Behind the Build: Exploring Lexar’s 30 Years of Innovation and the Longsys Ecosystem

After Computex 2026 I was lucky enough to participate in a very special media tour hosted by Lexar.  For many of you the Lexar name should be a familiar one as a quality supplier of SSD storage, Flash Cards and DRAM.  During CES 2026 Lexar announced their 30-year anniversary with a global partnership with the Argentina National Football Team along with a line of branded memory products and some new innovations for the modern memory landscape.

The history of Lexar is an interesting one and started as a division of Cirrus Logic before being spun off in 1996 to become a completely separate company.  Initial products included SD Cards, CompactFlash cards, Solid State Drives and USB Drives all powered by their own high performance flash controller.

Micron purchased the company in 2006 who later sold the Lexar brand and trademark to Longsys in 2017.  Longsys is a Shenzhen based flash memory company who has since rebuild the brand with a number of industry firsts including a 1TB SD Card, an all-metal SD Card and even a 1TB microSD Express card. 

Not much is known about Longsys and just so happened to be a reason behind the Lexar Media Tour.

The trip started in Shanghai.  Since I was just finishing up Computex it was a quick flight over the Taiwan straight to land in the largest city in China.  This stop served as a way for the tour group to get synced up and finally unveil what we were about to see.

For those who listen to the Hardware Asylum Podcast you will know that I have an architectural degree and a soft spot for supertall structures.  Well, there just so happens to be a cluster of them across the river from the hotel.

The tallest one in the photo is the Shanghai Tower and is the tallest building in China and third tallest in the world.  Taipei 101 took the number 1 spot in 2004 and then lost it to the Burj Khalifa in 2009.  From 2009 forward a large number of supertall buildings have gone up in Asia including five more in China alone which include the Shanghai Tower.

The Shanghai World Financial Center is to the right and happens to be the tallest building with a hole near the top and reminds me of a bottle opener.  To the left is the Jin Mao Tower and the building with an orb near the top is the Oriental Pear Tower and might be one of the most famous of tall structures in China.