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Four major types of memory cards (from left to right: CompactFlash, Memory Stick, Secure Digital, and xD.
Four major types of memory cards (from left to right: CompactFlash, Memory Stick, Secure Digital, and xD. CompactFlash ( CF) is a Mass storage device format used in portable electronic devices Memory Stick is a removable flash Memory card format launched by Sony in October 1998, and is also used in general to describe the whole family Secure Digital ( SD) is a non-volatile Memory card format developed by Matsushita, SanDisk, and Toshiba for use in The xD-Picture Card is a type of flash Memory card, used mainly in Digital cameras xD originally stood for e' x' treme D igital

A memory card or flash memory card is a solid-state electronic flash memory data storage device used with digital cameras, handheld and Mobile computers, telephones, music players, video game consoles, and other electronics. Flash memory is non-volatile computer memory that can be electrically erased and reprogrammed A data storage device is a device for recording (storing information (data Many compact digital still cameras can record Sound and moving Video as well as still Photograph. Basic principle A traditional landline telephone system also known as "plain old telephone service" (POTS, commonly handles both signaling and audio information Music is an Art form in which the medium is Sound organized in Time. Electronics refers to the flow of charge (moving Electrons through Nonmetal conductors (mainly Semiconductors, whereas electrical 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, and there are different types of flash memory.

There are many different types of memory cards and jobs they are used for. Some common places include in digital cameras, in game consoles, in cell phones, and in industrial applications. PC card (PCMCIA) were among first commercial memory card formats (type I cards) to come out in the 1990s, but are now only mainly used in industrial applications and for I/O jobs (using types I/II/III), as a connection standard for devices (such as a modem). In Computing, PC Card (originally '''PCMCIA''', or PCMCIA Card is the Form factor of a peripheral interface designed for Laptop computers The 1990s collectively refers to the years between and including 1990 and 1999 Also in 1990s, a number of memory card formats smaller than PC Card came out, including CompactFlash, SmartMedia, and Miniature Card. SmartMedia is a flash Memory card standard owned by Toshiba, with capacities ranging from 0 In other areas, tiny embedded memory cards (SID) were used in cell phones, game consoles started using proprietary memory card formats, and devices like PDAs and digital music players started using removable memory cards.

From the late 1990s into the early 2000s a host of new formats appeared, including SD/MMC, Memory Stick, xD-Picture Card, and a number of variants and smaller cards. The desire for ultra-small cards for cell-phones, PDAs, and compact digital cameras drove a trend toward smaller cards that left the previous generation of "compact" cards looking big. In digital cameras SmartMedia and CompactFlash had been very successful, in 2001 SM alone captured 50% of the digital camera market and CF had a strangle hold on professional digital cameras. Year 2001 ( MMI) was a Common year starting on Monday according to the Gregorian calendar. By 2005 however, SD/MMC had nearly taken over SmartMedia's spot, though not to the same level and with stiff competition coming from Memory Stick variants, xD, as well as CompactFlash. In industrial fields, even the venerable PC card (PCMCIA) memory cards still manage to maintain a niche, while in cell-phones and PDAs, the memory card market is highly fragmented.

Nowadays, most new PCs have built-in slots for a variety of memory cards; Memory Stick, CompactFlash, SD, etc. Some digital gadgets support more than one memory card to ensure compatibility.

