The Memory Stick is a removable flash memory card format, originally launched by Sony in late 1998. In addition to the original Memory Stick, this family includes the Memory Stick PRO, a revision that allows greater maximum storage capacity and faster file transfer speeds; Memory Stick Duo, a small-form-factor version of the Memory Stick ; the even smaller Memory Stick Micro (M2), and the Memory Stick PRO-HG, a high speed variant of the PRO to be used in high-definition video and still cameras.
A memory card or memory cartridge is an electronic data storage device used for storing digital information, typically using flash memory. These are commonly used in portable electronic devices, such as digital cameras, mobile phones, laptop computers, tablets, PDAs, portable media players, video game consoles, synthesizers, electronic keyboards and digital pianos, and allow adding memory to such devices without compromising ergonomy, as the card is usually contained within the device rather than protruding like USB flash drives.
Secure Digital, officially abbreviated as SD, is a proprietary non-volatile memory card format developed by the SD Association (SDA) for use in portable devices.
The MultiMediaCard, officially abbreviated as MMC, is a memory card standard used for solid-state storage. Unveiled in 1997 by SanDisk and Siemens AG, MMC is based on a surface-contact low pin-count serial interface using a single memory stack substrate assembly, and is therefore much smaller than earlier systems based on high pin-count parallel interfaces using traditional surface-mount assembly such as CompactFlash. Both products were initially introduced using SanDisk NOR-based flash technology. MMC is about the size of a postage stamp: 24 mm × 32 mm × 1.4 mm. MMC originally used a 1-bit serial interface, but newer versions of the specification allow transfers of 4 or 8 bits at a time. MMC can be used in many devices that can use Secure Digital (SD) cards.
SmartMedia is a flash memory card standard owned by Toshiba, with capacities ranging from 2 MB to 128 MB. The format mostly saw application in the early 2000s in digital cameras and audio production. SmartMedia memory cards are no longer manufactured.
ZEN is a series of discontinued portable media players designed and manufactured by Creative Technology Limited. The players evolved from the NOMAD brand through the NOMAD Jukebox series of music players, with the first separate "ZEN" branded models released in 2004. The last Creative Zen player, X-Fi3, was released at the end of 2011.
The iPod Shuffle is a discontinued digital audio player designed and formerly marketed by Apple Inc. It was the smallest model in Apple's iPod family, and was the first iPod to use flash memory. The first model was announced at the Macworld Conference & Expo on January 11, 2005; the fourth- and final-generation models were introduced on September 1, 2010. The iPod Shuffle was discontinued by Apple on July 27, 2017.
The Motorola ROKR, the first version of which was informally known as the iTunes phone, was a series of mobile phones from Motorola, part of a 4LTR line developed before the spin out of Motorola Mobility. ROKR models were released starting in September 2005 and ending in 2009. They were notable for incorporating support of media player features.
This table provides summary of comparison of various flash memory cards, as of 2017.
The following comparison of portable media players compares general and technical information for notable digital playback devices.
The Sansa e200 series is a portable media player developed by SanDisk, and released on January 5, 2006. The device is available in four capacities of Flash memory: 2 GB (e250), 4 GB (e260), 6 GB (e270), and 8 GB (e280). All players have a 1.8-inch, TFT LCD display with a resolution of 176 by 220 pixels. Certain files, if not in a format accepted by the player's original firmware, must first be converted with the Sansa Media Converter Windows software. This will convert images to bitmap format (.bmp) and videos to MJPEG, for v1 models. On v2 players it will convert videos to DivX and simply resize images. It is not possible to simply copy videos to the device, even if they seem to be in the correct format; trying to access them displays an error message.
The SanDisk Sansa is a line of 2- to 32-gigabyte flash memory-based portable media players produced by SanDisk since 2005.
The SD Association (SDA) is an American nonprofit organization that sets memory card standards intended to simplify the use and optimize the performance of consumer electronics that people use in every country. SanDisk, Panasonic (Matsushita) and Toshiba formed the SD Association in January 2000. Today, the SDA has approximately 1,000 member companies involved in the design and development of SD standards. Thousands of device models and hundreds of products across dozens of product categories integrate the small, removable memory cards.
Gruvi was a short-lived memory card format compatible with microSD developed by Sandisk in 2006. It used the company's TrustedFlash card technology, which functioned like the conventional SD card but it could be extended to on-demand content. The cards were intended for the distribution of music and videos and had a variety of special Digital rights management features including the ability to pre-load content that could be 'unlocked' at a later date. The announced objective was the replacement of CDs, which was highlighted by the involvement of music publisher EMI when the product was launched. The little cards featured a picture of the artist whose music was pre-loaded. They were compatible with mobile phones, t, and laptop computers. Only a handful of Gruvi cards were ever released, one of them was the album A Bigger Bang by the Rolling Stones.
The Sansa Fuze is a portable media player developed by SanDisk and released on March 8, 2008. The Fuze is available in three different Flash memory capacities: 2 GB, 4 GB, and 8 GB and comes in six different colors: black, blue, pink, red, silver, and white. Storage is expandable via a microSDHC slot with capacity up to 32 GB, and unofficially to 64 GB or more via FAT32 formatted SDXC cards. All models have a 1.9 inch TFT LCD display with a resolution of 220 by 176 pixels and a built-in monaural microphone and FM tuner; recordings of the latter two are saved as PCM WAV files.
slotMusic was a brand of microSD memory card developed by SanDisk preloaded with music in MP3 format. They were first available at Wal-Mart and Best Buy stores in October 2008. The current selection of songs comes from Universal Music Group, Sony BMG, Warner Music Group and EMI Music. As of mid-2011, SanDisk's website lists a total of 14 albums available in the SlotMusic format.
The Samsung Galaxy Player is a line of Android-based all-purpose pocket computers produced by Samsung. The product was debuted on 2 September at the 2010 IFA in Berlin, and was showcased at the 2011 CES in Las Vegas.
The Sansa c200 series is a line of portable media players developed by SanDisk. The line consists of two models: the c240, 1 GB, the c250, 2 GB. Both models feature a micro SD card slot, a 1.4 inch LCD display, a built-in microphone, and an FM radio. c200 series players are available in four colors: black, red, pink, and blue.
The Nook Tablet is a tablet e-reader/media player that was produced and marketed by Barnes & Noble. It followed the Nook Color and was intended to compete with both e-book readers and tablet computers.
The Sansa Fuze+ is a portable media player manufactured by SanDisk as part of their Sansa line of MP3 players. The Fuze+ was released on September 1st 2010, and is the direct successor to the Sansa Fuze. The Sansa Fuze+ is available in five colors: Black, Blue, Purple, Red, and White. Internal storage capacities of the player vary by color.
