Flash memory storage developer SanDisk has built the 512 GB SanDisk Extreme Pro UHS-I, a storage medium for devices that has the biggest capacity of any memory card to date.

The new storage card is aimed at photographers and videographers as the memory card lets them shoot high quality photos and movies at the 4K format, according to BBC News.

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The 4K format, which has four times the resolution of High-Definition, needs a large amount of storage space. Depending on the file compression, a single minute generally consumes some 5 GB of storage space.

"4K Ultra HD is an example of a technology that is pushing us to develop new storage solutions capable of handling massive file sizes," said Dinesh Bahal, vice-president of product marketing at SanDisk.

Popular with camcorders, digital cameras and other mobile devices, the SD card format is one of the most widely used media in flash storage.

Although there are various camera types, settings and resolutions, a card with a 512 gigabyte storage capacity can store 30 hours of HD movies.

The innovation in physical storage is essential for the future of devices, even though some members of the public is leaning towards storing information on cloud servers instead, said IDC senior analyst John Delaney.

"The thing that is driving cloud storage is multiple devices usage, which solves the, 'Where's my stuff?' problem: if you use cloud storage for everything, whatever device you have with you can be used to access your content," Delaney said.

But he said that as of the moment, people still have a strong preference for storing files locally.

"People just feel more in control and more able to rely on being able to access the content when they literally know where it is. Storing in the cloud means you literally don't know where it is."

The launch of the 512GB SanDisk Extreme Pro UHS-I comes 10 years after the company released their 512 megabyte model, an SD card with only one-thousandth of the space of its successor.

Experts believe the popularity of SD cards will eventually increase, leading to a card that could store 2,000 gigabytes, or 2 terabytes, worth of data.

The postage stamp-sized SD card, when released, will retail for US$800.

TagsSanDisk, Memory Card, Storage, Cloud storage, Data, information, photographer, Film-makers, film, movie, photo, image, Picture