Cheap memory

[bakechef]

I just purchased a 2 pack of Sandisc Ultra II, 2 gig cards from Newegg for $28.99.

 

I found that my regular basic sandisc card couldn't handle the video when set on highest quality, because it couldn't write quite fast enough, so there would be some dropped frames causing choppy videos. I used a PQI 50x and it was much better, but it was only 512mb. I chose sandisc ultra II because of all the reviews that i have read they seem rock solid and the advertised speed seemed accurate, this seemed to be a problem with cheaper cards when reading reviews. It seems that flash memory manufacturers are using some inflated speed claims to sell cards, knowing that these numbers will often persuade buyers to choose them (think the way camera companies sell cameras, especially super cheap cameras the are 12 megapixels). From what I have read, most point and shoots cannot benefit from more than 66x anyway.

 

MAC

[jrw]

For anyone who might be interested in Extreme III, Extreme IV, or Extreme Ducati cards, you might wish to check this out:

 

http://66.223.110.241/rebates/SandiskQ2VisaRebateExp062908.pdf

Check the list of retailers (Page 2) to be sure the one you purchase from is participating. Deal is for purchases from April 6 to June 29. Rebate values (details on Page 1) are based on # of cards (of same type) purchased and are in the form of a prepaid Visa card (accepted pretty much everywhere).

Example: I bought 3 of the Extreme III 4GB cards from Beach Camera (received them in 3 days!). Paid $44 each (price has since gone up a few bucks), free shipping, no tax. Total $132. Rebate $110. Net cost = $22, or $7.33 per card! :D

Happy Shopping!

-- Renée

[gazingm42]

I got Kingston 4G SD from buy.com, free shipping for $10 about 4 weeks ago.

 

Also look at smartdisk.com photobank when you don't want to bring a laptop.

I have not used them as I normally lug my laptop with me with a Firelite disk.

[chipmaster]

I got Kingston 4G SD from buy.com, free shipping for $10 about 4 weeks ago.

 

Also look at smartdisk.com photobank when you don't want to bring a laptop.

I have not used them as I normally lug my laptop with me with a Firelite disk.

 

That is really cheap! Be sure to give it a really good checkout before you entrust too many pictures to it.

 

I view the cards like film in the old kodak days. Sure there are cheaper ones available by mail but for those timeless moments you are talking 20 bucks, not worth not being able to extract the pictures. On our last overseas vacation for a moment I thought my card went bad, but it was the crappy reader I borrowed, but for a long while I had this sad feeling of losing hundreds of pictures :eek:

[MeadMkr]

One additional option I'll throw out for folks to consider are the portable storage devices like the Nexto, HyperDrive or Epson P3000 (or whatever model they are up to). These are basically a laptop harddrive mounted in a case with a battery that allows you to insert your memory card into a slot, push a button and copy and verify the contents of the card to the drive. The Nexto case I picked along with an 80gb drive was just under $200. I've copied well over 30gig and still had plenty of juice in the battery even with full bit-by-bit file verification turned on. The unit itself isn't much larger than the harddrive (about the size of a pack of playing cards).

 

Memory cards prices have dropped but so have harddrive prices. The PSD gives me some additional peace of mind if the photos are important enough for me to make a backup in the field with little hassle. Its easy enough to slip a ful card out of the camera, into the PSD and push a button. Best thing is that I can also backup the DW's, DD's or other's photos and hand them their cards back. Some of the more expensive and/or newer or models have built-in LCDs so you can also display the pics as you go. The unit doubles as a USB drive so when if I dump all the cards to the disk I only have 1 copy back to the computer vrs copying each card.

 

Some food for thought for those getting more serious about their photography or on a 'once-in-a-lifetime trip'.

 

Cheers

Chris in VA

[jrw]

One additional option I'll throw out for folks to consider are the portable storage devices like the Nexto, HyperDrive or Epson P3000 (or whatever model they are up to). These are basically a laptop harddrive mounted in a case with a battery that allows you to insert your memory card into a slot, push a button and copy and verify the contents of the card to the drive. The Nexto case I picked along with an 80gb drive was just under $200. I've copied well over 30gig and still had plenty of juice in the battery even with full bit-by-bit file verification turned on. The unit itself isn't much larger than the harddrive (about the size of a pack of playing cards).

 

Memory cards prices have dropped but so have harddrive prices. The PSD gives me some additional peace of mind if the photos are important enough for me to make a backup in the field with little hassle. Its easy enough to slip a ful card out of the camera, into the PSD and push a button. Best thing is that I can also backup the DW's, DD's or other's photos and hand them their cards back. Some of the more expensive and/or newer or models have built-in LCDs so you can also display the pics as you go. The unit doubles as a USB drive so when if I dump all the cards to the disk I only have 1 copy back to the computer vrs copying each card.

