Tag: micoSD card

SanDisk raises the bar in small-footprint storage with the 128Gb microSD card

Article

SanDisk unleashes world’s first 128GB microSD card – storage, sandisk, Personal storage peripherals – Computerworld

From the horse’s mouth

SanDisk

Press Release

Product Page

My Comments

128Gb microSD card - courtesy of SanDiskSanDisk has raised the bar with flash-memory storage by releasing the ultra-small 128Gb microSD card at the Mobile World Congress 2014 in Barcelona, Spain. This is seen as providing increased removable secondary-storage for Android or Windows phones and tablets due to its small footprint and is something I would see as important if we carry high-grade music and video files or complicated games on these devices and value the ability to “swap them out” as we see fit.

HP Envy X2 Detachable-Keyboard Hybrid Tablet

Tablets and Ultrabooks could also benefit from increased solid-state storage capacity

But I also see this as being suitable for more than the smartphone or tablet. This capacity is very much equivalent to what is available as a baseline all-SSD storage capacity for Ultrabooks and similar low-profile ultraportable notebook computers which typically run a full Windows deployment. Here, I could see this capacity appeal for smaller Wi-Fi portable NAS devices or it could be an encouragement to increase storage capacity in most dedicated-function devices like printers due to its small size and high capacity. This factor will be underscored for anyone who is working towards an extremely-low-profile design for a device rich in functionality such as the idea of a desktop multifunction printer having the same level of document control as a freestanding enterprise-grade multifunction printer.

Sony WG-C20 mobile NAS - press image courtesy of Sony

Could raise the capacity of these low-profile NAS units very significantly

It also shows that the storage density for flash-based storage applications is increasing which could be a benefit for both fixed and removeable solid-state storage applications. For example, an Ultrabook or tablet could be ending up with 512Gb storage capacity furnished by flash memory rather than the mechanical hard disk as a product option. Or the low-profile Wi-Fi portable “media server” NAS that you take with you could carry your media library with you and serve it to your tablet, Ultrabook or car stereo from a 512Gb solid-state storage.

I would expect a lot more for high-capacity ultra-quick solid-state storage to become the norm for “there-and-then” data storage applications.

32GB MicroSDHC card from SanDisk – What could this provide

News articles

SanDisk flips out 32GB mobile phone card • The Register

My comments

Can your device handle 32GB or larger cards?

There may be issues with SDHC-compatible devices not handling cards that are 32Gb or larger. This may result in the device refusing to mount the card (make it accessible to its operating system for storage) or file-system activities may take a long time to complete.

This may be rectified through an operating system or firmware update for your computer or device. In the case of computers, it may be worth checking the online update program for drivers or middleware that can do this job. For devices such as smartphones, check for “field-deployable” firmware updates that can allow the device to properly work with large SD cards.

There may be a limitation with devices that don’t work with a field-update procedure for their firmware and, in some cases, the manufacturer may not revise the firmware at all through the device’s lifespan. These situations may limit your ability to work with the large cards and you may have to wait for newer models to come out to take advantage of them.

Use beyond smartphones

Achieving a small neat nice design for portable equipment without forfeiting capacity

The 32Gb MicroSDHC card may also yield a valid reason for camera manufacturers to implement MicroSD cards in smaller camera designs when they equip these devices with high-resolution still or video capabilities.

This could similarly benefit handheld audio equipment like “digital notetakers” and personal media players where there is a desire to store a high quantity of higher-quality recordings yet achieve a pocketable design.

Similarly, manufacturers could cram more circuitry or room for batteries into other portable devices like portable GPS units without forfeiting storage capacity.

A compact solid-state storage alternative to the 2.5” SSD.

The SD card technology is optimised as a random storage medium in a similar way to the hard disk or the classic floppy disks. In this case, the microSDHC card can be used as a compact solid-state storage medium which is occasionally removed.

For example, a 32Gb microSDHC hidden behind a service panel could be useful as a system drive (boot, operating system, applications, hibernate file and registry) in a laptop or notebook computer with a regular 2.5” hard disk being used for user data. For printers and all-in-one devices, this card would work as a larger temporary storage for applications like keeping the print or fax queue for reliable and convenient printer operation.

Conclusion

The main reason I am blogging on the 32GB MicroSDHC card is because it is an example of the direction that solid-state secondary storage is taking, whether in a removeable or fixed form

SlotMusic – the Musicassette of the 21st Century

SlotMusic web site

Those of us who lived through the 60s, 70s and 80s, will remember the pre-recorded cassettes being another way to sell recorded music. These tapes were typically marketed as “Musicassettes” and were able to be played in any old cassette player or recorder that existed, whether in (or under) the dashboard of a car, a portable unit or a cassette deck attached to the hi-fi system. They were typically considered second-rate to the LP record and people who were serious about music quality typically recorded the LP onto one side of a blank C-90 cassette for in-car or portable use rather than buying these tapes.

This was until the 1980s where there were many high-quality cassette players and recorders being used by the public. This was exemplified by the Walkman personal cassette player and the large “boom boxes” of that era and vehicle builders equipping their premium vehicles with high-quality cassette players. It led to the music industry improving the quality of these tapes by using improved tape stock for the cassettes, implementing an improved signal path and using stringent quality control during the tape replication process. This led to the cassette being respected more as an analogue recorded-music medium alongside the LP record. Some people then ended up not using the turntable function of a music centre or built up a music system with a cassette deck as the system’s only packaged-music source.

Now, SanDisk has implemeted the MicroSD card as a recorded-music distribution medium for use with mobile phones or MP3 players. The medium, market as “SlotMusic”, is sold with an accompanying USB card reader for use with PCs or media players equipped with USB ports, but can be played on equipment that has a MiniSD or standard SD card slot through the use of a MiniSD or standard SD adaptor card. These cards will contain 320kbps MP3 files of all the music that is on the album.

I have read many criticisms to this format, primarily by CD enthusiasts who see it as another poor-quality format for portable use. This is going to be very much the same sentiment that was held regarding the pre-recorded Musicassettes where they were only suitable for playing on a low-quality portable cassette recorder and weren’t fit for use on a hi-fi system.

As far as the home network is concerned, music files on a SlotMusic card can be copied to a DLNA media server which can provide them out to other DLNA music clients. This could be done either by copying the files in to a directory named after the album using the network file-transfer techniques or by “inducting” the SlotMusic card’s contents in to the music collection using the PC jukebox software’s content-import procedures and, if necessary, synchroniing that data to the music server.