Contents

Data table of selected memory card formats

Name Acronym Form factor DRM
PC Card PCMCIA 85. Digital rights management ( DRM) is a generic term that refers to Access control technologies used by hardware manufacturers publishers and Copyright holders In Computing, PC Card (originally '''PCMCIA''', or PCMCIA Card is the Form factor of a peripheral interface designed for Laptop computers 6 × 54 × 3. 3 mm None
CompactFlash I CF-I 43 × 36 × 3. CompactFlash ( CF) is a Mass storage device format used in portable electronic devices 3 mm None
CompactFlash II CF-II 43 × 36 × 5. CompactFlash ( CF) is a Mass storage device format used in portable electronic devices 5 mm None
SmartMedia SM / SMC 45 × 37 × 0. SmartMedia is a flash Memory card standard owned by Toshiba, with capacities ranging from 0 76 mm None
Memory Stick MS 50. Memory Stick is a removable flash Memory card format launched by Sony in October 1998, and is also used in general to describe the whole family 0 × 21. 5 × 2. 8 mm MagicGate
Memory Stick Duo MSD 31. MagicGate is a copy-protection technology introduced by Sony in 1999 as part of the Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI Memory Stick is a removable flash Memory card format launched by Sony in October 1998, and is also used in general to describe the whole family 0 × 20. 0 × 1. 6 mm MagicGate
Memory Stick PRO Duo MSPD 31. MagicGate is a copy-protection technology introduced by Sony in 1999 as part of the Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI Memory Stick is a removable flash Memory card format launched by Sony in October 1998, and is also used in general to describe the whole family 0 × 20. 0 × 1. 6 mm MagicGate
Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo MSPDX 31. MagicGate is a copy-protection technology introduced by Sony in 1999 as part of the Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI Memory Stick is a removable flash Memory card format launched by Sony in October 1998, and is also used in general to describe the whole family 0 × 20. 0 × 1. 6 mm MagicGate
Memory Stick Micro M2 M2 15. MagicGate is a copy-protection technology introduced by Sony in 1999 as part of the Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI Memory Stick is a removable flash Memory card format launched by Sony in October 1998, and is also used in general to describe the whole family 0 × 12. 5 × 1. 2 mm MagicGate
Multimedia Card MMC 32 × 24 × 1. MagicGate is a copy-protection technology introduced by Sony in 1999 as part of the Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI The MultiMediaCard ( MMC) is a Flash memory 5 mm None
Reduced Size Multimedia Card RS-MMC 16 × 24 × 1. The MultiMediaCard ( MMC) is a Flash memory 5 mm None
MMCmicro Card MMCmicro 12 × 14 × 1. The MultiMediaCard ( MMC) is a Flash memory 1 mm None
Secure Digital card SD 32 × 24 × 2. Secure Digital ( SD) is a non-volatile Memory card format developed by Matsushita, SanDisk, and Toshiba for use in 1 mm CPRM
SxS SxS
Universal Flash Storage UFS
miniSD card miniSD 21. Content Protection for Recordable Media and Pre-Recorded Media ( CPRM/CPPM) is a mechanism for controlling the copying moving and deletion of digital media on a host device SxS is a Flash memory standard compliant to the ExpressCard standard created by Sony and Sandisk. Universal Flash Storage (UFS is a proposed common flash storage specification for Digital cameras Mobile phones and Consumer electronic devices The miniSD Card is a small Form factor removable and portable memory device intended for use in cell phones / mobile phones, digital cameras 5 × 20 × 1. 4 mm CPRM
microSD card microSD 11 × 15 × 0. Content Protection for Recordable Media and Pre-Recorded Media ( CPRM/CPPM) is a mechanism for controlling the copying moving and deletion of digital media on a host device microSD is a format for removable Flash memory cards It is derived from SanDisk TransFlash and is used mainly in mobile 7 mm CPRM
xD-Picture Card xD 20 × 25 × 1. Content Protection for Recordable Media and Pre-Recorded Media ( CPRM/CPPM) is a mechanism for controlling the copying moving and deletion of digital media on a host device The xD-Picture Card is a type of flash Memory card, used mainly in Digital cameras xD originally stood for e' x' treme D igital 7 mm None
Intelligent Stick iStick 24 x 18 x 2. " Intelligent Stick " is a brand name for a USB flash drive Memory card which was developed by the 8 mm None
Serial Flash Module SFM 45 x 15 mm None
µ card µcard 32 x 24 x 1 mm Unknown
NT Card NT NT+ 44 x 24 x 2. " NT Card " is a brand name for a Memory card which is used by C-Map company for their line of Electronic Maps 5 mm None

Since many EEPROM devices only allow a finite number of write cycles, some of these cards incorporate wear levelling algorithms to spread the wear and to avoid wearing out specific places which are often written to. EEPROM (also written E2PROM and pronounced e-e-prom or simply e-squared which stands for E lectrically E rasable P rogrammable Wear levelling (also written wear leveling) is a technique for prolonging the Service life of some kinds of erasable Computer storage media such as

Overview of all memory card types

Main article: Comparison of memory cards
Miniaturization is evident in memory card creation; over time, the physical sizes of the memory cards grow smaller while their respective logical sizes grow larger. The memory cards listed from left to right are: Compact flash (32 MB), SD (128 MB), miniSD (1.0 GB), and microSD (2.0 GB).
Miniaturization is evident in memory card creation; over time, the physical sizes of the memory cards grow smaller while their respective logical sizes grow larger. This table provides summary of comparison of various flash Memory cards As of 2008. Miniaturization is the creation of ever-smaller scales for mechanical optical and electronic products and devices The memory cards listed from left to right are: Compact flash (32 MB), SD (128 MB), miniSD (1. 0 GB), and microSD (2. 0 GB).

Memory cards in video game consoles

Many video game consoles have used proprietary solid-state memory cards to store data. The word proprietary indicates that a party or proprietor exercises private Ownership, control or use over an item of Property. A solid-state drive ( SSD) is a Data storage device that uses solid-state memory to store persistent Data. In recent years read-only optical discs have replaces these memory cards in most current home console systems. However most portable gaming systems still rely on custom memory cartridges, due to their low power consumption, smaller physical size and reduced mechanical complexity.

The sizes in parenthesis are those of the official, first-party memory cards.

See also

External links

This table provides summary of comparison of various flash Memory cards As of 2008. List of Digital camera Brands past and present updated to 2005, but may miss some A solid-state drive ( SSD) is a Data storage device that uses solid-state memory to store persistent Data.

Dictionary

memory card

-noun

  1. (historical) A personal computer's expansion memory module, that fits in a standard interface such as a PCI or ISA slot.
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