 

Some food for thought for those getting more serious about their photography or on a 'once-in-a-lifetime trip'.

 

Cheers

Chris in VA

 

Have to agree here! I have the Epson P-3000 (40GB) and LOVE IT! These cost a bit more, but have an awesome 4" LCD screen...great for viewing pics & showing them. I'd rather pass that around, than my camera!

 

As mentioned, it is great for backing up everything from one device, than many little cards!

 

Epson also offers the P-5000 (80GB).

 

-- Renée

[pierces]

Another vote for the Epson P-series!

 

Incredible screen and very user-friendly!

 

Dave

[FinelyCruising]

So no computer needed? Just pop the card in and transfer?

[pierces]

So no computer needed? Just pop the card in and transfer?

 

Yup! The P3000 has SD and CF slots with adapters available for less common cards. You can copy to a directory, create albums, and zoom in to 1500% to check the photos on it's remarkably sharp and colorful screen. Good battery life too!

 

On our last long trip I took a laptop for the first time since 2005 when my wife got me the P2000 so I could maintain a blog. I ended up choosing the laptop over a long telephoto because of international baggage weight limits. Never again! Next time, I'm going back to the P2000 and use a Windows-based smartphone or Eee-PC to blog!

 

Dave

[NMCruzzin]

You can copy to a directory, create albums,

 

Dave,

So, say your on a 16hr flight back home and while your memory is still fresh on places you've been, you can add script of where the photo was taken? Then what, up load on your computer and submit photos to be made into an album? I guess I'm wondering how much creativity you have with not having your lap top with you. I think during my lunch time I'll head out and take a look at these....sorry, I'm a bit confused! :o

[pierces]

You can copy to a directory, create albums,

 

Dave,

So, say your on a 16hr flight back home and while your memory is still fresh on places you've been, you can add script of where the photo was taken? Then what, up load on your computer and submit photos to be made into an album? I guess I'm wondering how much creativity you have with not having your lap top with you. I think during my lunch time I'll head out and take a look at these....sorry, I'm a bit confused! :o

 

You can't annotate individual files. What you can do is create elaborately named albums and copy selected images to the album to identify them later when transferring to the home system. There's no real limit to the number of albums, so you could sort down to one image per album if needed. The albums appear as directories when you connect the viewer to your computer, so the files could be renamed based on the directory name after they are transferred.

 

Personally, I load the files sorted by day and annotate when I get back. The viewer serves me as a backup for the images with the big plus of being able to view them clearly (although the new DSLR has a 3" screen with the same 640x480 resolution as the Epson, the extra inch makes a real difference) and share them at dinner. I've even copied select photos to an album and done small slide shows with music on the cabin TV.

 

Dave

[chipmaster]

One additional option I'll throw out for folks to consider are the portable storage devices like the Nexto, HyperDrive or Epson P3000 (or whatever model they are up to). These are basically a laptop harddrive mounted in a case with a battery that allows you to insert your memory card into a slot, push a button and copy and verify the contents of the card to the drive. The Nexto case I picked along with an 80gb drive was just under $200. I've copied well over 30gig and still had plenty of juice in the battery even with full bit-by-bit file verification turned on. The unit itself isn't much larger than the harddrive (about the size of a pack of playing cards).

 

Memory cards prices have dropped but so have harddrive prices. The PSD gives me some additional peace of mind if the photos are important enough for me to make a backup in the field with little hassle. Its easy enough to slip a ful card out of the camera, into the PSD and push a button. Best thing is that I can also backup the DW's, DD's or other's photos and hand them their cards back. Some of the more expensive and/or newer or models have built-in LCDs so you can also display the pics as you go. The unit doubles as a USB drive so when if I dump all the cards to the disk I only have 1 copy back to the computer vrs copying each card.

 

Some food for thought for those getting more serious about their photography or on a 'once-in-a-lifetime trip'.

 

Cheers

Chris in VA

 

Sorry to ask this, why would I want to pay 200 to 650 bucks for 40-80GB of storage in a compact gizmo like this versus spend a few more bucks for a full fledge laptop with 15-17" screen 60-80GB drive, DVD/CD-RW drive, with SD/CF reader. One excursion costs more then the price difference and I'll wager most of us already have that laptop.

 

Of course people say I can swap out and backup in the field where I don't want to lug my laptop. But then I'd reply why would you want to lug this expensive and fragile HD either, why not just spring for 2 extra flash cards for less then a hundred bucks. :confused: I'll trust my flash more then a HD banging around in my backup.

