What is a Memory Card Reader & How do I Use It?

In the last few years, digital technology has proliferated like never before. Film cameras have been replaced by digital cameras, walkmans by MP3 players and regular phones by mobile phones. Data on all these devices are stored in a form of flash memory known as a memory card. But not all memory cards are the same. There are quite a few technologies out there, and not all of them are compatible with each other. So it’s quite possible that your DSLR camera may accept Compact Flash cards whereas your PMP (Personal Media Player, which includes MP3 players like iPods, as well as multi-format audio-video players like Creative Zen Vision) may use SD Cards. This leads to the following issues while connecting to the computer:

1. Each device would occupy a USB port of your computer. If you don’t have a good number of spare USB ports, you’ll have to keep shuffling your devices.

2. It’s messy to attach and detach cords from your device to the computer each time you want to transfer data.

This is where a memory card reader steps in. Think of it as a floppy drive that can read from and write to memory cards. The immediate advantages are:

• A single card reader can read/write multiple types of memory cards. You don’t have to keep attaching and detaching various devices to the computer.

• No need to handle multiple messy cables. Some card readers are cable free and directly plug into your USB port like a pen drive.

• Only a single USB port of your computer is occupied for reading up to 4 cards simultaneously (this may vary depending on the exact model of the card reader you have).

• It’s much faster and safer than directly transferring from your device.

• With a memory card reader, you can also use your memory card as temporary portable memory to transfer images, music or data files.

Now that I’ve established why you should have a memory card reader, let’s talk about the available options you have. There are two variables in a memory card reader:

1. The connection port: Your reader can be USB or Firewire (external readers) or an Internal Reader, which is permanently installed in your computer cabinet. In a desktop, its usually where the 3½“ floppy drive sits.

2. The number of cards it can read: From specialized single card (SDHC/CF) readers to all in one readers that can read every type of card, you can choose one that fits your needs and budget.

Brands include popular ones like Sandisk, Lexar, Kingston as well as lesser known and local brands, which also do a good job.

Please continue on to page 2, where you will learn how to use a memory card reader.