Digital Camera Memory Card
When buying a digital camera make
sure to budget for an additional memory card because most digital
cameras come with a very low capacity memory card or internal memory only
(usally 16 or 32 megabytes). How large of a digital camera memory card
you need directly depends on how many megapixels your digital camera is and
the type of pictures you take. There is no fixed number of photos you can put
on any one memory card because of factors like megapixel, image file types,
compression, and image content all affect the size of each file.
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Check out camera manufacturers
websites to get an idea of how many images you can save on their included
memory card. As a general rule, I say buy as much memory as you can afford (no
one ever wished for less memory) but I recommend at least a 256 megabyte card
if you're using a 3-5 megapixel compact digital camera and a 512 or 1 gigabyte
card for higher megapixel digital cameras.
Besides the actual capacity of the memory
card you also need to consider the speed of the memory card. Several
manufactuars are producing high speed memory cards that lessen the time it
takes to save the image to the memory. This high priced upgrade is worth the
money to photographers who take live-action
shots in continuous mode - like at a sports event, for instance.
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Use the shopping windows below to find the best
deal on the digital camera memory card you are looking for. Just click the “Best
Deals” tab to find the lowest prices on the internet, check out the details on
the “Description” tab or narrow your search with the “Search”
tab.
CompactFlash
is very common type of digital camera memory that is used in a lot of digital
SLR cameras. At one time CompactFlash was the most popular type of flash
memory but has since lost ground to Secure Digital in the point-and-shoot
arena. CompactFlash has a controller chip in the card which allows for
higher transfer rates. Only cameras with large internal buffers, like digital
SLRs, can take advantage of the controller chip’s high-speed CompactFlash
memory. Revision 3 of the CompactFlash specification ups the maximum transfer
rate to 66MB per second from the 16MB per second implemented in today's cards
and CompactFlash still has a lot of room for increased speed. The larger
design of the CompactFlash card enables manufacturers to increase capacity
faster than tiny Secure Digital (or SD) and xD-Picture Cards. There are two
physical sizes of CompactFlash - Type I and Type II. Type II CompactFlash is
usually thicker and a higher capacity, currently available up to 8 gigabytes.
One of the smallest available memory cards, Secure
Digital and MultiMedia Card memory are used in the very smallest of
cameras and other selected devices such as; PDAs, cell phones, and MP3
players. The Secure Digital (SD) Card is similar to the MultiMedia
Card in appearance and is cross-compatible with the MultiMedia card. The
only difference between a Secure Digital card and a MultiMediaCard memory is
that Secure Digital cards have a write-protect switch for added data security.
The SD Card maintains a high transfer rate for fast copy/download and
exhibits low power consumption to maximize battery life of your digital
camera. The current maximum capacity for Secure Digital and MultiMediaCard
cards is 2 gigabytes.
Since the xD Picture card
was introduced by Olympusand
Fuji
in 2002, most current compact digital cameras from those manufacturers use the
xD Picture Card media. The xD-Picture Card is currently the smallest
storage format of its kind, comparable in size to a penny, and weighing less
than one-tenth of an ounce - with the potential for up to 8GB storage capacity
in a single card. The xD-Picture Card was designed to minimize power
consumption, saving battery life and with fast read/write capabilities for
smoother digital camera operation. The xD Picture Card is compatible with
CompactFlash and PCMCIA cameras using a special adapter. It's currently
available in capacities up to 1 gigabyte memory card.
Memory Stick memory cards
were developed by Sony for their CyberShot digital cameras and can also be
used in Sony MP3 players, Sony
PSP, PDA's and selected Sony computers. Memory
Stick memory cards are the only type of memory that works with Sony
digital cameras. Memory Stick is available in capacities up to 256 MB, and
Sony's new Memory Stick Pro is available in capacities up to 4 gigabytes.
The MicroDrive card
is a miniature hard drive in a Type II CompactFlash body which means they are
more prone to failure since they have moving parts that can wear, or be
damaged. The IBM MicroDrive was the first compact memory card to offer
a full 1 Gigabyte storage capacity and is now available in capacities up to 6
gigabytes. MicroDrives use more battery power than flash memory and MicroDrive
seek and write times are fairly slower than other memory cards.
Most Olympus
and Fuji
digital cameras used SmartMedia (sometimes referred to as an SSFDC -
Solid State Floppy Disc Card) until the introduction the xD Picture card. The SmartMedia
cards are efficient with regards to power drain, and the batteries in the
digital cameras that use this type of card tend to last a bit longer.
SmartMedia cards have no shielding, so they are susceptible to data loss and
damage from electromagnetic fields (such as airport x-rays). Now SmartMedia is
being phased out and no new digital cameras are using the SmartMedia memory
card. SmartMedia should be available for quite some time, up to 128 megabytes
.