New A1 owner. It came with a Lexar micro SD card which is operating fine. I’ve had it in & out of the printer writing my own files to it & printing fine. Today I got a new card that meets what I understand to be required criteria (see attached). I initially plugged into USV port on my Win-110 device. It states capacity, no files but I did not format or do anything there.
Following forum posts I tried to format directly within the A1 using the utility but it just sits there. No error message but also no formatting action. The status bar just sits static. Tried ejecting & powering off & repeating, same result. It does give me the initial error message that the card is not correct format, must format… I read some previous posts about this but none really pertaining to my specific issue. Any suggestions?
Meant to add, I did try formatting on my PC. Gemini did say it could be done but I don’t see FAT32 as available option, only exFAT which it is already.
You’re likely encountering the limitation where Windows 10’s built-in tools cannot format SD cards larger than 32GB to FAT32.
Here’s why and how to get around it:
** Why the Limitation: FAT32 has limitations on partition size. Windows restricts formatting drives larger than 32GB to FAT32 to prevent potential data corruption issues.*
** How to Format to FAT32:*
Use Third-Party Tools:*
EaseUS Partition Master: A popular and user-friendly tool that allows you to format larger drives to FAT32.*
MiniTool Partition Wizard: Another reliable option with a similar feature set.*
GUID Partition Table (GPT): If your SD card supports GPT, you can create a smaller partition (under 32GB) within the larger card and format that partition as FAT32.*
Command Prompt (Advanced):*
This method involves using the diskpart command-line tool. It requires more technical knowledge.*
Warning: Incorrect use of command-line tools can damage your data. Proceed with caution.*
Yeah. Windows won’t FAT32 format a SD card that’s >32GB. But it’s an arbitrary limitation imposed by Microsoft for some reason.
Go here and download the Windows tool from the SD Card association. It’ll format the card for you. No complicated messing around with partitions, just a single button press.
I installed the recommended SD Memory Formatter app. Initiating it on my new 128 GG card was easy. Even saw a YouTube video recommending the same app & demonstrating it worked. But on my card after formatting & right-click properties it showed as exFAT, not FAT32 like on YouTube video. I tried both options, quick format & the other more extensive format, same result - exFAT. My friend says I need SDHC not SDXC. This one is SDXC. Is that the issue?
Not, because SDHC is for cards <= 32GB and SDXC are all cards >=64 GB. I don’t have a solution, for me it never works well. I have the same issue in my car, beside it accepts up to 200 GB cards, it only works well in FAT32-format. But I didn’t get any of my sticks well formatted in FAT32, therefore I bought again a 32 GB version of it. I recommend to use only a 32 GB card for Bambu as well - is there a reason why you need more?
Thanks. The only reason I got a larger capacity card was basically out of ignorance to these formatting issues & a good sale price for 128. I figured if Bambu packaged a 32 it was only to accommodate the starter files to get going at minimal expense. Now I’m realizing the formatting is a bigger issue, so I ordered a pair of 32’s (also cheap).
Now I may have double knackered myself because I think there is a separate step - the actual FAT32 formatting. Long videos tax my limited attention span LOL. They do show resultant FAT32 format on larger capacity storage cards indicated by the properties
Ah - I missed the detail that there is a second app tool by ridgecrop that does the FAT32 after formatting (mentioned ~1:19) But when I clicked the link, was not connecting
Just a followup note. I bought a 2-pack of SanDisk 32GB SD cards for $19.99CAD. Confirmed it came preformatted FAT32. Exported a file to it from Studio. A1 recognized the file no problem & printed away. So unless I have large file issues, this probably would have been the least painful route. There probably is a FAT32 formatter tool out there & something I should be aware of, but just wanted to carry on printing for now. I still need to figure out printing wirelessly on my A1 because putting a card in & out lots of times over life doesn’t thrill me either from mechanical wear perspective. But TBD if I have sufficient WiFi signal strength in the garage where printer will ultimately reside.
