Memory card

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Miniaturization is evident in memory card creation; over time, the physical card sizes have become smaller.
Memory card in a digital SLR camera
Short description: Electronic data storage device

A memory card is an electronic data storage device used for storing digital information, typically using flash memory. These are commonly used in digital portable electronic devices. They allow adding memory to such devices using a card in a socket instead of protruding USB flash drives.[1]

History

The basis for memory card technology is flash memory.[2] It was invented by Fujio Masuoka at Toshiba in 1980[3][4] and commercialized by Toshiba in 1987.[5][6]

The development of memory cards was driven in the 1980s by the need for an alternative to floppy disk drives that had lower power consumption, had less weight and occupied less volume in laptops. Several competing and incompatible memory card formats were developed by several vendors, such as for example the Bee Card, NEC UltraLite memory cards,[7][8] and the Mitsubishi Melcard which came in variants using 60 and 50 connector pins. Some memory cards were used for memory expansion in laptops.[9][10][11]

JEIDA, the Japan Electronic Industry Development Association, began to work on a standard for memory cards in 1985. The Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) was an industry association created in 1989 to promote a standard for memory cards in PCs, and worked closely with JEIDA, adopting their 68 pin connector design. The specification for PCMCIA type I cards, later renamed PC Cards, was first released in 1990,[11][12] This format later included support for other devices besides memory cards.[12] PC Card was among the first commercial memory card formats to come out, but is now mainly used in industrial applications and to connect I/O devices such as modems.

Some early memory cards used SRAM as a storage medium, which required a lithium battery to keep the contents in the SRAM. These cards were faster than their flash counterparts. Some of the first PCMCIA cards had capacities of 1 to 5 MB.[13] In 1992, SanDisk introduced FlashDisk, a PCMCIA card and one of the first memory cards that did not require battery power to retain its contents, as it used flash memory.[14][13]

Since 1994, a number of memory card formats smaller than the PC Card arrived. The first one was CompactFlash and later SmartMedia and Miniature Card. The desire for smaller cards for cell-phones, PDAs, and compact digital cameras drove a trend that left the previous generation of "compact" cards looking big. In 2000 the SD card was announced. SD was envisioned as a single memory card format for several kinds of electronic devices, that could also function as an expansion slot for adding new capabilities for a device.[15] In 2001, SmartMedia alone captured 50% of the digital camera market and CF had captured the professional digital camera market.

However, by 2005, SD and similar MMC cards had nearly taken over SmartMedia's spot, though not to the same level and with stiff competition coming from Memory Stick variants, as well as CompactFlash. In industrial and embedded fields, even the venerable PC card (PCMCIA) memory cards still manage to maintain a niche, while in mobile phones and PDAs, the memory card has become smaller.

Initially memory cards were expensive, costing US$3 per megabyte of capacity in 2001;[16] this led to the development of miniaturized rotating disk memory devices such as the Microdrive, PocketZip and Dataplay. All three concepts became obsolete once flash memory prices became lower and their capacities became higher by 2006.[14]

Since 2010, new products of Sony (previously only using Memory Stick) and Olympus (previously only using XD-Card) have been offered with an additional SD-Card slot.[17] Effectively the format war has turned in SD-Card's favor.[18][19][20]


Data table of selected memory card formats

Name Abbreviation Form factor (mm) DRM
PC Card PCMCIA 85.6 × 54 × 3.3 Template:No Y
CompactFlash I CF-I 43 × 36 × 3.3 Template:No Y
CompactFlash II CF-II 43 × 36 × 5.5 Template:No Y
CFexpress Type A CFA 20 × 28 × 2.8 Unknown
CFexpress Type B CFX 38.5 × 29.8 × 3.8 Unknown
CFexpress Type C ? 54 × 74 × 4.8 Unknown
SmartMedia SM/ SMC 45 × 37 × 0.76  Template:Yes N
Memory Stick MS 50.0 × 21.5 × 2.8 Template:Yes N
Memory Stick Duo MSD 31.0 × 20.0 × 1.6 Template:Yes N
Memory Stick Pro Duo MSPD 31.0 × 20.0 × 1.6 Template:Yes N
Memory Stick Pro-HG Duo MSPDX 31.0 × 20.0 × 1.6 Template:Yes N
Memory Stick Micro M2 M2 15.0 × 12.5 × 1.2 Template:Yes N
Miniature Card ? 37 × 45 × 3.5 Template:No Y
Multimedia Card MMC 32 × 24 × 1.5 Template:No Y
Reduced Size Multimedia Card RS-MMC 16 × 24 × 1.5 Template:No Y
MMCmicro Card MMCmicro 12 × 14 × 1.1 Template:No Y
Nintendo Switch NS 31 × 21 × 3 ?
P2 card P2 85.6 × 54 × 3.3 Template:No Y
PS Vita PSV ? ?
SD card SD 32 × 24 × 2.1 Template:Yes N
SxS SxS 75 × 34 × 5 Template:No Y
Universal Flash Storage UFS ? Unknown
microSD card microSD 15 × 11 × 0.7 Template:Yes N
xD-Picture Card xD 20 × 25 × 1.7 Template:No Y
Intelligent Stick iStick 24 × 18 × 2.8 Template:No Y
Serial Flash Module SFM 45 × 15 Template:No Y
µ card µcard 32 × 24 × 1 Unknown
NT Card NT NT+ 44 × 24 × 2.5 Template:No Y
XQD card XQD 38.5 × 29.8 × 3.8 Unknown
Nano Memory card NM Card 12.3 × 8.8 × 0.7 Unknown

