MEMORY CARD
A memory card or flash memory card is solid-state electronic flash memory data storage device capable of storing digital contents. These are mainly used with digital cameras, handheld and Mobile computers, mobile phones, music players, digital cinematography cameras, video game consoles, and other electronics. They offer high re-record-ability, power-free storage, small form factor, and rugged environmental specifications. There are also non-solid-state memory cards that do not use flash memory.
What types of devices need memory cards?
Memory cards first took off as the storage medium of choice in photography, with digital cameras dispensing with film rolls to instead rely on the much smaller and cost effective memory cards. An increasing number of digital video cameras are also becoming memory card compatible.
As well as digital cameras, memory cards are commonly used with many personal digital assistants (PDAs) as a medium for storing data. And as mobile phones become much more feature packed, memory cards are becoming the favoured method of storing information like photos, music and messages.
Memory cards are also making more frequent appearances in other consumer electronic devices such as televisions, portable game devices, printers, DVD recorders and more. Many new televisions now come with card slots which allow users to see any stored photos on a big screen, while some printers allow you to print directly from images stored on a card.
While you can easily swap cards from one product to another, it's important to remember that different devices take different types of memory cards. If you already have a device that takes a memory card and want to buy more gear, make sure your intended purchase can take the same type of card.
As well as digital cameras, memory cards are commonly used with many personal digital assistants (PDAs) as a medium for storing data. And as mobile phones become much more feature packed, memory cards are becoming the favoured method of storing information like photos, music and messages.
Memory cards are also making more frequent appearances in other consumer electronic devices such as televisions, portable game devices, printers, DVD recorders and more. Many new televisions now come with card slots which allow users to see any stored photos on a big screen, while some printers allow you to print directly from images stored on a card.
While you can easily swap cards from one product to another, it's important to remember that different devices take different types of memory cards. If you already have a device that takes a memory card and want to buy more gear, make sure your intended purchase can take the same type of card.
1.CompactFlash
CompactFlash remains one of the most popular types of memory
cards, and was the first to be designed specifically for digital photography. Its high storage capacity (up to 8GB) means it’s popular with high end digital SLRs, but its large size means you won’t see it inside mobile phones or PDAs. CompactFlash cards are hardy — the cards have an operating shock rating of 2000Gs, which is equivalent to a 3.3m drop.
A possible point of confusion for consumers is that there are two variations of CompactFlash — Type I and Type II. Type II cards are slightly thicker than type I cards and generally have larger storage capacity. While you can use a Type I card in a device that has a Type II slot, Type IIs are usually too thick to fit into a Type I slot.
Size:-36.4 x 42.8 x 3.3mm for Type I
:-36.4 x 42.8 x 5mm for Type II
Capacity:-Available from 32MB to 12GB
Typically found in:-Digital cameras, laptops, PDAs, camcorders, photo printers,MP3 players
2.Memory Stick
A proprietary format developed by Sony, Memory Sticks can be usually foun
d in Sony’s range of consumer electronic devices. The original Memory Sticks topped out at 128MB, but a few years ago Sony released a revision called Memory Stick PRO. Memory Stick PRO delivered faster speeds and greater capacity. Between the original Memory Stick and PRO versions, however, Sony released an interim solution called Memory Stick Select. Select at the time doubled the maximum capacity of a Memory Stick to 256MB.
While you can use older Memory Sticks in new devices, only products that are PRO compliant will be able to use Memory Stick PRO units. Memory Stick PRO cards also feature MagicGate, a content.
CompactFlash remains one of the most popular types of memory
cards, and was the first to be designed specifically for digital photography. Its high storage capacity (up to 8GB) means it’s popular with high end digital SLRs, but its large size means you won’t see it inside mobile phones or PDAs. CompactFlash cards are hardy — the cards have an operating shock rating of 2000Gs, which is equivalent to a 3.3m drop.A possible point of confusion for consumers is that there are two variations of CompactFlash — Type I and Type II. Type II cards are slightly thicker than type I cards and generally have larger storage capacity. While you can use a Type I card in a device that has a Type II slot, Type IIs are usually too thick to fit into a Type I slot.
