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24.03.2008
How to Choose the Best SD Card
Many digital cameras and many other digital devices use an SD Card for memory Storage. SD stands for Secure Digital. But don’t let that fool you, the cards are no more secure than other cards; the name has to do with the cards origins. The cards are based on a technology called MMC, Multi-Media Card that was first developed as a storage device for digital music. The Music Industry feared using these cards because of issues of piracy, so in the next generation the SD, or “Secure” Card, encryption technology was added to the chip as an anti-piracy device. So while in reality SD cards are no more secure than other cards they do have other advantages - mainly the “bang for the buck”. SD cards are relatively inexpensive and can store up to a whopping 8 Gigs!
So how then do you choose the SD card that is right for you? The first question you need to ask yourself is what device are you using it for? Most likely you are shopping a card for a digital camera. The difference in SD cards; and therefore the differences in prices even among the same manufacturers; are based on two things: speed and storage capacity. Storage capacity you are probably familiar with - it is measured in Gigabytes, GB or “Gigs” SD cards are available from 2GB to the recently introduced 8GB. Speeds of SD cards are measured in Kilobytes per second or Megabytes per second. You may see some SD cards with an “x” rating. The “x” stands for a minimum transfer rate of 150 kbps – so in other words a card with a 4x would be 4 x 150 or 600kbps.
So what speed do you need? It depends on your camera. You want an SD Card that can keep up with your camera. Just about any SD card is fast enough to work well with a typical consumer level digital camera, bought in the 200.00 – 400.00 range. If your camera falls into the higher end range, 400.00 and above or is a Digital SLR you definitely want the fastest card yo can get - in the 66x range. Check with your camera’s Operator’s Manual for the card speeds they recommend. If you are going to be taking photos in the “burst mode” like at your kid’s soccer game, or you will be using the movie mode of your camera, you definitely want a 66x card. Also the faster the card the faster you will be able to transfer images from your camera to your computer.
And finally, stick to a name brand card. The cards of even the top manufactures, Kingmax, Sandisk, Lexar and many others, are all affordable, and a better choice than the cheaper generic cards to preserve your once in lifetime memories.
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