating Voltages
|
— | Dual voltage: 3.3V (low power) or 5.0V (legacy standard) |
|
Video Performance Guarantee
|
— | VPG-20 (20 MB/s) / VPG-65 (65 MB/s sustained write for Full HD / 4K) |