It has a new pin for high speed data transfer, which is why it's nearly three times faster than current top end of 104MB a second. But it's the same size as current SD cards, and it'll be backward compatible with current card readers. The spec for SD card 4.0's supposed to be done this spring, though there's no telling how long it'll take to actually see these on shelves. Until then, CF card it is. [Tech On Image via Tc7/Flickr]

Toshiba's long had 64GB SDXC cards in the works, and with claimed read speeds of 60MB/s (yep, megabytes) and write speeds of 35MB/s—upgrading your storage is about to get a whole lot easier. [DailyTech via Electronista]

Toshiba's upcoming line update stretches from 16GB to 64GB, with read speeds of 60MB/s (that's megabytes, folks) and write speeds of 35MB/s. The one we're really interested in is obviously the 64GB SDXC unit, since prior SDXC cards, while fast, haven't hit capacities beyond the highest end of the SDHC spec. And look! Sample shipments for the largest card start arriving in November! That's great, if you're an OEM manufacturer. Regular folks will have to wait for "Spring, 2010" to splurge on one of these, however much it'll cost; these SD cards, which are literally from the future, haven't been priced yet. [Toshiba]

According to a fresh Knowledge Base article, a properly formatted SD card can be used to boot OS X from the internal slot. As (vaguely) described, this could be a valuable backup and restoration tool, or a convenient way to maintain a semi-portable install of your OS. In proper giveth/taketh fashion, Apple states in the same posting that, despite being the clear, inevitable replacement for the SDHC standard, SDXC cards won't be supported, meaning storage will effectively be capped at 32GB.

If Apple really wanted to make this useful, they'd extend Boot Camp to support external storage devices; a feat which is currently only manageable through complex and unwieldy hacks. On this, the article is tellingly silent. [Ars—SDXC tip from Richard L.]

The Price: $150

The Verdict: The best keeps getting better. We already knew that Eye-Fi cards were great at their main task of delivering photos wirelessly to both your computer and photo sharing sites like Flickr and Facebook, but a steady stream of upgrades has vastly improved the card's capabilities. In addition to the new Pro features announced today, previous cards have added larger capacities, video support, geotagging and hotspot access.

In a nutshell, everything worked great. As always, setting things up with the Eye-Fi manager was a breeze and within minutes I was sending images and video to my desktop and to various sites across the web. Plus, the addition of selective uploading means that I could pick and choose which photos I wanted to send over the network instead of sending the good and the bad en masse (this function is handled by marking images with your camera's "Protect" feature.)

Obviously, a Wi-Fi SD card is not going to be all that helpful when you are away from your network or a hotspot, but the ad-hoc support bridges the gap a bit by delivering the content straight to your computer—freeing up space on the card to take more shots. As for RAW files, I have to admit that I'm rocking a point-and-shoot here—not a DSLR. However, given the near flawless performance of Eye-Fi's cards, I can't imagine why it wouldn't work. In fact, the only real drawback of the card that I can see is that there is no way to discern the status of your upload from the camera itself. Still, in the event that you cut off a shot in mid-transfer, the process will resume as soon as you turn your camera back on. Sure, $150 isn't cheap for a SD card—but if you take a lot of photos the Eye-Fi Pro is worth it.

Performance was nearly flawless.

The addition of selective uploading and ad-hoc network support are useful upgrades for amateurs and pros alike. Support for RAW files will appeal especially to the hardcore crowd.

$150 price includes a lifetime subscription to geotagging suppport.

Owning an Eye-Fi entitles you to download their new iPhone app for free.

Hotspot access is free for a year, but you will have to pay beyond that.

There is no way to determine the status of the uploads from the camera itself.

