High on the list of gadget annoyances that make me want to scab my eyes out with a spork—just below cables and batteries—is the unfettered proliferation of memory cards. Even though they all fundamentally do the same thing—store data for handheld devices—they come in a million different sizes and shapes from almost as many companies, giving birth to retarded but necessary accessories. Anyone looking for proof of this can stop at the 80-in-1 card reader. Unfortunately, many of these dumb pieces of silicon and plastic aren't going extinct. As a consolation prize, here's an illustrated guide to all the ones you actually need to know.

CompactFlash is like the Big Mac of memory cards: It may be bulky, but no McRib is going to take its place any time soon. It long ago moved out of the consumer-oriented gadgets now primarily using SD card, but it's the go-to for pro digital SLR cameras because it's durable as hell, it can hold more data (up to 100GB) and transfer it a lot faster (up 66MB/s with the revision 3.0, though higher capacity cards don't yet reach that rate). All of that matters if you're shooting massive RAW photos at several frames a second in less-than-pampered conditions.

CompactFlash UDMA: The latest version of the CompactFlash spec, 4.0 adds support for the Ultra DMA 133 interface, pumping the maximum data transfer rate to 133MB/s. Looks the same as a regular CF card, but will have UDMA stamped on it. Enables longer burst shooting in the latest DSLRs, besides just sounding impressive. Of course, this parallel ATA interface is on the fast track to be slow balls, with a serial ATA based spec in the works that'll deliver 3-gigabit transfer rates, that is, nearly 400MB/s.

Secure Digital, better known as SD, is the memory card of the people. This sliver of plastic is the reigning king of storage in everyday gadgets, from digital cameras to the Nintendo Wii to non-iPod MP3 players to hell, my (admittedly fancy) alarm clock. Most new (non-Mac) notebooks come with an SD card slot, even if they don't support other cards. Its primary advantage over CompactFlash is smaller size—maybe the perfect memory card size, even. On the other hand, the standard version format is significantly slower, stores less data (the spec allows for up to 2GB, larger sizes exist) and is way more fragile. But damn if they aren't cheap.

Secure Digital High Capacity pretty much spells it out in the name—an extension of the SD format that allows for more storage (up to 32GB) and much faster write speeds (SanDisk's latest hit 30MB/s). Classes—2, 4 or 6—let you know what the card's minimum transfer speed is. The major catch is that while they look the same as a regular SD card, SDHCs won't work in older card readers. Most electronics are quietly swapping in readers that can support SDHC, and of course regular SD cards work wherever they physically fit.

MiniSD is, you guessed it, a smaller variant of the SD card format that's about a third of the size. And yes, there's an HC variant to bring its capacity past 2GB, just like SD to SDHC. Originally for the mobile phone space, it's basically been squeezed out by the even retardedly smaller microSD. Truth is, miniSD is all but extinct now. Fortunately it usually comes with an SD slot adapter, so old ones can just be used as standard SD cards.

MicroSD and its microSDHC step-up are ridiculously tiny, and though they're used in MP3 players and other gadgets, they now completely dominate removable storage on cellphones. They've got basically the same specs as the other SD and SDHC card flavors in theory, but they're not quite as speedy or obviously up to the same crazy capacities. Officially they are way too easy to lose.

MultiMediaCard is the format from which SD and its offspring descended. (Its looks should give it away.) There are a few variants, but since it's been displaced by its SD spawn, you probably won't run into them. They're even dissolving the MMC Association, if that tells you anything. The important thing to know is that if you come across one, it'll work in many—but not all—SD card readers.

Memory Stick and its 300 variations: Okay, it gets kind of ugly with Sony's essentially proprietary Memory Stick format. Once upon a time, Samsung, Sharp and possibly others had Memory Stick readers in certain portable electronics, but the days of non-Sony Memory Stick sightings are long gone. If I could punch the embodiment of Sony in the nuts for any single reason, it would likely be due to the continued existence of all 65,000 Memory Stick formats. Here's the rundown:

The original Memory Stick, which is now obsolete, ran in sizes from 4MB to 128MB. There was also the Memory Stick Select, which was basically like two Memory Sticks crammed together with a switch to flip between the two.

Memory Stick PRO was the first legit sequel to the Memory Stick. It's faster, and theoretically holds up to 32GB, but has only been released in versions up to 4GB. PROs with more than 1GB of storage use a High Speed mode for faster transfers.