Size:-36.4 x 42.8 x 3.3mm for Type I
:-36.4 x 42.8 x 5mm for Type II
Capacity:-Available from 32MB to 12GB
Typically found in:-Digital cameras, laptops, PDAs, camcorders, photo printers,MP3 players
2.Memory Stick
A proprietary format developed by Sony, Memory Sticks can be usually foun
d in Sony’s range of consumer electronic devices. The original Memory Sticks topped out at 128MB, but a few years ago Sony released a revision called Memory Stick PRO. Memory Stick PRO delivered faster speeds and greater capacity. Between the original Memory Stick and PRO versions, however, Sony released an interim solution called Memory Stick Select. Select at the time doubled the maximum capacity of a Memory Stick to 256MB.While you can use older Memory Sticks in new devices, only products that are PRO compliant will be able to use Memory Stick PRO units. Memory Stick PRO cards also feature MagicGate, a content.
Size:-21.45 x 50 x 2.8mm
Capacity:-Available from 64MB to 8GB
Typically found in:-Sony/Sony Ericsson products such as mobile phones, PDAs, televisions and more
Capacity:-Available from 64MB to 8GB
Typically found in:-Sony/Sony Ericsson products such as mobile phones, PDAs, televisions and more
3.Memory Stick Duo
Duos are smaller versions of Sony’s Memory Sticks, and have found a n
iche in some of Sony’s smaller electronic products, such as the PlayStation Portable. Duos have all of the features of the larger Memory Stick, and also come in PRO versions. Duos need an adapter to fit into normal Memory Stick enabled devices.
Duos are smaller versions of Sony’s Memory Sticks, and have found a n
iche in some of Sony’s smaller electronic products, such as the PlayStation Portable. Duos have all of the features of the larger Memory Stick, and also come in PRO versions. Duos need an adapter to fit into normal Memory Stick enabled devices.Size:-20 x 31 x 1.6mm
Capacity:-Available from 256MB to 2GB
Typically found in:-Sony/Sony Ericsson products such as mobile phones, PDAs, Game devices and more.
Capacity:-Available from 256MB to 2GB
Typically found in:-Sony/Sony Ericsson products such as mobile phones, PDAs, Game devices and more.
4.Memory Stick Micro
Memory Stick Micro is Sony’s answer to the microSD (TransFlash) card.
With decreasing size yet increasing functionality of mobile phones, space has become a premium in the new generation of Sony Ericsson handsets. The Memory Stick Micro offers the advantages of external add-on capacity without compromising electronics real estate.
Memory Stick Micro is Sony’s answer to the microSD (TransFlash) card.
With decreasing size yet increasing functionality of mobile phones, space has become a premium in the new generation of Sony Ericsson handsets. The Memory Stick Micro offers the advantages of external add-on capacity without compromising electronics real estate.Size:-15 x 12.5 x 1.2mm
Capacity:-Available from256MB to 2GB
Typically found in:-Sony Ericsson mobile phones
Capacity:-Available from256MB to 2GB
Typically found in:-Sony Ericsson mobile phones
Similar in size to SD cards, MMC is another format found mainly in cameras and PDAs.
MMC cards can also be used in SD card devices, but come at generally lower capacities than their more popular cousin.
MMC cards can also be used in SD card devices, but come at generally lower capacities than their more popular cousin.
Size:-24 x 32 x 1.4mm
Capacity:-Available from 32MB to 1GB
Typically found in:-PDAs, mobile phones, camcorders, MP3 players, laptops, digital cameras.
Reduced size MMC offer all of the features of standard sized MMC cards but are only half the length.
RS-MMC units usually ship with an adaptor which allows you to use the cards in MMC devices.
RS-MMC units usually ship with an adaptor which allows you to use the cards in MMC devices.
