Get the Most From Flash Memory

Great uses for this very portable storage option.

James A. Martin

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Feature: Secure Digital Devices and Uses

Call me quirky, but nearly every time I store files on a Secure Digital flash memory card, I can't help but recall the 5.25-inch floppy disk.

I reflect back upon the old disk not with nostalgia for yesterday, but with gratitude for today. The 5.25-inch flexible black disc, commonly used about 20 years ago, held a whopping 360KB of data and worked with PCs only. Today's SD cards are about the size of two breath mints, yet hold up to 1GB of data and can transfer files between different types of devices.

So this week, let us pause to give thanks that the 5.25-inch disk is, like No Excuses jeans, a relic from 20 years ago. Today we have the convenient, tiny, capacious SD card instead. Here are some of the ways you can use SD cards, with tips and advice on products for transferring data between (or backing up files stored on) your notebook, digital camera, PDA, and smartphone.

Why I Love SD

For my money, SD is the most versatile flash memory format available today. Many digital cameras, Palm OS PDAs, Pocket PCs, and some notebooks and smartphones include SD card slots, letting you move data easily between the devices. Though standard SD cards are the same size format as MultiMediaCards, they have a sliding lock that prevents accidental erasure of files.

SD cards measure only about 1 inch wide and 1.25 inches long. A newer generation of MiniSD cards is about 60 percent smaller, but compatible with full-sized SD slots, and can currently store up to 256MB.

Great Uses for SD Cards

Store songs and spreadsheets: I sometimes copy MP3 files from my notebook onto an SD card, pop the card into my SD-equipped Palm Tungsten T3, and listen to tunes without taking up storage on the Palm.

Many current PDAs can play MP3 files via headphones or small built-in speakers and MP3 software. But some older PDAs--even those with SD card slots--may not have that capability.

Back up PDA files: Dataviz's Documents To Go 6.0 Microsoft Office-compatible suite of Palm OS apps allows you to save files in native Word and Excel formats. So when I travel with my Tungsten T3 (and external keyboard) instead of my notebook, I back up my Word and Excel formatted files onto an SD card. Then I put the SD card in a separate place from my Tungsten.

Share files on with PCs: Should my PDA be lost or stolen, I still have those Word and Excel files stored on the SD card. Because the files are in native Word and Excel formats, and because Windows XP computers can work with external card readers without needing to install drivers, the files I created on my Palm can be easily opened on a PC if need be.

For instance, when traveling recently with my Tungsten in lieu of a notebook, I packed an external SD card reader. I connected the SD card reader to a friend's PC and inserted the SD card, onto which I had stored files created on my Tungsten. From my friend's computer, I easily opened and printed my Word documents. It sure beat lugging a notebook.

Shuttle data between PCs and PDAs: I sometimes travel with an AlphaSmart Dana--a Palm OS-based device with a larger screen than other PDAs and a built-in full-sized keyboard. Trouble is, the Dana uses the Palm 4.1 operating system, while my Tungsten T3 uses Palm 5.2. So the Dana uses an older version of the Palm Desktop software that isn't compatible with the version my Tungsten uses. To sync both devices to my Windows XP notebook, I have to revert to the older version of Palm Desktop--thereby forfeiting some of the benefits the newer version offers.

Here again, the SD card saves the day. I simply copy native-format Word and Excel files from my notebook onto an SD card, then pop the card into one of the Dana's two SD slots. With Documents To Go 6.0 on the Dana, I can open, edit, and create Word and Excel files from the SD card--bypassing the need to sync the Dana to my notebook.

Save camera battery juice: Transferring images from a digital camera to a PC can be a big drain on your camera's battery. So instead of connecting the camera to your computer, simply remove its SD card, pop it into your computer's card reader, and drag and drop your image files into the desired desktop folder.

Slick SD Card Devices

Here are some of the more useful and interesting SD card products I've come across recently:

MDM Secure File PDA Backup ($50). This 4MB SD card device automatically backs up and re-sorts data on Palm OS and Pocket PC devices.