Memory Stick Duo was Sony's stab at getting small, shrinking its hot-dog proportioned Memory Stick into an SD-card sized package. Otherwise, it's just like a regular Memory Stick, stuck at 128MB and all. With an adapter it'll fit in regular Memory Stick readers too.

Memory Stick PRO Duo has the same SD-like form factor as the original Duo, but allows for much higher capacities and transfer speeds, about on par with SDHC cards. The highest capacity card is currently 16GB. Yes, there's still more Memory Stick where that came from.

Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo is the latest and largest mouthful of the Memory Sticks. Its big hurrah is that its 8-bit parallel interface gives you transfer speeds of up to 30MB/s, and the faster rates are majorly important for HD cameras. There is, unbelievably, another version, the PRO-HG Duo HX.

Memory Stick Micro aka M2 is the tiniest end of the line, comparable to a microSD card. Guess what it's used in? Sony Ericsson phones. Sadly, SanDisk participates in this farce of a format, along with the PRO-HG. The fattest available size is 16GB, which is notably pricier than its microSD cousin. Predictably, cards with heftier storage don't always play nice in older readers.

xD-Picture Cards are another BS format, created by second-tier camera makers Olympus and Fujifilm, that should just roll over and get smushed by the SD train. There, as always, a few different flavors—M, H, and M+—each one successively boosting capacity and/or speed but all fitting in the same small thin form. They're really only used in (you guessed it) Olympus and Fujifilm cameras—Kodak dabbled before hopping on the SD Express—and pathetically they only hold up to 2GB. Die already. Update: Okay, it does have one legit use—as a commenter has pointed out, it's descended from the extinct SmartMedia format, and provides easy access to a standard NAND flash chip, making it ideal for ROM-dumping for hackers.

SxS is another Sony-developed format, but it's geared toward pros and HD camcorders, with transfer speeds of 800Mb/s. It's available in sizes up to 32GB, but obscenely expensive—Sony sells the 16GB card, with one hour of recording time, for $1100. Conveniently, it uses the ExpressCard form factor, so it'll pop right in some notebooks.

P2 is another fancy ass, pricey pro-level card for camcorders, but it was developed by SD-pimpin' Panasonic. Not surprisingly, it was originally a bundle of SD cards in striped RAID array, but now it just uses core memory components in a RAID setup, contained in a ruggedized shell that fits into PC Card slots. It too goes up to 32GB, but the transfer rate is slower than SxS, at around 640Mbps. On the other hand, it's cheaper too, at $900 for a 16GB card.

And that, friends, should just about do you, at least for a little while, or until Sony releases its next Memory Stick flavor of the week.

Something you still wanna know? Send any questions about memory, Johnny Mnemonic or blackjack to tips@gizmodo.com, with "Giz Explains" in the subject line.

P.S. What other kinds of tech would you like to see an illustrated guide for?

New Lexar Shoot-n-Sync Wi-Fi Memory Card Gives Consumers Exciting Wireless Option for Uploading and Sharing Digital Photos
2GB SD-Compatible Memory Card Enables Users to Wirelessly Send Photos to Their Computers, Social Networking and Photo-Sharing Websites

FREMONT, Calif., Sep 18, 2008 — Lexar Media, a leading global provider of memory products for digital media, is giving digital photo enthusiasts the opportunity to "cut the cord" with the introduction of its Shoot-n-Sync(TM) Wi-Fi(R) memory card — a convenient wireless solution for uploading digital photos to computers as well as sharing them via social networking and photo-sharing websites. The 2GB memory card, compatible with SD-compatible digital cameras, reliably records and stores digital photos in a camera just like a standard memory card, but adds the time-saving convenience and simplicity of wireless uploading from camera to computer — and directly to the Internet.

Easy, No-Hassle Photo Uploading
With its advanced Wi-Fi connectivity, the Lexar Shoot-n-Sync Wi-Fi memory card is a great product for a wide range of photographers from bloggers, web surfers, and social-networkers to busy parents, traveling executives, and students. The Lexar Shoot-n-Sync Wi-Fi memory card provides a simple and convenient solution for managing all their digital photos. Instead of removing the memory card from a camera, transferring it to a reader, connecting the reader, and then dragging each individual photo onto the computer, the Lexar Shoot-n-Sync Wi-Fi memory card offers users a much simpler solution.