EYE-FI UNVEILS 4GB WIRELESS MEMORY CARD WITH RAW IMAGE SUPPORT

The Eye-Fi Pro Card Supports Transfers without the Need for a Router or Internet; Users Can Now Select What Uploads

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., June 10, 2009 - Eye-Fi Inc. today unveiled the Eye-Fi Pro, a new wireless SDHC memory card for digital cameras that allows professionals and photo enthusiasts to automatically upload images straight from their camera to their computer and the Web. Available today, the Eye-Fi Pro includes RAW image support and peer-to-peer connectivity for a direct connection between the camera and a computer, no router or Internet connection required (also known as ad hoc).

Eye-Fi also announced today that all Eye-Fi card users can now select which photos or videos they want to wirelessly transfer from their camera to their computer or the Web, using the new Selective Transfer feature.

"People are engaged in photography at a deeper level than ever before. They have moved from being casual photographers to passionate enthusiasts, shooting in RAW for more extensive editing, adding geotags for a richer experience or using an online gallery to share their work," said Jef Holove, CEO of Eye-Fi. "These people are looking for tools that advance the art of photography and make it more efficient – and the Eye-Fi Pro does both."

About the Eye-Fi Pro

The Eye-Fi Pro lets users wirelessly upload more file types, including JPEG and RAW images and videos. The Eye-Fi Pro also allows users to create an ad hoc connection through their computer or other mobile device to wirelessly upload media files while away from a wireless router.

"The Eye-Fi Pro has streamlined my workflow. It lets me quickly upload files in the background while I continue my photo shoots. My clients can choose their best shots in near real time," said Jeff Sockwell, an Eye-Fi Pro beta user and professional photographer who used Eye-Fi in a portrait session with more than 150 dance students. "I also have assurance that photos are automatically saved both on my computer and my Eye-Fi Pro."

Like the Eye-Fi Explore Video, the new Eye-Fi Pro will automatically upload images and videos direct to more than 25 online photo and video sharing sites. It also lets users upload away from home at more than 10,000 Wayport and open hotspots, and will automatically geotag photos with information about where the images were taken. The Eye-Fi Pro is now available at Amazon.com and www.eye.fi for an MSRP of $149.

Selective Transfer

Also announced today is Eye-Fi's newest feature, Selective Transfer, that gives users more control over which photos and videos to upload. Using the standard "protect" or "lock" feature in any camera's menu, users can select which files to wirelessly upload. Any "protected" photo or video will automatically be uploaded, and all photos and videos will remain on the memory card until the user manually deletes them. Selective Transfer is free and available now for all Eye-Fi card users through the Eye-Fi Manager.

At the Leading Edge of Camera Technology – Eye-Fi Connected cameras

In effort to meet prosumers' increasing camera feature set demands and widen wireless adoption, manufacturers are offering Eye-Fi card recognition and optimization. The Eye-Fi Connected camera features range from power setting optimization to on-camera notifications while photos and videos are wirelessly uploaded. These new cameras include Nikon's latest model, the D5000 (which follows in the footstep of the already Eye-Fi Connected D60 and D90), as well as the entire spring line-up of Casio cameras, including the Casio EX-S12, Casio EX-S5, Casio EX-FS10, Casio EX-FC100 and Casio EX-Z29.

Eye-Fi's complete line-up of wireless SD and SDHC memory cards range in price from $49-$149 and are available at www.eye.fi, in store at Apple Retail Stores and Best Buy locations, and at major online retailers such as Amazon.com, Walmart.com and Costco.com.

Eye-Fi has received numerous product awards including Popular Science's "Best of What's New" for 2008 and PC World's "The 100 Best Products of 2008."

For more information, please visit www.eye.fi, or follow Eye-Fi on Twitter @EyeFiCard

[Eye-Fi]

With the new Wii Menu 4.0 update, you can download content directly from the Wii Shop Channel to your SD/SDHC, and the card will show on the Wii's main menu. You can then open the card to see your content in Channel format (up to 240 SD Channels are supported).

