The swallowing process is rarely the most glamorous part of being a photographer or videographer. It can often feel like a bottleneck, especially when you are juggling several card formats, treating the readers at a slow pace, or fighting a confusion of the dongle after a long shoot day. The purpose of Lexar is to change that with its professional workflow ecosystem, a modular system that is designed to make this important step effective and accelerate.
I got to try all the main components, including Workflow Docking Station And a selection of its reader and SSD module, to see if it lasts to the promise of a single, supreme swallowing setup.
The main idea here is modularity. Instead of separate readers, Lexar provides a central hub, workflow docking station, with the sections that you can populate with the exact module that you need. Does CFEXPRESS Type B and SD cards need to be closed simultaneously while taking backup to SSD? No problem. Three CFEXPRESS Type A readers are required for multi-camera shoot? Done. This is about the construction of all setups that fit your workflow and gear setup.
As a quick history note, Lexer first created a similar workflow system, with support for storage drives in a coupled form factor, with support for storage drives, was used by swapble readers and a central hub. However, they supported USB 3.0 and older or less popular card formats, and are no longer available. Both these systems are not cross-compatible.
Professional workflow docking station
The docking station itself is a large piece of kit, but in a good way. It seems strong, a scratch is placed in a resistant aluminum shell that also serves as a heat sink. Inside, there are a built-in, temperature-sensitive fans and airflow channels designed to keep things cool, which is important on advancing high data rates through many devices. It is not just a passive hub; It is actively managed.
Connectivity is the place where things become interesting. Dock claims six sections:
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Two Thunderbolt 4 (40 GBPS) Bay. These are your fastest gap, which are suited for fastest card formats such as CFEXPRESS 4.0.
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Four USB 3.2 General 2 (10 GBPS) Bay. These bay UHS-II SD cards and portable SSD modules are still very fast.
Lexar states that all six bays can work together, which is a large-scale potential time-seed. From different types of card formats, imagine the footage dumping footage from several cameras simultaneously. With the spread of various card formats in cameras, it is not just theoretical. It is easy to imagine coming back from one day of shooting and needs to dump microSD from CFEXPRESS, SD card from a secondary slot from your primary camera, and even an action camera, drone or osmo.
Dock itself connects your computer through Thunderbolt 4 (a cable) and even provides a second TB4 port for adding up to six docks or up to six docks for daisy-chanting (8K or dual 4K). There are also additional USB-C (10 GBPS) and USB-A (10 GBPS) ports for other external devices. All of this powering is a heavy 140 W anthem charger, or a good touch for international-standard plug-pilgrims, whether the size of the docking station itself will find the place of bags in the really dedicated professionals.
Building Block: SSD and Reader Module
This is where adaptation comes. The Lexer provides a very concrete range of the module that slots very neatly in the dock’s bay. I tested:
- CFEXPRESS 4.0 Readers (Type A – WF 730 , Type B – WF 740, The best combined with Dock’s Thunderbolt 4 Bay, these readers promise that read the speed up to 40 GBPS. If you are shooting with cameras using the latest CFEXPRESS card (Sony users for Type A more wide B), these readers will maximize your swallowing speed. They connect the same strong, scratch-resistant aluminum finish as a dock and through USB 4.0. Importantly, they do not use an ownership connector or require a dock to operate. When combined with USB 4.0 cable (involved), the normal USB 4.0 port on the back may simply connect to your computer or device directly.
- Dual-slot SD UHS-II Reader (WF 720) / SD and MicroSD UHS-II Reader (WF 710, The best combined with 10 GBPS USB Bez, these readers allow two cards (two SDs for WF720) (two SDs for WF720) on UHS-II speed (up to 312 MB/s per slot). Two SDs for one SD and one SD and one MicroSD for one MicroSD. Having an important workflow is boost. They connect via USB 3.2 Gen 2 and come with USB-C cable and USB-A adapter.
- Professional Workflow Portable SSD (WF 750, I have been a fan of the tendency to include SSDs in the same industrial design as card readers, and LEXAR’s workflow portable SSD shows why this trend works so well. The SSD itself is impressively rugged, with an IP68 rating (dustproof and 1.5 m water-resistant for 30 minutes) and familiar aluminum builds. Available in 2 TB and 4 TB capabilities, this SSD module directly slots in one of the 10 GBPS bays of the dock, which allows for immediate, on-hub backup. Standalone is connected via its USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 interface, it claims impressive speed till reading/writing 2,000 MB/s. When used within the workflow dock, its speed is limited by the 10 GBPS interface of the bay, as SSD does not support Thunderbolt 4.
Workflow experience
So, what do you really like to use? Easy and transparent for the user. It is easy to slot the module inside and out, with them slipping with a satisfactory click. The hinged doors keep both connectors free from debris and look good by sitting on their desk.
