Registered: Jun 2000
Location: Seattle, WA, USA
Posts: 22

quote:

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Originally posted by virgilio:
I was hoping that the MP3 player used the SM format as well, but there must be some technical issue with storing MP3s and other files on the same card. At least two MP3 players I've considered purchasing say in their instructions that the SM card must be reformatted and then cannot be used in a digital camera or other application.

Anyone know why this is?

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Registered: Jul 2000
Location: Plant City, FL
Posts: 385

The problem with some digital cameras not being able to handle large capacity SmartMedia cards is a little different than the MP3 player compatibility issue.

The original SmartMedia spec only defined the structure of memory cards up to 8 MB. Every time they revise the spec to support larger cards, there is a chance that those changes will cause problems for existing devices that were designed with no knowledge of them. The latest rounds of spec changes have made good strides toward generalization so this should be less of a problem for new devices.

The MP3 player incompatibility problem has to do with those devices taking shortcuts with how the data is stored on the card. Most digital cameras actually create a full MS-DOS filesystem on the card so that picture files can be read directly off the card by a PC. But it takes a bunch of extra software to do this.

On a (relatively) big digital camera with a $600 price tag, a little extra software is no big deal. But on a little $150 MP3 player, using a proprietary format for the data on the card is a lot more economical for developers.

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Seattle, WA, USA
Posts: 406

I wish it would all just go away and be replaced by one, single memory storage card. All the companies should band together and agree to use one kind of storage card, manufactured by all of them, and used in all of their devices.

BUT, we all know THAT's not going to happen. greed and marketshare is everything. Can't we all just get along?

Registered: Jul 2000
Location:
Posts: 5

BTW, computers4sure is selling a 64MB MMC for $143.99. Unfortunately, they don't have any in stock. =( (Maybe Innogear does have all of them).

Registered: Nov 1999
Location: bright side of the moon.
Posts: 996

quote:

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Originally posted by Vertigo:
I wish it would all just go away and be replaced by one, single memory storage card. All the companies should band together and agree to use one kind of storage card, manufactured by all of them, and used in all of their devices.

BUT, we all know THAT's not going to happen. greed and marketshare is everything. Can't we all just get along?

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