 

Bring the laptop, dump all the pictures every evening, burn a archiveal DVD, and have a 15" screen to show your great shots. Get a few extra flash cards and you are set! :D

[pierces]

Sorry to ask this, why would I want to pay 200 to 650 bucks for 40-80GB of storage in a compact gizmo like this versus spend a few more bucks for a full fledge laptop with 15-17" screen 60-80GB drive, DVD/CD-RW drive, with SD/CF reader. One excursion costs more then the price difference and I'll wager most of us already have that laptop.

 

Answer...one pound.

 

Of course people say I can swap out and backup in the field where I don't want to lug my laptop. But then I'd reply why would you want to lug this expensive and fragile HD either, why not just spring for 2 extra flash cards for less then a hundred bucks. :confused: I'll trust my flash more then a HD banging around in my backup.

 

Bring the laptop, dump all the pictures every evening, burn a archiveal DVD, and have a 15" screen to show your great shots. Get a few extra flash cards and you are set! :D

 

When limited to 15 lbs per carry on on international flights and only one carry on going through Heathrow, I'll leave the 6 lb laptop at home and take the extra 5 lbs of camera stuff and the Epson instead. It's also nice to have the P2000 to pass around the table at dinner to share photos.

 

If I had to choose between either a laptop or a viewer, I'd probably choose the laptop. I am, however, glad I now have the option for compact, secure backup if I cant take the laptop.

 

BTW, whether I take the laptop or the Epson, I never clear a card until I'm home and the images are on the main system.

 

Dave

[jrw]

In addition to all the things Dave mentions, there are SOME of us who have no interest in a laptop (or lugging it)! Might be hard for some to understand, but I don't need or want a second laptop (have one for work, and would never use for personal travel -- and don't want to lug it around on a trip anyway). The Epson is a nice alternative & serves all of MY purposes. It is definitely not for everyone, but...for the reasons Dave cites, it is wonderful.

 

Who is passing around a laptop at the dinner table??? :eek: I hope it's not someone I'm seated with! JMHO.

 

Oh, and I have plenty of cards. Like Dave, I would never clear a card until at home. I actually have enough cards that I have not cleared one yet.

 

-- Renée

[pierces]

...I actually have enough cards that I have not cleared one yet.

 

:eek:

[MeadMkr]

Like Dave said, weight and convience. Like most electronics its about needs, cost, weight and tradeoffs. Unlike a general-purpose device like a laptop the PSDs are more specialized to do the job they are built for and cut out the size/bulk incurred for those other functions. Weighing under 16oz my Nexto doesn't push the scales over the limit or take up much room in the crowded bag. Memory cards get misplaced or inadvertently formatted so its cheap insurance that takes minimal effort to copy the card to the PSD. I still may take a laptop with me on a trip but it stays locked up back in the room. Camera gear has an annoying habit of expanding and getting heavier each trip! :cool:

 

The Nexto doesn't have the LCD so the cost was less than $200 and less than the Epson or new Nextos & HyperDrives. I don't _need_ that functionality (yet) but DO WANT to backup my files (and from other's cameras if needed in the field). Harddrives used in PSDs are typically better brands of laptop drives and are fairly rugged and well mounted. Mine stays either on a belt in its pouch or in my vest so its easy to backup files while in the field or on the move. And since it does function as an external USB I can plug it into any computer and access the files should I need to with a standard mini-USB cable. And I don't need to carry along a separate card reader.

 

Like the others I don't reuse the cards until after I've viewed them via the PC -AND- they are copied onto a second drive and in some cases off to DVD+R

 

Cheers

Chris in VA

[chipmaster]

In addition to all the things Dave mentions, there are SOME of us who have no interest in a laptop (or lugging it)! Might be hard for some to understand, but I don't need or want a second laptop (have one for work, and would never use for personal travel -- and don't want to lug it around on a trip anyway). The Epson is a nice alternative & serves all of MY purposes. It is definitely not for everyone, but...for the reasons Dave cites, it is wonderful.

 

Who is passing around a laptop at the dinner table??? :eek: I hope it's not someone I'm seated with! JMHO.

 

Oh, and I have plenty of cards. Like Dave, I would never clear a card until at home. I actually have enough cards that I have not cleared one yet.

 

-- Renée

 

I'm with ya. I'm on vacation and there ot enjoy and take in moments versus pass around yesterdays moments at dinner. That is for when I get home. I'll trust my flash cards as the MTF and DPM numbers for data on them are orders of magnitude better then any HD especially if you "have never cleared it " :confused:

 

I think the way around the 11lbs is to pick the right airline that allows one item + one personal. As the "personal" has always included laptop/purse etc. Of course these days with the way airlines are going better check ahead.

