Prices of professional-grade SD cards and hard drives have surged in Hong Kong, with photographer Jacky Lau Kin-sang finding high-capacity cards costing up to HK$3,000 each—three times expected. A 16TB hard disk model jumped from HK$1,880 to HK$3,880. Experts warn the high prices will persist until year-end.
Hong Kong photographer Jacky Lau Kin-sang was shocked after upgrading his camera systems a few months ago to find professional high-capacity SD memory cards costing up to HK$3,000 (US$383) each, three times more than expected.
The 42-year-old, who owns a studio specialising in overseas pre-wedding shoots, also saw the price of hard disks he had bought for years to back up clients’ images skyrocket from HK$1,880 to HK$3,880 for a 16TB model.
“It means you essentially have to spend much more just on backups because the equipment has surged in value. In fact, the costs have already doubled,” Lau said.
A South China Morning Post search on price.com.hk, a popular electronics comparison site, found professional storage device costs in Hong Kong have surged dramatically over the past four months. Basic consumer storage has become “digital gold” amid persistently low supply, with experts warning high prices will last at least until year-end.