Macbook Air mid 2012 13' User Guide is not available from the Apple site yet, but the MBA mid 2011 SD card slot can accept an SD or SDXC card. MBA 2012 should be the same.

• 2016 MacBook Pro Vs 2015 MacBook Pro Vs MacBook Air Buyers Guide You can follow us on Twitter, add us to your circle on Google+ or like our Facebook page to keep yourself updated on all the latest from Microsoft, Google, Apple and the Web.
• The card reader won't recognize any SD card that doesn't have the standard size, 32 mm by 24 mm by 2.1 mm. Insert the SD card into the SD card reader, on the left side of the MacBook Pro.

Big And Fast SDXC Cards For MacBook Pro & Air

For top performance, the latest generation of Class 10 SDHC / SDXC cards for MacBook Air or Pro use the most intelligent and fastest flash memory chips which can peak out at 100MB/Sec or higher transfer rates. They're deal for use as a Mac backup drive, a bootable SD card for Mac OSX diagnostics and emergency startup - or fast transfers of large video files and tons of photos.

Custom Low-Profile SD Cards For MacBooks

These specially designed Secure-Digital memory cards unique to specific MacBook Pro or Air models are low-profile and specifically sized to fit nearly flush on a Mac laptop's SDHC - SDXC card slot without sticking out very much so that you can just leave the SD card in place on the go.
The slot DEPTH of a custom MacBook SD/SDHC/SDXC card varies from model to model - generally 16mm, 18mm, 21mm or 22mm depending on the MacBook. Standard SD cards are 32mm in depth. There are also micro-SD slot adapters for MacBooks that hold an even tinier microSD card inside

MacBook SDXC Card	SDXC Card For MacBook	SDHC Card For MacBook
PNY StorEdge SDXC 64GB and 128GB Sizes	Transcend JetDrive Lite Extremely Fast Read/Write	SanDisk miniDrive 64GB Capacity

Only select models of aluminum Apple MacBook models even had an SD slot. No 11-inch, but some 13-inch MacBook Air models included one. As of 2015, only the professional series of Retina 13-inch and 15-inch Retina laptops include an SDXC slot (which is compatibile with smaller or slower SD and SDHC cards regardless.)

MacBook Air Q&A

Update Published August 11, 2019

All Mac Q&As >>MacBook Air Q&A (Home) | Also See: All MacBook Air Specs

To be notified of new Q&As, sign up for EveryMac.com's bimonthly email list.

If you find this page useful, please Bookmark & Share it. Thank you.

Which SD Card Slot storage solution is best for the MacBook Air? Which models are compatible? Is this kind of storage safe?

If you ever found yourself transferring photos from an SD card to your MacBook Air and wondered if you could just store files from your computer on an SD card for a bit of extra space, you're not alone.

Most users should consider upgrading the internal SSD in their Late 2010, Mid-2011, Mid-2012, Mid-2013, Early 2014, Early 2015, or Mid-2017 MacBook Air for more storage.

However, as the capacity of microSD cards has increased, companies have released storage solutions specifically designed to slide into the SD Card Slot on all 13' MacBook Air models with SD Card slots. These solutions are not as protected as an internal SSD and should not be thought of as permanent storage, but they are quite convenient and still can be useful.

Identification Help (Skip)

As SD Card Slot storage solutions are compatible with each 13' MacBook Air model with an SD Card slot (and 11' MacBook Air and later 13' MacBook Air models do not have an SD Card slot at all), identification assistance practically is unnecessary for this particular upgrade.

Best Sd Card Reader For Macbook Air 11

However, just for confirmation, compatible MacBook Air models have Model NumbersA1369 or A1466.

These models also can be readily identified in software by Model Identifier:

MacBook Air	Subfamily	Model ID
Late 2010
Late 2010
Mid-2011
Mid-2011
Mid-2011
Mid-2012
Mid-2012
Mid-2012
Mid-2013
Mid-2013
Early 2014
Early 2014
Early 2015
Early 2015
Mid-2017
Mid-2017

Subsequent 13' MacBook Air models do not have an SD Card slot and cannot use this upgrade method accordingly.

