SD card not accessible anymore

I have a 16GB Lexar Professional SDHC card (600x) which cannot be accessed and formatted by the camera (5d3) anymore. So far I had no problems with the card. It's still correctly recognized and accessed by the computer through my lexar card reader. I consequently saved all my files to the harddisk and formatted it several times with windows or the SDformatterv4-Tool without any problems and errors. But inserting it into the camera I get the message "card2 cannot be accessed -Reinsert/change the card or format card with camera". But trying to format it doesn't work - "cannot format -change card". Any help would be appreciated.

Thank you

Wolfgang

Do other SD cards work in the camera? If not, it may point to a camera problem with the SD slot. If other cards do work in the camera, then there's something wrong with this particular SD card even though it seems to work in the Windows PC.

Put it in a Windows computer, right click on it and select format and then deselect the quick format option.  This type of format will take a while.  If it completes successfully, the card should now be readable.

Do not use a Mac for this.

Royce and E.J, thank you for your comments.
 
Other SD cards work in the camera, so it's nothing wrong with the SD-Slot. If I put the card in question in another camera body it's the same problem there. So it's definetly a problem with the card.
 
I did format the card once again in the way E.J. proposed with quick format deselected - but it didn't help. I have no idea what's wrong with that special card. I remember that I once used the card for copying files to my ipad and also deleted a couple of files via the computer instead of doing this with the camera as I normally do - maybe something went wrong then. But as said, the card can be formatted and accessed in the computer without any problems.
 
Wolfgang
 
 
 
 

On the SD cards that do work in the camera, what is their format? (exFAT, FAT32 etc). Try formatting the problem card with the same file system as the cards that work.

Roger

Do make sure the format type is FAT 32

It's formatted in FAT 32 - so nothing's wrong here.
 
Wolfgang
 
 

Then the card should not be used any more. It is likely still under warranty since it is one of the better brands. Just get a free replacement.

Lexar service is great here in the US.  I had a client ruin a new Lexar 64 gig card of mine accidentally by attempting to download to an iPad with a reader rather than via the camera cord.  Lexar immediately replaced it, no questions, even though it was user error.

I chatted with the Lexar support today. They required some datas and a problem description by email. So I hope that the card will be replaced in the end. I never experienced that kind of problem with any of my cards. It's strange that it works well via the computer but cannot be accessed and formatted by my cameras anymore. I also tried it with my friend's Nikon D800 which cannot access the card either. It's obviously risky to use these cards in different devices such as ipads or regular computers. Don't know if they apply different algorithms for reading, writing and formatting so that the camera sometimes cannot access it  anymore afterwards.. The card had worked flawlessly in my cameras for a year. 
 
Wolfgang
 
 

While I would definitely not trust this card any longer, even if you get it working, you might try to low level format it on your computer using the free software directly from the SD Association.  You can read about it and get it from this site:

https://www.sdcard.org/downloads/formatter_4/

Liz

The symptoms are consistent with a difference in mechanical & electrical contact. The camera contacts are probably may apply less pressure than the reader contacts, and the contact strips on the card may have developed a bit of oxidation over time which increases resistance. You could try a contact cleaner like DeoxIT(R) --- the G product with brush applicator is the least aggressive, while R is more aggressive. Just take care to apply a controlled minimual amount to the contacts.

I wonder if anybody has had problems with Hoodman cards. A couple of months ago I was looking to buy some CF cards and was about to go for Hoodman simply because they report 'zero' problems. However, then I got an email from Adorama with a discount on the Lexar 1000X 64G cards that was too tempting to ignore. Basically with the discount, the cards came in at less than one third of the Hoodman ($88 vs $299).

I am keeping my fingers crossed. So far I have had possibly one Lexar card go bad on me, none from Sandisk and many from other 'lesser known' brands.

Pradeep

There is nothing inherently better about a Hoodman card then a Lexar. In fact I would prefer the Lexar since they actually assemble their cards where Hoodman is just a brand name slapped onto a card made at an unknown origin. i am sure the company tests them thoroughly but the origin can vary even among seemingly identical cards. I personally stick with SanDisk and Lexar as both companies are very good abut honoring their warranty and both companies are OEMs and make a quality product. both are also on the leading edge in ever higher performance for flash memory cards

Thanks EJ.

If you are to believe the hype on the Hoodman site they have never had a card that 'failed'. It may simply reflect the much lower volume of their product in the user base or they are not telling the truth. It is difficult to imagine anything to be that perfect.

I for one am quite happy so far with my Lexar CF cards, they are very fast, reliable so far, and incredibly cheap with the discount from Adorama. Imagine - $88 for a 1000X 64G card. I remember paying over $100 for a 1 Gig IBM Microdrive just over 10 yrs ago.

Pradeep

I would call BS on that

I don't believe that claim from Hoodman, either. I wouldn't even believe it coming from the best OEM card producer, which Hoodman surely is not.