How It Works
As an Eye-Fi Connected product, theLexar Shoot-n-Sync Wi-Fi memory cardfeatures Eye-Fi technology and connects to Eye-Fi's web service to wirelessly and automatically upload photos from a digital camera to the web and to a computer. Eye-Fi is dedicated to building products and services that help consumers navigate, nurture and share their digital memories. After the brief initial installation of Eye-Fi Manager software on your PC, the card is ready to wirelessly download copies of any photos stored on it, automatically to your computer, as soon as it comes within range of your home computer's wireless network. Without removing the card from the camera, users can back up photos to a computer or transfer them to photo-sharing, social networking, or blog sites. After the digital photo copies are sent, all a user has to do is approve the transfers and they can be instantly shared with the world. Learn more about the Lexar

Shoot-n-Sync memory card at www.lexar.com/digfilm/sd_wifi.html.
Manisha Sharma, Lexar director of product marketing, noted: "Lexar is committed to delivering innovative products that enhance people's enjoyment of digital photography. The Lexar Shoot-n-Sync Wi-Fi memory card not only provides our customers the reliability and quality of Lexar memory, but the opportunity to enjoy a new level of wireless convenience — free from the hassles of cables and greatly simplifies transferring photos from camera to PC."
Compatible with both Windows(R) and Mac(R) operating systems, the 2GB Lexar Shoot-n-Sync Wi-Fi memory card will ship in October.

About Lexar Media
Lexar Media is a leading designer, manufacturer, and marketer of NAND flash and DRAM memory products under the Lexar and Crucial brand names. Lexar offers products in all major flash and DRAM memory categories, including consumer and enterprise-level USB flash drives, industry-leading memory cards for photography, and all popular form factors of memory cards for mobile devices. For computers, Lexar also offers a full range of DRAM computer memory upgrades for PCs and Mac systems, and solid state drives (SSD). An industry leader in innovative, patented flash memory technology, Lexar is vertically integrated with Micron Technology, one of the largest semiconductor manufacturers worldwide.

For more information about Lexar, visit www.lexar.com. For more information about Crucial products, visit www.crucial.com, www.crucial.com/uk or www.crucial.com/eu. Lexar Media, Inc. is a subsidiary of Micron Technology, Inc. Lexar Media is a division of Micron Europe Limited, a division of Micron Semiconductor Asia Pte. Ltd., and a division of Micron Japan, Ltd.

About Micron Technology, Inc.
Micron Technology, Inc., is one of the world's leading providers of advanced semiconductor solutions. Through its worldwide operations, Micron manufactures and markets DRAM, NAND flash memory, CMOS image sensors, other semiconductor components, and memory modules for use in leading-edge computing, consumer, networking, and mobile products. Micron's common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the MU symbol. To learn more about Micron Technology, Inc., visit www.micron.com.

(C)2008. Lexar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Information is subject to change without notice. Lexar, the Lexar logo, and Image Rescue are trademarks of Lexar Media, Inc. All other trademarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Lexar Media, Inc. is a subsidiary of Micron Technology, Inc.

New SanDisk SD Cards Retain Data For As Long As 100 Years;
Once Recorded, Files Can’t Be Altered Or Deleted

MILPITAS, CALIFORNIA, July 15, 2008 – SanDisk Corporation (NASDAQ: SNDK) today introduced the SanDisk® SD™ WORM card, a Write Once Read Many (WORM) digital memory card intended for professional uses such as police investigations, court testimony, electronic voting and other applications where data files must be protected from alteration or deletion.

Analog recording media such as film and audio tape are rapidly becoming obsolete, driving demand for a solution suitable for today’s digital devices. But conventional rewritable memory cards do not meet legal requirements to prevent data tampering.

Digital data written to SanDisk SD WORM cards is effectively locked as soon as it is recorded; there is no physical way to alter or delete individual recorded files. Yet viewing the data is simple, because the cards are readable in any standard SD slot attached to a computer or other SD-compatible device.

SanDisk SD WORM cards also offer 100-year archive life1, when kept under appropriate storage conditions.

Applications for the SanDisk SD WORM card include:

* Police photography and witness/suspect interviews, where courts require proof that photos and audio recordings are genuine.
* Court proceedings, such as trials and depositions.
* Electronic voting, where recorded votes must be tamper-proof.
* Cash registers which record transactions for tax collection purposes.
* Event recorders, such as security cameras and “black box” flight-data recorders.
* Medical devices which retain individual patient treatment data.
* Personal digital assistants (PDAs) and similar devices used by physicians and other health-care professionals to track patient interactions.