Given that the SDHC format reaching 32GB (12GB more than the hard drive in the original Xbox 360), supporting the open standard sounds like a much better solution than a honking standalone box anyway—at least to me. Other thoughts? [Kotaku Liveblog Here]

The SDXC standard claims a maximum capacity of 2TB, with read/write speeds of up to 104MB/s. There's no doubt that, at 50MB/s, Pretec has achieved impressive speeds, but the company probably should have waited until they could put together an SDXC card with a greater actual capacity than existing SDHC products. Still, to see an actual product so soon after the standard was announced is heartening, although Pretec hasn't yet hinted at a price or release date. [Pretec via Impress Watch]

Eye-Fi is previewing the new technology at CES this year, and they are designing their upload service to support full-HD video—which would pair nicely with YouTube's new HD service. A timetable on when we might actually see this implemented has not been made available.

EYE-FI DEVELOPING WIRELESS VIDEO UPLOADS DIRECT TO YOUTUBE

New Technology Will Allow Users to Send Videos Automatically, Wirelessly from their Camera to YouTube and their Computer

CES, LAS VEGAS — Jan. 7, 2009 — Eye-Fi Inc., makers of the world's first wireless memory card for digital cameras, today announced that it is developing a way for users to wirelessly upload videos from their digital camera to YouTube and a home computer. Eye-Fi will preview the technology at this year's International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas January 8-11, in booth #32024 in the TechZone of South Hall Three.

"We're aiming to do for video what we've already done for photos: provide the easiest, simplest way to save and share your digital memories,” said Jef Holove, CEO for Eye-Fi. "Our wireless technology makes it effortless to upload videos to YouTube using the digital camera you already have, without the fuss of special software. You won't need to find a USB cable or even turn on your computer to get your memories in front of one of the largest audiences on the Web.”

According to a recent InfoTrends study, Video End-User Research: 2008, the point-and-shoot camera is now the most commonly used device for capturing memories on video. With Eye-Fi's wireless SD memory cards for digital cameras, users can upload photos – and soon video – automatically through Wi-Fi networks. Eye-Fi hotspot subscribers can also upload their memories away from home at more than 10,000 Wayport and open hotspot locations across the U.S.

Eye-Fi is designing its video upload service to support full-resolution HD video, with newer cameras like the Nikon D90 capturing HD video and Web sites including YouTube now testing display of HD video.

"Some of the most popular clips on YouTube are shot on digital cameras, rather than video camcorders,” said Ziv Gillat, vice president of business development for Eye-Fi. "Eye-Fi will give people the power to upload videos automatically, making it even easier for the YouTube community to post their life events, home videos and breaking news – virtually as they happen.”

Eye-Fi will also demonstrate its new video upload technology in the "Last Gadget Standing” event on January 10 from 10:30 - 11:30 a.m. PST in room N255-257 in LVCC, North Hall.

Eye-Fi's wireless SD memory cards have won numerous awards, including Popular Science's "Best of What's New 2008” and PC World's "The 100 Best Products of 2008.” For more information, please visit www.eye.fi.

About Eye-Fi

Founded in 2005, the company is dedicated to building products and services that help consumers navigate, nurture and share their visual memories. Eye-Fi's patent-pending technology works with Wi-Fi networks to automatically send photos from a digital camera to online, in-home and retail destinations. Headquartered in Mountain View, Calif., the company's investors include LMS Capital, Opus Capital, Shasta Ventures and TransLink Capital. More information is available at www.eye.fi.

According to their calculations, that would mean you could store 100 high-def movies, 60 hours of HD recording, or 17,000 fine-mode photos on a portable device. Again, keep in mind that this is spec at this point—not an actual product. But we could see something based on it as early as next year. Obviously, there aren't many devices out there that could make full use of it right now, but a card with this kind of capacity and bus speeds could pull the industry forward.

