The Lexar ARMOR Gold is an unusual SD card: it combines a stainless-steel shell and rugged IP68 protection with UHS-II performance aimed at photographers and videographers who need both durability and decent sustained speeds. The card’s design and marketing position it as a “bring it everywhere” option for pro workflows that still depend on SD media.
Design and Build Quality
Physically the ARMOR Gold looks and feels nothing like a conventional plastic SD card. Lexar encases the card in a stainless-steel body that the company says makes it up to 37× stronger than a standard plastic card. The card carries an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance and is rated for drops from 5 metres and significant pressure resistance, all aimed at photographers who work in harsh environments or travel a lot. The stainless-steel shell gives confidence that the card will survive accidental crushing or rough handling in the field — a genuine differentiator compared with standard SD cards.
Features
Lexar positions the ARMOR Gold as a V60-class UHS-II SDXC card available across multiple capacities (64GB to 1TB). Features include tough metal construction, IP68 ingress protection, Lexar’s recovery software access, and the card’s UHS-II interface, which enables markedly higher peak and sustained transfer rates than UHS-I cards.
On paper the ARMOR Gold offers up to 280 MB/s read and up to 210 MB/s write speeds. This speed matches in real world tests. The card also carries the Video Speed Class V60 badge, meaning a guaranteed minimum sustained write around 60 MB/s, which is enough for 4K and many 6K workflows that don’t demand V90-level throughput. The card uses the UHS-II bus, so you’ll see the best performance with a UHS-II-capable camera or a USB 3.x UHS-II card reader.
In everyday use the ARMOR Gold feels fast: bursts write without slowing down on most mirrorless and DSLR bodies that support UHS-II, offloads finish quickly when paired with a compatible reader, and playback on computers is snappy. The card’s sustained write consistency is solid for multicamera shoots and long video takes, and the metallic build noticeably reduces worry about physical damage during shoots.
Verdict
The Lexar ARMOR Gold is a niche product executed well: it pairs genuine toughness with UHS-II performance that’s more than capable for 4K and many 6K workflows, and it removes a key point of failure for professionals who work in harsh environments. If you’re a photojournalist, adventure filmmaker, or field professional who’s lost cards to physical damage before, the ARMOR Gold’s stainless-steel construction and IP68 rating are compelling reasons to pay a premium.
Price: AED 300 (128GB)
Product Photography by Ranbir Sen
Lexar ARMOR GOLD SDXC UHS-II Card AED 300
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Final Rating
Summary
In everyday use the ARMOR Gold feels fast: bursts write without slowing down on most mirrorless and DSLR bodies that support UHS-II, offloads finish quickly when paired with a compatible reader, and playback on computers is snappy.
