Card Media Glossary
CompactFlash
CompactFlash (CF) was originally a type of data storage device, used in portable electronic devices. As a storage device, it typically uses flash memory in a standardized enclosure, and was first specified and produced by SanDisk in 1994. The physical format is now used for a variety of devices. There are two main subdivisions of CF cards, Type I and the slightly thicker Type II cards. There are two, soon to be three, main speeds of cards including the original CF, CF High Speed (using CF+/CF2.0), and an even faster CF3.0 standard that is being adopted as of 2005. The CF Type II slot is used by Microdrives and some other devices.
Memory Stick
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 of Memory Sticks. This family includes the Memory Stick Pro, a revision that allows greater maximum storage capacity and faster file transfer speeds; Memory Stick Duo, a small-form-factor version of the Memory Stick (including the Pro Duo); and the even smaller Memory Stick Micro (M2).
MicroDrive
The Microdrive is a brand name for a miniature 1-inch hard disk designed to fit in a Compact Flash (CF) Type II slot. The release of similar drives by other makers has led to them often being referred to as ‘microdrives’. However, ‘microdrive’ is not a genericized trademark and manufacturers other than IBM up to 2003 and Hitachi after do not officially refer to these drives as Microdrives. Some other companies, such as Sony, have licensed the name and sell re-branded versions.
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MultiMedia Card
The MultiMediaCard (MMC) is a flash memory memory card standard. Unveiled in 1997 by Siemens AG and SanDisk, it is based on Toshiba’s NAND-based flash memory, and is therefore much smaller than earlier systems based on Intel NOR-based memory such as CompactFlash. MMC is about the size of a postage stamp: 24 mm x 32 mm x 1.5 mm. MMC originally used a 1-bit serial interface, but newer versions of the specification allow transfers of 4 or sometimes even 8 bits at a time. They have been more or less superseded by Secure Digital cards, but still see significant use because MMC cards can be used in any device which supports SD cards.
SD (Secure Digital)
Secure Digital (SD) is a flash memory (non-volatile) memory card format used in portable devices, including digital cameras and handheld computers. SD cards are based on the older MultiMediaCard (MMC) format, but most are physically slightly thicker than MMC cards. They also boast higher data transfer rates, but this is always changing, particularly in light of recent improvements to the MMC standard. Most offer a write-protect switch on the side. Digital rights management features are available but are little used. SD cards generally measure 32 mm × 24 mm × 2.1 mm, but can be as thin as 1.4 mm, just like MMC cards (see below).
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SmartMedia
SmartMedia is a flash memory card standard owned by Toshiba. It was launched in the summer of 1995 to compete with MiniCard, CompactFlash, and PC card formats. SmartMedia was initially named the Solid State Floppy Disk Card (SSFDC) and pitched as a successor to the floppy disk, albeit memory cards are nowadays associated with digital cameras, digital audio players, PDAs, and other devices. A SmartMedia card consists of a single NAND flash EEPROM chip embedded in a thin plastic card (though some higher capacity cards contain multiple, linked chips). It was one of the smallest and the thinnest (0.76 mm) of the early memory cards, and managed to maintain a favorable cost ratio as compared to the others. It lacks a built-in controller, which kept the cost down. This feature later caused problems, since some older devices would require firmware updates to handle larger capacity cards.
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xD Picture Card
The xD-Picture Card is a type of flash memory memory card, used mainly in digital cameras. xD stands for extreme Digital. The cards were introduced into the market in July 2002 and developed by Olympus and Fujifilm. Toshiba Corporation and Samsung Electronics manufacture the cards for Olympus and Fujifilm. Other brands, including Kodak, SanDisk, and Lexar, now sell xD cards.
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