Hardware Reference
In-Depth Information
Sony later released “Mark 2” certified versions of the Memory Stick Pro in 2008. This certification
indicated that the cards were suitable for use with AVCHD (Advanced Video Coding High
Definition) recording devices. Sony also released a smaller Memory Stick Micro (also called M2)
format in 2006, which was designed to compete with microSD. In 2009 Sony announced the Memory
Stick XC (eXtended Capacity) format in order to compete with SDXC.
Because the Memory Stick formats are proprietary and only used in Sony devices, I recommend
avoiding them wherever possible. In order to avoid using expensive and hard to find proprietary
memory, make sure any device you purchase accepts industry standard memory such as SD.
Fortunately, Sony's newer devices are including support for industry standard SD memory formats in
response to the negative backlash against its proprietary Memory Stick.
ATA Flash PC Card
Although the PC Card (PCMCIA) form factor has been used for everything from game adapters to
modems, SCSI (Small Computer Systems Interface) cards, network cards, and more, its original use
was computer memory, as the old PCMCIA (Personal Computer Memory Card International
Association) acronym indicated.
Unlike normal RAM modules, PC Card memory acts like a disk drive, using the PCMCIA ATA (AT
Attachment) standard. PC Cards come in three thicknesses (Type I is 3.3mm, Type II is 5mm, and
Type III is 10.5mm), but all are 3.3-inch long by 2.13-inch wide. Type I and Type II cards are used
for ATA-compliant flash memory and the newest ATA-compliant hard disks. Type III cards are used
for older ATA-compliant hard disks; a Type III slot also can be used as two Type II slots.
xD-Picture Card
In July 2002, Olympus and Fujifilm, the major supporters of the SmartMedia flash memory standard
for digital cameras, announced the xD-Picture Card as a much smaller, more durable replacement for
SmartMedia. In addition to being about one-third the size of SmartMedia—making it the smallest
flash memory format yet—xD-Picture Card media has a faster controller to enable faster image
capture.
Both 16MB and 32MB cards (commonly packaged with cameras) record data at speeds of 1.3MBps,
whereas 64MB and larger cards record data at 3MBps. The read speed for all sizes is 5MBps. The
media is manufactured for Olympus and Fujifilm by Toshiba, and because xD-Picture media is
optimized for the differences in the cameras (Olympus's media supports the panorama mode found in
some Olympus xD-Picture cameras, for example), you should buy media that's the same brand as your
digital camera.
Just as with the proprietary Sony Memory Stick formats, I also recommend avoiding the proprietary
xD-Picture card format wherever possible. Instead, I only recommend purchasing devices that use
industry standard memory card formats such as SD. Because of the backlash against proprietary
formats, Olympus and Fujifilm abandoned xD-Picture card in 2010.
SSD (Solid-State Drive)
In general, a
solid-state drive (SSD)
is any drive using solid-state electronics (that is, no mechanical
parts or vacuum tubes). Many people believe that SSDs are a recent advancement in computer
technology, but in actuality they have been around in one form or another since the 1950s, well before
PCs even existed.