Connecting the dock to a compatible Mac or PC (Windows 10/11, MacoS 11+) through Thunderbolt 4 means that it is plug-end, even many cards offload and hot-swapping. The hub shown below has 2 TB Lexers CFEXPRESS type B card transfer.
The real benefit comes when you load it. Dumping a full CFEXPRESS Type B through the TB4 reader seems to be really satisfactory to take up two UHS-II SD cards together and perhaps backup files to SSD modules. A card is not waiting for the end before starting, and many single readers are not moreid-changing. In fact, the setup is so good that it actually starts moving the bottleneck on your system’s hardware. The ingestion to a slow HDD or even a lower-end NVME can actually present a limit, while some software setups will not be able to take full advantage. For example, in Literoom, will not work by pulling with multiple cards at a time, so I would suggest dumping all your cards on a sharp, internal scratch drive, then indicate your dam or editing tool at that location.
For videographers working with high-bitrate footage on CFEXPRESS card, 40 GBPS readers’ speed capacity is very large, especially when combined with a sharp internal or external destination drive. The transfers were clearly quite sharp than the old USB 3.x readers. UHS-II readers performed as expected, easily maximized card speed.
Transfers from SSD and from SSD were also quite fast, although the USB 3.2 General 2 leads to hurdle when used in the border hub. The USB 3.2 GEN 2×2 host moves devices, when connected directly, it is believed that it can hit 2,000 MB/s, per lexer.
The ability to back up directly into the rugged SSD module within the same unit connects peace of mind, especially when working in place. Lexer also makes Workflow GoA two-bay hub with support for your phone, as well as the functionality of the battery bank, which I will cover here soon. SSD can create a perfect setup for field use to make one or two readers with modules and workflow goes.
The fan is actually the only issue I did with the entire system. Although this is a meaningful inclusion to prevent thermal throttleing, I found that the inactive noise with a MacBook Air was plugged into a very loudly plugged into an otherwise cool office. Just a cool fan like a 0 RPM environment mode, or even a 120 mm PC fan, will be very welcome to the future version of this product.
what’s that for?
Lexar professional workflow is not for casual shooter, which is shutting down a single SD card once a week, shows it with price, design and capabilities. Instead, this system is targeted for professionals and serious enthusiasts who deal with:
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high volume: Wedding, events, sports photographers/videographers drown in the card after a shoot.
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Many formats or cameras: Tooters using various cameras with CFEXPRESS A, B, SD and Microsd cards.
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Speed-Critical Workflows: Any person working with large video files such as Prres, RAW, or 8K, where the ingestion time directly affects productivity.
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Streamlined setup: The studios or individuals are looking to create a clean, skilled and permanent ingestion station, or even a strong on-location offload kit.
As mentioned, individual readers can act as standalone units, so if you want a great personal card reader, or even want to immerse a toe in the ecosystem, consider taking the same reader. I am partial for SD and MicroSD readers, as double-slot support for these two common forms in Pro-Grade Unit is surprisingly rare, but in fact all readers are solid options.
You also need a Thunderbolt 4 (or compatible USB4) port on your computer to take full advantage of the highest speed given by Dock and CFEXPRESS readers. While backward company, speed will be limited on old connections.
conclusion
Lexar has created a really useful and powerful system with professional workflow ecosystems. The modularity is its killer feature, allowing users to create a highly customized swallowing solution that fully matches their needs. The build quality is excellent, the potential speed is impressive (especially with TB4), and the ability to run multiple ingredients simultaneously is a large-scale quality life for multi-camera or even multi-shooter operation.
If you are interested in the system, the main idea is the cost. docking station (WF800) comes in about $ 599.99. Each module adds to it: Cfexpress reader (WF740/WF730) is around $ 99.99, SD/MicroSD Reader (WF710/WF720) $ 49.99, and Portable SSD $ 299.99 (2 TB) to $ 499.99 (4 TB). SSDs especially SSDs are sitting slightly more than a price point compared to the 32 GEN 2×2 drive, while the readers are a better standalone value. Overall, the construction of a completely filled dock represents an important investment.
To answer the title question: While investment is not trivial, for professionals who regularly wrestle with multiple card formats and large file sizes, Laksar Professional Workflow Dock and Modules with it offer a compelling solution. This effectively swallows the bottleneck, streamlines the process and is prepared to edit or distribute you faster. If you fit the target profile, this serious system is equally serious.
What did i like
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No compromise: fast pace, offload, thunderbolt passithrrow and high-wattage charging support
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Personal card readers can work without hub on USB-C
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All major current card formats are covered at the right interface speed
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The reader pricing is correct to suit similar options
What can be improved
- SSD pricing seems high for glasses
- Fan noise can be annoying in a calm environment
