Identifying the issue involves checking where data transfer slows down between the camera and the HDD.
Identifying the issue involves checking where data transfer slows down between the camera and the HDD.
I'm not sure if this is the best place to discuss it, or if a camera or storage solution would work better. I attended an event recently, captured numerous photos and videos, and transferred everything to my hard drive yesterday. Around 1200 files were involved, totaling approximately 50gb of data. I transferred them directly from the camera, which took over 50 minutes. While playing Runeterra during that time likely slowed things down, I didn’t expect it to be severe. The delay was significant enough that I received an error indicating a problem with my camera—just battery depletion. After this, I ran some basic tests. Since 50 minutes felt excessive even while gaming, I checked my hardware: a Ryzen 5 1600 processor, Asus Prime B350+ motherboard, 2x 16GB DDR4 RAM, Windows 10 Home 64-bit, a 1TB Seagate Barracuda HDD. I also ran chkdsk /F /R on the E: drive, and found no issues.
For the camera, I used a Fujifilm X T200 with a USB Type-C port and included adapter. For comparison, I used a Type-C to USB-C charger cable (likely from a Samsung phone). I tested several SD cards: Sandisk 128GB Extreme Pro (170MB/s), one at 150MB/s, a Hama USB 2.0 reader, and a Type-C to charger cable. I attempted to copy 200 RAW files (~40MB each, total ~8GB) to the Seagate HDD using various USB ports.
I tried different methods: with the SD card in the camera, with it in the USB reader, and using a different USB port. The speeds varied widely—from 20MB/s on the Type-C adapter to 6 minutes and 30 seconds at 20MB/s using USB 3.0, then 9 minutes and 30 seconds at 9MB/s on USB 3.1. The interface only displayed “copy” and estimated times without detailed rates. I also copied 200 files to another PC using the same SD card, but again, the speeds were similar.
Overall, I’m still trying to figure out what caused the slowdown—especially since the adapter cable seemed to be a weak link.
It's typical for these devices to support USB2.0. Generally, you'll need a USB3 card reader or ensure the connection cable is USB3.
Thank you for your feedback. It seems the added cable might not be ideal for a 3.0 connection, possibly intended only as a charger. I’ll need to purchase a better one tomorrow and maybe a reader. It’s not overly costly, but it feels like a waste. On the positive side, it’s reassuring that most functionality should still work and it’s likely just the cable. I’ll share an update after receiving the new cable.
Update on the cable: Failed? I purchased a type C to a USB 3.2 Gen1 with 5GBps speed, yet the transfer time remains around 14 minutes for roughly 8GB. The port choice didn’t affect performance whether I used 3.0 or 3.1 ports on the board. The latest time for copying 200 files at ~41MB each is about 11 minutes and 30 seconds from the SD card to my HDD. A new cable connected to a 3.1 port on the mainboard improved speed, taking ~4 seconds per file. The Task Manager indicated spikes near 40MB, which were normal. Transferring the same files to my smartphone took about 5 minutes from HDD to phone, and returning them back also took roughly 5 minutes.
Are there any additional components you should connect to the motherboard? The manual mentions 10-1 pin connectors and a 20-1 pin connector, but it doesn’t specify anything else. I’ve already connected one 10-1 pin plug in USB56, which seems to be for the front USB ports of the case. From my own experiments, I feel like I might be overestimating the requirements. The only exception is that my tests with the 2.0 SD card reader performed better than the rest, matching the speed of the HDD and the smartphone.
The new cable is actually USB3, featuring pins on the back (left). Moving data from the camera should perform well according to specifications, though using it as an MTP device instead of a mass storage solution might limit speed. There could be options in the menu to switch modes, which some devices support. In reality, a card reader is likely what most people would prefer. Not using the back panel ports, but the front panel would work fine.
It is usb 3. At least I wasn't a complete idiot today. Unfortunately they didn't have any usb3 sd card readers, otherwise I would have bit the bullet and also got one of those to try. Maybe there is something limiting coming from the camera but there's nothing in the menu. I can switch between "off", "usb card reader" and "webcam mode". And bluetooth to connect with their own app but I don't really use that, it's awful.