SanDisk ImageMate 8 in 1 Card Reader/Writer ($40). This USB 2.0 device can read and write to SD cards as well as to CompactFlash Type I and Type II, Memory Stick and Memory Stick Pro, SmartMedia, XD-Picture Card, and MMC media.

Kanguru FC-RW ($200). This portable flash card burner lets you copy files onto CDs from SD, CompactFlash, IBM Microdrive, SmartMedia, Memory Stick and Memory Stick Pro, and MMC media. Though a bit bulky, the FC-RW is a great way to back up digital images and other files on the go without the need for a computer.

SanDisk Wi-Fi SD I/O Wireless LAN Card ($130). This device lets you add 802.11b wireless connectivity to a Pocket PC via an SD card. A Palm OS version is said to be forthcoming.

Your Picks?

Is there a SD or other flash memory card device you can't live without? If so, tell me about it.

Notebooks & Accessories

Review: Canon's Portable Printer

Canon's portable i80 Color Bubble Jet ($249) produces speedy, high-quality image and text output, says PC World reviewer Michael Lasky. The printer is a bit bulky, but less so than a typical ink jet: It measures 12.4 by 6.9 by 2 inches and weighs nearly 5 pounds (including an optional battery pack). You can connect the printer via USB 2.0, IrDA, Direct Print Port, or with an optional $80 Bluetooth module.

Review: Convert Your Videos

Plextor's ConvertX PX-M402U ($159), an external video capture device for PCs, transfers your old VHS tapes into great-looking digital video, says PC World reviewer Rex Farrance. The ConvertX also digitizes video from TVs, so you've got more viewing options on your notebook during that next long-haul flight. The ConvertX doesn't include a DVD burner, unlike HP's DVD Movie Writer DC3000, which converts video and burns it to DVD.

Tip: You Can't Always Rely on a Hotel TV

Many hotels catering to business travelers offer in-room Internet access on guest-room TV sets. For a fee (usually about $10 for 24 hours), you can log onto the Net using the TV and an infrared keyboard. But on a recent trip to Atlanta, this setup didn't allow me to check e-mail at my SBC Yahoo account.

I decided to leave my notebook at home in San Francisco and check e-mail on the Wyndham Midtown Hotel's Internet access delivered over guest-room TVs. While I had no trouble going to sites like Amazon.com, the SBC Yahoo Web site, from which I needed to check my e-mail, required Internet Explorer 6, a newer version than what was installed on the hotel's TV-delivered Internet access. (My room also had an Ethernet port for high-speed Internet access, and the hotel offered wireless Net access in its lobby. But since I didn't have my notebook, neither was of use to me.)

Bottom line: If checking e-mail in your hotel room is essential, better take your notebook or wireless PDA.

Gadgets & Services

News: Tiny Samsung Audio Players

Samsung claims its new YEPP digital audio players, measuring 2 by 1 by 1 inches and weighing about 1 ounce, are the smallest such devices to include an LCD and a tuner. The YEPP Digital Audio Player YP-T5H and the YP-T5V can run for up to 15 hours on a single AAA battery, Samsung says. The 128MB YP-T5H lists for $130; the 256MB YP-T5V goes for $180.

News: Vonage Lowers Its Rates

Voice over IP service provider Vonage recently lowered its residential unlimited monthly calling rates from $35 to $30. In a statement, the company says increased business made it possible to achieve improved efficiencies and pass along the savings to customers. Competition from AT&T, which is now rolling out its CallVantage VoIP service, was probably a contributing factor, too.

For more information, go to the Vonage site. For my review of the Vonage service, read "Voice Over IP."

Hands On: Zire 31 Is Worth Extra $50

PC World Senior Editor Yardena Arar recently spent quality time with PalmOne's new Zire 31 PDA ($149), which costs $50 more than its predecessor, the Zire 21. It's money well spent, she concludes. Though not fancy, the Zire 31's color screen is a dramatic improvement over the Zire 21's monochrome display. In addition, the Zire 31 offers an SD slot--the first PDA to do so at this price.

Suggestion Box

Is there a particularly cool mobile computing product or service I've missed? Got a spare story idea in your back pocket? Tell me about it.