Size:-18 x 24 x 1.4mm
Capacity:-Available from 128MB to 1GB
Typically found in:-Mobile phones with multimedia requirements
The postage stamp size Secure Digital (SD) card is the most popular type o
f memory card on the market. Its small size, large capacity and robust design has made it common in everything from cameras to MP3 players. Other advantages include relatively high speed data transfer, a mechanical write protect switch to protect data and built-in copyright protection technology.
f memory card on the market. Its small size, large capacity and robust design has made it common in everything from cameras to MP3 players. Other advantages include relatively high speed data transfer, a mechanical write protect switch to protect data and built-in copyright protection technology.Size:-32 x 24 x 2.1mm
Capacity:-Available from 32MB to 2GB (SD), 4GB to 32GB (SDHC)
Typically found in:-Digital cameras, PDAs, mobile phones, camcorders, MP3 players, televisions, DVD recorders.
8.miniSD
miniSD cards use the same technology as SD cards, meaning users get all of
the advantages of an SD but in a smaller package. These smaller SD cards are used in smaller devices such as mobile phones and MP3 players. minds cards are usually sold with an adaptor which allows you to use the card in a normal SD slot.
the advantages of an SD but in a smaller package. These smaller SD cards are used in smaller devices such as mobile phones and MP3 players. minds cards are usually sold with an adaptor which allows you to use the card in a normal SD slot.Size:-21 x 20 x 1.4mm
Capacity:-Available from 32MB to 2GB
Typically found in:-Mobile phones that offer storage-intensive multimedia features
Capacity:-Available from 32MB to 2GB
Typically found in:-Mobile phones that offer storage-intensive multimedia features
An even smaller SD variant, the microSD format is currently most popular 
with mobile phone manufacturers due to its extremely small size. They're almost too small to comfortably hold and swap in and out of devices - be careful when you're handling these little units.
with mobile phone manufacturers due to its extremely small size. They're almost too small to comfortably hold and swap in and out of devices - be careful when you're handling these little units.Size:-Approximately 15 x 115 x 1mm
Capacity:-Available from 16MB to 2GB
Typically found in:-Mobile phones that offer storage-intensive multimedia features.
10.SmartMedia
SmartMedia was once the dominant card format when it came to digit
al photography, but it has been superseded in the past few years by more recent formats like SD. Part of fall could be attributed to its low capacity -- SmartMedia peaked at 128MB in its heyday. While new devices mainly support other card formats, manufacturers are still making SmartMedia cards for use in older equipment.
al photography, but it has been superseded in the past few years by more recent formats like SD. Part of fall could be attributed to its low capacity -- SmartMedia peaked at 128MB in its heyday. While new devices mainly support other card formats, manufacturers are still making SmartMedia cards for use in older equipment.Size:-45 x 37 x 0.7mm
Capacity:-Available from 64MB to 128MB
Typically found in:-Older model digital cameras and PDAs
The xD-Picture Card is yet another proprietary memory card format, 
this time developed by Olympus and Fujifilm for use in their digital photography products. xD-Picture Cards have been designed to minimise power consumption and therefore save battery life.
this time developed by Olympus and Fujifilm for use in their digital photography products. xD-Picture Cards have been designed to minimise power consumption and therefore save battery life.Size:-20 x 25 x 1.78mm
Capacity:-Available from 32MB to 2GB
Typically found in:-Digital cameras from Fujifilm and Olympus
Capacity:-Available from 32MB to 2GB
Typically found in:-Digital cameras from Fujifilm and Olympus
Data table of selected memory card formats
Advantages:
Very easily allows you to transport documents from one computer to another.
Small, therefore easy to carry around with you.
They are very useful when doing school work or running businesses - any work done at home can be used at work/ school as well.
It holds a lot more data than a floppy disk.
It is a USB drive so it can be used on any computer system.
Disadvantages:
If you want a memory stick that hold a very big amount of data (like if you are going to use it for a lot of large document) they can be quite expensive to buy.
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