EveryMac.com's Ultimate Mac Lookup feature -- as well as the EveryMac app -- also can uniquely identify these models by their Serial Number, which is listed on the underside near the model number and within the operating system alongside the model identifier. More details about specific identifiers are provided in EveryMac.com's extensive Mac Identification section.

Best MacBook Air SD Card Storage Solutions

Some SD Card storage options on the market are low quality knockoffs or from inexperienced startup companies with products burdened by questionable software, but two products worth considering are the Transcend JetDrive Lite 130 and the Nifty MiniDrive Air.

As SD Card storage products for different Apple notebooks are different physical sizes be sure that these particular ones are the one you buy for a MacBook Air.

Photo Credit: Transcend Information Inc. (Left), Nifty Drives (Right)

Although the two products look similar, they actually are quite different.

Established in 1988, Transcend is a well respected manufacturer of RAM and trusted for quality products. The JetDrive Lite 130 is created as single piece and designed to fit snuggly into the MacBook Air with the end sticking out just enough to be able to remove it conveniently. It is sold with either 64 GB, 128 GB, or 256 GB of integrated flash storage.

The Nifty MiniDrive Air, on the other hand, is a simple aluminum and plastic adapter designed to hold an existing microSD from another company of your choosing. It fits flush with the MacBook Air and ships with a small 'hook' tool to remove it. It is no longer available for sale new, but it remains available on the used market.

This brief commercial from Transcend shows their product in action:

Effectively, these products function like a compact high capacity USB stick or a tiny version of an 'old school' floppy disk. Stick it in the SD Card slot and it pops up on the desktop like any other removable storage. Easy.

Using SD Card Storage Solutions Safely

Although all media can fail, whether it is a hard drive, an SSD, or a SD Card -- and it is important to backup your data regularly -- using a quality SD Card solution from Transcend should be safe. The Transcend JetDrive Lite 130 is rated to last for 10,000 insertion/removal cycles. Likewise, the Nifty MiniDrive MK5 Air with an installed high quality microSD card from a trusted manufacturer should be safe, as well.

There is at least one product from an unproven startup that uses flash memory of unknown quality as well as proprietary software of unknown quality to 'pair' the storage from your internal SSD and the SD card together on a 'permanent' basis and any solution of this type should be avoided to reduce the risk of data loss. This 'pairing' method has been shown to cause data loss and compatibility problems with macOS updates, as well. At least one unproven product of this type costs twice as much as the proven Transcend solution, as well.

Ultimately, keep in mind that (1) an SD Card is a removable card and should be thought of as removable storage rather than permanent storage, (2) only use an SD Card from a quality, known manufacturer, and (3) backup your data regularly regardless of the type of media you use. If you follow these three steps, your data should be as safe as it can be.

MacBook Air SD Card Storage Purchase Options

In the US, Amazon sells the Transcend JetDrive Lite 130.

In the UK and Ireland, site sponsor Flexx sells the full range of Transcend JetDrive Lite models for the MacBook Air series with free shipping. The company provides flat rate shipping to France, Germany, and Switzerland and inexpensive shipping for all of Europe, too.

Usb Sd Card Reader For Macbook Air

In Australia, site sponsor RamCity sells the Transcend JetDrive Lite 130 for the MacBook Air models with fast, flat-rate shipping Australia-wide.

Also see:

• How do you replace or upgrade the SSD storage in the 'Late 2010' and 'Mid-2011' MacBook Air models? Is it even possible?
• How do you replace or upgrade the SSD storage in the 'Mid-2012' MacBook Air models? Is it even possible?
• How do you replace or upgrade the SSD storage in the 'Mid-2013' and subsequent MacBook Air models? Is it even possible?

Permalink | E-mail a Friend | Bookmark & Share | Report an Error/Typo

Sd Card Reader For Mac

Suggest a New Q&A | Sign Up for Bimonthly Site Update Notices

<< MacBook Air Q&A (Main)

Card Reader For Mac Pro

EveryMac.com is provided 'as is' without warranty of any kind whatsoever. EveryMac.com, and the author thereof, shall not be held responsible or liable, under any circumstances, for any damages resulting from the use or inability to use the information within. For complete disclaimer and copyright information please read and understand the Terms of Use and the Privacy Policy before using EveryMac.com. Use of any content or images without expressed permission is not allowed, although links to any page are welcomed and appreciated.