Overview of all memory card types

  • PCMCIA ATA Type I Card (PC Card ATA Type I)
    • PCMCIA Type II, Type III cards
  • CompactFlash Card (Type I), CompactFlash High-Speed
  • CompactFlash Type II, CF+(CF2.0), CF3.0
    • Microdrive
  • CFexpress
  • MiniCard (Miniature Card) (max 64 MB / 64 MiB)
  • SmartMedia Card (SSFDC) (max 128 MB) (3.3 V,5 V)
  • xD-Picture Card, xD-Picture Card Type M
  • Memory Stick, MagicGate Memory Stick (max 128 MB); Memory Stick Select, MagicGate Memory Stick Select ("Select" means: 2x128 MB with A/B switch)
  • SecureMMC
  • Secure Digital (SD Card), Secure Digital High-Speed, Secure Digital Plus/Xtra/etc (SD with USB connector)
    • miniSD card
    • microSD card (aka Transflash, T-Flash, TF)
    • SDHC
    • WiFi SD Cards (SD Card With WiFi Card Built in) Powered by Device. (Eye-Fi, WiFi SD, Flash Air)
  • Nano Memory (NM) card
  • MU-Flash (Mu-Card) (Mu-Card Alliance of OMIA)
  • C-Flash
  • SIM card (Subscriber Identity Module)
  • Smart card (ISO/IEC 7810, ISO/IEC 7816 card standards, etc.)
  • UFC (USB FlashCard) (uses USB)
  • FISH Universal Transportable Memory Card Standard (uses USB)
  • Intelligent Stick (iStick, a USB-based flash memory card with MMS)
  • SxS (S-by-S) memory card, a new memory card specification developed by Sandisk and Sony. SxS complies to the ExpressCard industry standard.[21]
  • Nexflash Winbond Serial Flash Module (SFM) cards, size range 1 MB, 2 MB and 4 MB.

Comparison

Standard SD UFS Card CFast XQD CFexpress
Version 3.0 4.0 6.0 7.0[22] 8.0 1.0 2.0 1.0 2.0 1.0 2.0 1.0 2.0 4.0
Launched 2010 Q2 2011 Q1 2017 Q1 2018 Q2 2020 Q1 2016 Q2 ? 2008 Q3 2012 Q3 2011 Q4 2014 Q1 2017 Q2 2019 Q1 2023 Q3
Bus UHS-I UHS-II UHS-III PCIe 3.0 x1 PCIe 4.0 x2 UFS 2.0 UFS 3.0 SATA-300 SATA-600 PCIe 2.0 x1 PCIe 2.0 x2 PCIe 3.0 x2 PCIe 3.0 x1/x2/x4 PCIe 4.0 x1/x2/x4
Speed

(full-duplex)

104 MB/s 156 MB/s 624 MB/s 985 MB/s 3938 MB/s 600 MB/s 1200 MB/s 300 MB/s 600 MB/s 500 MB/s 1000 MB/s 1970 MB/s up to 4GB/s up to 8GB/s

Video game consoles

Many older video game consoles used memory cards to hold saved game data. Cartridge-based systems primarily used battery-backed volatile RAM within each individual cartridge to hold saves for that game. Cartridges without this RAM may have used a password system, or would not save progress at all. The Neo Geo AES, released in 1990 by SNK, was the first video game console able to use a memory card. AES memory cards were also compatible with Neo Geo MVS arcade cabinets, allowing players to migrate saves between home and arcade systems and vice versa.[23][24] Memory cards became commonplace when home consoles moved to read-only optical discs for storing the game program, beginning with systems such as the TurboGrafx-CD and Sega-CD.

Until the sixth generation of video game consoles, memory cards were based on proprietary formats; Later systems used established industry formats for memory cards, such as FAT32.