“As digital media volume has grown and surpassed traditional analog media such as film and audio cassettes in the consumer market, law enforcement agencies and other professionals are facing rising costs and lack of supply,” said Christopher Moore, director of product marketing for OEM memory cards at SanDisk. “SanDisk’s new SD WORM cards offer professionals a one-stop solution for capturing and archiving critical data, along with many other benefits of moving from analog to digital.”

For example, the benefits for photography in these applications include eliminating the expense and delay of film processing, as well as subsequent scanning of negatives into digital files. With voice, in-field recorders become more reliable because they no longer have moving parts, and there are no more tapes that can tangle or break. SanDisk SD WORM cards also open up the possibility of unified storage, with all case data – text, photos, voice recording, etc. – stored on a single durable card that can be easily shared.

SanDisk is now partnering with manufacturers of cameras, digital voice recorders, medical equipment, electronic cash registers and other digital devices to add the firmware required for recording to SanDisk SD WORM cards. SanDisk is also working with the SD Card Association for approval of this new specification as an industry standard.

In addition, third-party resellers of SanDisk SD WORM cards can develop security enhancements for the cards, such as password protection and encryption. One enhancement now under development for the cards is the addition of TrustedFlash™ security technology developed by SanDisk that securely stores sensitive digital data and applications on digital media.

Pricing and Availability

SanDisk SD WORM cards are available now worldwide in 128-megabyte2 capacity and are expected to be available in higher capacities later in the year. Pricing is available on request.

[SanDisk]

Also along the ride is a 4GB Memory Stick Micro (M2) card, which the company says will cost you $100, but wasn't saying how much you'd have to spend for those 6GB and 8GB puppies. Before you decide to jump all over this, just make sure your device can handle the high-capacity (HC) cards. Expect to see all these jam-packed sticks making their debut later this year.

Press releases for 6GB - 8GB, and 4GB M2 cards [SanDisk]

Sure they're trying to make it easier to store your pics and eliminate the need for a PC in the process, but if it's easier to just load your pics onto your hard drive, why spend money (even if it's a little) on a new memory format (that you could easily lose)? Till I hear more details, I'll just continue dumping them on my HDD. – Louis Ramirez

SanDisk to Replace Flash in Photography [Reg Hardware via PC Mag]

Professionals may scoff at Panasonic suggesting they use this tiny camcorder, but some pros may indeed employ it in hazardous or dangerous conditions. Heck, that $2099 price amounts to almost a disposable camcorder in the professional realm. It all depends on what you mean by "professional." But this might be just right for some pro situations.

That 40-gig hard drive that's so nicely portable and stores such a tremendous amount of footage makes this camcorder a lot easier to justify in pro-level field conditions. The remaining question: how good is the quality of that H.264 MPEG-4 footage using the AVCHD format, with its measly 15Mbps bit rate as implemented thus far? Will that be bumped up to the AVCHD format's potential 24Mbps bit rate? Only then can it be more accurately called "professional." – Charlie White

Panasonic Unveils AG-HSC1U First AVCHD Pro Camcorder [Camcorderinfo.com]

Just what we needed, a new standard. But those eight gigs might just come in handy, and there's talk of these cards eventually being able to hold a 32GB of stuff, and they're faster, too. Neat. Hope this one's cheap. – Charlie White

Product Page (rook out, it's in Japanese) [Toshiba]

Now that we can finally store more than some crappy pictures on our cellphones and PDAs, it makes sense that we get more digital media made specially for these products. Lexar's new line of SD and MMC form factors are being shown off at CES and though not the sexiest of stuff, it can certainly be of some help with your computer files, games, music, video and images. SD cards include built-in security applications for storing and playing secure content and come in capacities from 256MB to 2GB, MiniSD cards are half the size of conventional SD cards and include an adaptor for use in all SD products (in capacities from 256MB to 1GB), and MicroSD cards are perfect for the mobile phone and also include an adaptor so they can be used in all SD products (in capacities from 256MB to 512MB). Then you've got MMCmobile MMCplus universal cards at that also include an adaptor for use in all SD or MultiMediaCard products (in capacities from 256MB to 512MB) and finally the MMCmicro, which offer the same high-performance as the MMCplus universal cards at a quarter of the size (in capacities from 256 MB to 512 MB).