SanDisk 4GB SDHC Card |
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SanDisk, one of the world's best-known memory card manufacturers, is set to release their first SDHC, or Secure Digital High Capacity, flash memory card later this month. While physically identical to the Secure Digital cards sold over the past several years, SDHC features internal overhauls designed to take the SD card format to the next level of storage and performance. The SDHC standard is compatible with with memory chip capacities up to 32GB and transfer rates of 2MBps.
While the next-generation SD card is a welcome development, a potential problem looms: consumer confusion. SD and SDHC cards may look the same, but the new card requires different reader hardware, and that could lead to a fair number of disappointing purchases at first. |
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Unlike CompactFlash memory cards, which feature integrated hardware controllers, SD and SDHC cards depend upon card readers for hardware control. Because the faster and higher capacity SDHC cards require updated controllers, current SD card readers won't be able to use them. This includes the readers in all current digital cameras, MP3 players, smartphones and Pocket PCs. A Pocket PC user looking for 4GB of storage for his audio collection would soon find this newly-acquired SDHC card useless, at least for now.
Although there have been no announcements on the subject, it's safe to assume that most, if not all, Pocket PC manufacturers will begin incorporating SDHC readers in their next-generation handhelds. These updated readers would be able to use all Secure Digital cards, both the type we use today and the updated SDHC.
SDHC cards will be labeled with the updated logo shown above. For a limited time, SanDisk will include an SDHC-compatible USB card reader with every SDHC purchase. The reader won't help users looking to use the card with their handheld devices, but it will allow for faster transfers with a USB 2.0 computer. |