SDXC SIGNALS NEW GENERATION OF REMOVABLE MEMORY
WITH UP TO 2 TERABYTES OF STORAGE

SDXC Memory Cards Provide Consumers with Massive Storage,
Incredible Speed in Familiar, De Facto Standard

LAS VEGAS – CES Booth South 3 #31277 – Jan. 7, 2009 – The next-generation SDXC (eXtended Capacity) memory card specification, announced today at the 2009 International CES, dramatically improves consumers' digital lifestyles by providing the portable storage and speed needed to store weeks of high-definition video, years of photo collections and months of music to mobile phones, cameras and camcorders, and other consumer electronic devices. The new SDXC specification provides up to 2 terabytes storage capacity and accelerates SD interface read/write speeds to 104 megabytes per second this year, with a road map to 300 megabytes per second.

The SDXC specification, developed by the SD Association, leapfrogs memory card interface speeds while retaining the world-leading SD interface. Specifications for the open standard will be released in the first quarter of 2009. SDHC, Embedded SD and SDIO specifications will also benefit from the new SD interface speeds.

"SDXC combines a higher capacity roadmap with faster transfer speeds as a means to exploit NAND flash memory technology as a compelling choice for portable memory storage and interoperability," said Joseph Unsworth, research director, NAND Flash Semiconductors, at Gartner. "With industry support, SDXC presents manufacturers with the opportunity to kindle consumer demand for more advanced handset features and functionality in consumer electronics behind the ubiquitous SD interface."

Turning mobile phones into media centers
SDXC allows users to enjoy more from their mobile phones. Larger capacity and faster transfer speeds allow for expanded entertainment and data storage. A 2TB SDXC memory card can store 100 HD movies, 60 hours of HD recording or 17,000 fine-grade photos.

"With SDXC, consumers can quickly download higher quality content to their phones, including games, video and music – giving consumers a richer media and content experience," said James Taylor, president of the SD Association. "The SD interface already has proven itself valuable in mobile phones. Now, SDXC memory card capabilities will spur further handset sophistication and boost consumer content demand."

Shooting pictures at the speed of life
SDXC is also the first memory card specification to provide 2TB storage without hindering the high-speed performance necessary for high-end photography. It will provide maximum speeds even when the SDXC specification achieves its maximum 2TB storage capacity.

"SDXC is a large-capacity card that can store more than 4,000 RAW images, which is the uncompressed mode professionals use, and 17,000 of the fine-mode most consumers use. That capacity, combined with the exFAT file system, increases movie recording time and reduces starting time to improve photo-capturing opportunities," said Shigeto Kanda, general manager at Canon. "Improvements in interface speed allow further increases in continuous shooting speed and higher resolution movie recordings. As a memory card well suited to small-sized user-friendly digital cameras, the SDXC specification will help consumers realize the full potential of our cameras."

SDXC will enable camcorders to provide longer, professional level HD video recording with a small form factor.

The SDXC specification uses Microsoft's exFAT file system to support its large capacity and interoperability in a broad range of PCs, consumer electronics and mobile phones. The exFAT system was designed for increased compatibility with flash media, from portability of data to interoperability with multiple platforms and devices on removable media.

"The SD Association is committed to answering and anticipating consumer demand for easy-to-use memory card storage that is interoperable in any device with a matching SD slot," Taylor said. "The SDXC card gives consumers a new, yet familiar, high-performance card that will be used in hundreds of manufacturers' device offerings."

SD Association
The SD Association is a global ecosystem of more than 1,100 technology companies charged with setting interoperable SD standards. The association encourages the development of consumer electronic, wireless communication, digital imaging and networking products that utilize market-leading SD technology. The SD standard is the number one choice for consumers and has earned nearly 80 percent of the memory card market with its reliable interoperability and its easy-to-use format. Today, mobile phones, Blu-ray players, HDTVs, audio players, automotive multimedia systems, handheld PCs, cameras and camcorders feature SD interoperability. For more information about SDA or to join, please visit the association's web site, www.sdcard.org.

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]