Home consoles now commonly use hard disk drive storage for saved games and allow the use of USB flash drives or other card formats via a memory card reader to transport game saves and other game information. Though some consoles have implemented cloud storage saving, most portable gaming systems still rely on custom memory cartridges to store program data, due to their low power consumption, smaller physical size and reduced mechanical complexity.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Sahoo, Reeta Sahoo, Gagan (in en). Infomatic Practices. New Saraswati House India Pvt Ltd. ISBN 978-93-5199-433-6. https://books.google.com/books?id=y7BADAAAQBAJ&dq=%22memory+card%22+%22data+storage+device%22&pg=SA1-PA10. 
  2. ↑ Micheloni, Rino; Crippa, Luca; Marelli, Alessia (2010) (in en). Inside NAND Flash Memories. Springer Science & Business Media. p. 2. ISBN 9789048194315. https://books.google.com/books?id=vaq11vKwo_kC&pg=PA2. 
  3. ↑ Fulford, Benjamin (24 June 2002). "Unsung hero". Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/global/2002/0624/030.html. 
  4. ↑ US patent 4531203 Fujio Masuoka
  5. ↑ "1987: Toshiba Launches NAND Flash". April 11, 2012. https://www.eweek.com/storage/1987-toshiba-launches-nand-flash. 
  6. ↑ "1971: Reusable semiconductor ROM introduced". https://www.computerhistory.org/storageengine/reusable-semiconductor-rom-introduced/. 
  7. ↑ Inc, Ziff Davis (November 15, 1988). "PC Mag". Ziff Davis, Inc.. https://books.google.com/books?id=yFs-_3jT-5kC. 
  8. ↑ Inc, InfoWorld Media Group (October 30, 1989). "InfoWorld". InfoWorld Media Group, Inc.. https://books.google.com/books?id=nzAEAAAAMBAJ&dq=%2260-pin%22+memory+card&pg=PA21. 
  9. ↑ http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/mitsubishi/Mitsubishi_VLSI_MOS_Memory_RAM_ROM_and_Memory_Cards_Jan91.pdf
  10. ↑ Inc, Ziff Davis (January 26, 1993). "PC Mag". Ziff Davis, Inc.. https://books.google.com/books?id=LpkFEO2FG8sC&dq=1987+memory+card&pg=PA321. 
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Anderson, Don; Inc, MindShare (January 25, 1995). PCMCIA System Architecture: 16-bit PC Cards. Addison-Wesley Professional. ISBN 978-0-201-40991-8. https://books.google.com/books?id=cNnvbyOKioEC&dq=PCMCIA+september+1989&pg=PA14. 
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Inc, Ziff Davis (December 21, 1993). "PC Mag". Ziff Davis, Inc.. https://books.google.com/books?id=x2Fa5SDi0G8C&dq=PCMCIA+september+1989&pg=PA264. 
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Inc, Ziff Davis (December 21, 1993). "PC Mag". Ziff Davis, Inc.. https://books.google.com/books?id=x2Fa5SDi0G8C&dq=memory+cards+SRAM+battery&pg=PA270. 
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 "25 Years of CompactFlash: A Look Back at the Pioneering Format". https://www.pcmag.com/news/25-years-of-compactflash-a-look-back-at-the-pioneering-format. 
  15. ↑ Corporation, Bonnier (May 27, 2000). "Popular Science". Bonnier Corporation. https://books.google.com/books?id=VW7ZIgUJwSMC&dq=64mb+sd+card+second+quarter+2000&pg=PA90. 
  16. ↑ "PCWorld.com - DataPlay Shows Breakthrough in Storage Media". June 8, 2001. https://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,37844,00.asp. 
  17. ↑ Grunin, Lori (2010-01-06). "Sony does SD; Panasonic intros first SDXC cards | 2010 CES — CNET Blogs". Ces.cnet.com. http://ces.cnet.com/8301-31045_1-10426683-269.html. 
  18. ↑ "Format-Krieg entschieden: SD-Card setzt sich durch" ("format-war resolved: SD-card prevails"), Chip-online, 14. January 2010
  19. ↑ "Camera trends come into focus for 2010", NBC News, 13. January.2010 "As much as the storage-format war cleared up a bit with Sony announcing that it would support SD and SDHC cards ..."
  20. ↑ "FEATURE: Playing Your Cards Right at Retail" , Peter K. Burian, 4. June 2010. "Some industry observers have suggested that this development signals an end to the 'format war,' ..."
  21. ↑ "SanDisk and Sony announce SxS memory card: Digital Photography Review". Dpreview.com. http://www.dpreview.com/news/0704/07041601sxsmemorycardformat.asp. 
  22. ↑ Pinto, Yosi. "SD + PCIe/NVMe card New Innovations in SD Cards Lead the Way to Mobile Everything". https://www.flashmemorysummit.com/English/Collaterals/Proceedings/2017/20170809_S202C_Pinto.pdf. 
  23. ↑ "The Official NEO-GEO Memory Card FAQ by Billy Pitt". http://www.neogeoprotos.com/memcardfaq.htm. 
  24. ↑ "This Fall Everything Turns To Gold With Neo-Geo: The Player's Gold Card Keeps Them Coming Back For More". RePlay 16 (2): 26–7. November 1990. https://archive.org/details/re-play-volume-16-issue-no.-2-november-1990-600dpi/RePlay%20-%20Volume%2016%2C%20Issue%20No.%202%20-%20November%201990/page/26/mode/2up. 



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