Sandisk ImageMate Multi-Card USB 2.0 Reader

By Nathan Kirsch

SanDisk Goes Sleek and Fast With The Multi-Card Reader

With digital cameras and mobile phones using Flash memory there is still a need for an easy and quick way to transfer files from the device to your PC for storage and touch-up. SanDisk recently introduced the ImageMate Multi-Card USB 2.0 Reader/Writer and what makes it interesting is that it only only features one Flash card slot! Industry analyst iSupplis said that their fourth-quarter 2008 estimates show that 78 percent of all mobile phones with removable memory card slots feature the SD interface and projects 85 percent market penetration by 2012. CompactFlash memory has been a mainstay in the SLR (single-lens reflex) camera market, but in 2008 digital camera behemoth Canon chose to design the EOS 450D camera with SD flash-memory cards rather than the
CompactFlash cards. The shift to SD Flash memory was made clear as the standard dominates both the camera and mobile phone markets. The good news about this shift is that the larger CompactFlash standard can be dropped from many readers as it isn’t in high demand any longer. This means that smaller USB 2.0 Reader/Writer devices can be developed and that is just what SanDisk did.

Sandisk Imagemate Card Reader and Writer

The SanDisk ImageMate Multi-Card USB 2.0 Reader/Writer that we will be looking at today is part number SDDR-199-A20 and was announced just three weeks ago. The reader is faster, smaller and sleeker than anything SanDisk has come out before and features upgraded software applications to boot. This Multi-Card reader is capable of up to 30MB/s read and 27 MB/s write data transfer rates when using a SanDisk Extreme III 30MB/s Edition SDHC card, so this is not the reader you grew up with!

Sandisk Imagemate Card Reader and Writer

Opening the box you can see that the Multi-Card reader comes with everything you need to transfer your files to your PC quickly, easily and safely. It works with many popular types of memory cards, but be sure your card is listed below if you are interested in this reader.

Supported card formats (without the need for an adapter):

  • SD
  • SDHC
  • MultiMediaCard
  • MMCplus
  • MMCmobile
  • RS-MMC
  • RS-MMC DV
  • Memory Stick
  • Memory Stick PRO
  • xD
  • xD Type M
  • xD Type M+
  • xD Type H
Sandisk Imagemate Card Reader and Writer

The included metal stand connects to the reader with a magnet, so you can easily detach the reader and slip it into your notebook bag if you are on the go. If you take a close look at the top of the reader you will see the “transfer button” that automatically launch your favorite application or website when transferring or editing your files. Now that we know the features of the reader let’s take a look at the performance numbers and see how fast this reader/writer really is when using the SanDisk Extreme III 30MB/s Edition SDHC card.

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