CF vs SD (for memory)

converse · 05-07-03, 04:29 AM

OK so I've ordered my Axim X5 400, but haven't got it yet... a week to wait yet! ;)

So should I use compact flash cards for putting extra stuff on in the Axim or buy SD cards?

I have two digicams - a little toy one and a professional one (I do lots of photography), both use Compact Flash, so I've only compact flash memory cards.

Some people say SD are faster, but they are more money and in the UK you can get a SanDisk 256Mb for £55 and a 128 for as little as £28. Whereas SD cards seem much more expensive.

Are CF really that much slower? And what about compared to the Ultra high speed CF cards by SanDisk?

If I buy an extra card for the Axim, which should I get?

Thanks all :D

Bagelsnbrew · 05-07-03, 05:25 AM

In day to day use, I don't think you could tell the difference in speed between CF and SD. The conventional wisdom is to use the SD slot for memory, leaving the CF slot free for things like modems, Wifi, GPS, ect.. If you're never going to use any of those devices, CF is a bit cheaper than SD, especially as you go up in capacity.

BTW, I was led to beleive that CF is generally faster than SD

hambalan · 05-07-03, 07:26 AM

I concur.

It all depends on how you want to use your CF and SD slots. If you already have CF cards for memory, they are absolutely fine with the Ax. In fact. CF cards are faster then SD.

05-07-03, 10:26 AM

I thought I read somewhere that in the Axim the two memory card speed differences don't matter (perhaps because of the bus or something) but only if you put the card in a card reader on your PC.
Maybe I'm getting this confused with something else.

I had a SanDisk SD card (which I ultimately returned for incompatibility reasons) and I now have a Viking CF card - both 256 Meg, and I really can't tell any differences in speed.
I've copies all my folders from main memory to each card, about 30 Meg and noticed no difference in speed between the two.

converse · 05-07-03, 12:45 PM

Excellent, well CF it is then will get a new 256 for one of my cameras and use the older 128 in the Axim.

Thanks all

Therigwin · 05-07-03, 01:13 PM

I like the SD better.

The reason, when I am visiting my Father and they take pictures of the grand kids on his digital camera, I just pop his CF card into my Axim and copy the pictures over to my SD card. I also have a ton of apps installed on my SD card too.

I imagine you could do the same thing as well.

05-07-03, 01:31 PM

Excellent, well CF it is then will get a new 256 for one of my cameras and use the older 128 in the Axim.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I actually have it the other way around, 128 Meg in my camera, and 256 Meg in my Axim.

PsionMan · 05-08-03, 08:23 AM

Having read your advice, I'm tempted to go for an SD card (I might want to use the CF slot for modem etc)

Any advice on which to buy (what is incompatible about the Sandisk?)

I'm in rip off Britain and a 256Mb card costs about £80 (that's $120 to our US friends)

Thanks

converse · 05-08-03, 09:26 AM

Noticed SanDisk are now selling the 1Gb card in the UK Sadly us poor souls in rip off UK have to pay approx 270 GBP for it, just found it at jessops.com URL is:

here

PS I'm nothing to do with Jessops and normally buy cards from cheaper on-line stores, but can't find anyone else doing the 1GB at the moment. Far too much cash, why do we always get ripped off over here?!

The cheapest price I can find for SanDisk CFs at the moment are: 256Mb - 55GBP and 512 - 110GBP

cribbagewiz · 05-08-03, 09:55 AM

I tend to favor SD cards, but I'm a former Palm user and had a few laying around. They work just dandy in the Axim.

Mday · 05-08-03, 04:49 PM

reading various places, i decided to use lexar SD cards as oppposed to sandisk. problems, etc.

anyway, i use a wifi CF card to synch, so i am pretty much stuck with SD. i would rather use SD anyway, despite the extra cost. the size is very convenient. I use a 256MB card. i'll probably get a large sized cf card if i outgrow the 256MB card. but i havent yet.

mselim · 05-08-03, 11:05 PM

Hi,
b4 u but a SD card, u should read posts at dell's forum.
Many many people have lots of problems with SD cards.
Either axim or Sd cards are not competible with each other. Except simpletech's SD cards.

http://forums.us.dell.com/supportfor...ssage.id=16086

Bagelsnbrew · 05-09-03, 06:43 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by mselim
Hi,
b4 u but a SD card, u should read posts at dell's forum.
Many many people have lots of problems with SD cards.
Either axim or Sd cards are not competible with each other. Except simpletech's SD cards.

http://forums.us.dell.com/supportfor...ssage.id=16086

It's funny, that's the only thread I've seen that points to there being a general problem the Axim and SD's, not specifically Sandisk. After reading the thread, I realized that there's one poster (a moderator no less) that has deemed it a general problem because he/she had an issue with one Lexar card and that only after using a file structure that virtually no PDA user would think of using? Most of the other posts in that thread are Sandisk complaints and people saying "should I return/not buy the Ax" because [i]that mod[/] has declared a problem. I find it extremely curious that this general SD problem hasn't been reported here, a far more traveled site than Dells forum or any other Axim forum for that matter. Of course, there's the constant stream of Sandisk 128mb and especially 256mb complaints, but virtually zero complaints about any other brand card.

I'm not saying that there isn't a problem, there most certainly appears to be one with Sandisk, but preponderance of evidence outside that thread makes me doubt the claim(s) made inside that thread. I'm not jumping on the rich and highly fattening desert item bandwagon yet ;)

converse · 05-09-03, 09:44 AM

Are these problems with SanDisk just SD or do they also encompass CF.

I've always used and recommended SanDisk as never had any problems before, but I'm speaking from a heavy digi-cam point of view, as still haven't receive my Axim as yet...

:rolling:

Bagelsnbrew · 05-09-03, 04:16 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by converse
Are these problems with SanDisk just SD or do they also encompass CF.

I've always used and recommended SanDisk as never had any problems before, but I'm speaking from a heavy digi-cam point of view, as still haven't receive my Axim as yet...

:rolling:

The problems seem to involve Sandisk 128mb and 256mb SD's only.