Cheap and Tiny SD/MMC Card Reader Roundup
So how cheap and tiny can you get with SD/MMC USB Memory Card Readers? Here’s a roundup of sub-$15 SD/MMC card readers almost small enough to swallow with a full glass of water.* These readers are designed as flash drives, so that you put in the SD/MMC card, shut the lid, and carry it around like you would any other flash-based mini storage device, but with swappable, expandable memory.
Lexar Media Single-Slot USB 2.0 Multi-Card Reader - This one does SD, Memory Stick, Memory Stick PRO, MMC and xD cards. It measures 1.6 x 3.7 x 0.6 inches, and sells for $15.49 on Amazon.
IOGEAR Universal Memory Drive Hi-Speed USB 2.0 Memory Card Reader/Writer - Measuring 1.1 x 2.9 x 0.4 inches, this one’s pretty popular — it’s out of stock just about everywhere. Expect to pay about $10 to $15 for it when it does come back. (I have this one. It’s the length of my thumb — and much shorter when you take off the card slot and USB connector caps.)
MediaGear XtraDrive for SecureDigital and MultiMediaCard - $13.90 on Amazon. No size given, but it’s an update of the older Mediagear Keychain Drive below, so it should be about the same size or smaller.
MediaGear Keychain Memory Card Reader for Secure Digital (SD) & MultiMedia (MM) Cards - 3.26 inches long and goes for $9.95. This is an older model of the XtraDrive above.
Still too big for you? I hear tell of at least two manufacturers making SD cards with built-in USB connectors: Engadget has photos of SanDisk’s USD/SB card in action, and EverythingUSB tells us that a Taiwanese company called Digimaster has already launched a “Double Card” USB/SD memory card. More news on that as we find it.
* Cheap and Tiny does not condone or encourage the ingestion or any other form of insertion of SD card readers or any other electronic devices without a prescription. Um, maybe even with a prescription.
[...] Remember the SD/MMC Card Reader Roundup, from oh so long ago? Well, forget it. That entry is effectively obsolete. [...]