 

You are always ahead going lean and light be it electronics or clothes :D

 

 

Airline

Allowance

Max wt per piece

Max size per piece

Aer Lingus

1 plus small personal items

6kg/14lbs

9" x 14" x 18"

Aeroflot

1 plus small personal items

10kg/22lbs

115cm/45"

Air Canada

2 pieces plus some personal items

10kg/22lbs each

first piece 55cm x 40cm x 23cm (22" x 16" x 9")

second piece 43cm x 33cm x 16cm (17" x 13" x 6")

Air France

1 plus 1 accessory

12kg/26.4lbs for both

115cm/45"

Air New Zealand

1 plus personal items

7kg/15.4lbs

115cm/45"

Alitalia

1 plus personal items

5kg/11lbs

55cm x 35cm x 25cm (22" x 14" x 10")

All Nippon Airways

1 plus personal items

10kg/22lbs

115cm/45"

Asiana

Can't find any info on website

Austrian Airlines

1

8kg/18lbs

115cm/45"

BMI British Midland

1 plus personal items

10kg/22lbs on transatlantic

7kg/15lbs for UK/Eur flights

115cm/45"

British Airways

1

6kg/13lbs

55cm x 40cm x 20cm (22" x 16" x 8")

Cathay Pacific

 

 

1 plus personal items

J/P pax can also bring 1 garment or soft bag

 

7/10/15kg (15/22/33lbs) for coach/bus/first

115cm/45"

easyJet

1

no weight limit as long as you can lift the bag yourself!

115cm/45"

El Al

1 plus 1 personal item

8kg/17.6lb

115cm/45"

Emirates

 

 

1 for coach

2 for J/P pax

 

7kg/15lbs

12kg/26lbs total for J/P pax

115cm/45"

EVA Air

1

7kg/15lbs

115cm/45"

Finnair

 

1 plus personal items

2 for Business Class plus personal items

 

5kg/11lbs on leisure flights

8kg/18lb coach

10kg/22lb combined for Business Class

115cm/46"

Garuda

1 plus personal items

7kg/15lbs

50cm x 36cm x 15cm

Iberia

1 plus personal items

10kg/22lbs

115cm/45"

Icelandair

1 plus personal items

6kg/13lbs

115cm/45"

Japan Airlines

1 plus personal items

10kg/22lbs

115cm/45"

KLM

1 plus personal items

10kg/22lbs

55cm x 35cm x 25cm (115cm total/45")

Korean Air

1 plus 1 personal item

12kg/25lbs

55cm x 40cm x 20cm (21" x 16" x 8" in) = 115cm/45"

LanChile

1 piece

8kg/18lbs

55cm x 25cm x 35cm = 115cm

Lufthansa

1 plus personal items

8kg/18lbs

22" X 16" X 8"

Malaysia Airlines

1 piece

5kg/11lbs

115cm/45"

Olympic Airlines

1

unstated

56cm x 36cm x 23cm

Qantas

1 plus 1 personal item

2 pieces for J/P travel except to/from the US when only 1

7kg/15lbs

115cm/45"

Ryanair

1

10kg/22lbs

55cm x 45cm x 20cm

SAS

1

8kg/18lbs

115cm/45"

Singapore Airlines

1

7kg/15lbs

115cm/45"

South African Airways

1 plus personal items

7kg/15lbs

115cm/45"

Swiss

1 plus personal items

10kg/22lbs

115cm/45"

Thai Airways

not stated

7kg/15lbs total

115cm/45"

Varig Brazilian Airlines

1 plus 1 personal item

5kg/11lbs

115cm/45"

Virgin Atlantic

1

6kg/13lbs

115cm/45"

[jrw]

...I actually have enough cards that I have not cleared one yet.

:eek:

 

Don't worry, Dave...now that I got the DSLR I am sure I will fill 'em up much faster and NEED to start clearing them! :D

[pierces]

 

 

Don't worry, Dave...now that I got the DSLR I am sure I will fill 'em up much faster and NEED to start clearing them! :D

 

I was just thinking of the nice lens I could get instead of 50 4GB cards....:D

 

Dave

[FinelyCruising]

Dave every time I come to this board I am finding something else that I think I might need too....:eek:

[jrw]

I was just thinking of the nice lens I could get instead of 50 4GB cards....:D

 

Dave

 

No no no...I am not that crazy...I just don't take my camera everywhere, like you do with the SD800. I typically can't carry it with me because most often I'm at work & in a refinery you can not have a camera (even in your car, we are subject to search).

 

I only have the three 4GB (and only because they were a steal) and then a bunch of 2GB...but nowhere near 50 of them! LOL

[pierces]

Dave every time I come to this board I am finding something else that I think I might need too....:eek:

 

I have found that if I judiciously identify what camera equipment I need versus what I want, we can still afford to live in a house and eat regularly!

 

Of course, it's not a perfect science...the house needs painting and there's been a skipped a meal or two.

 

:D

 

Dave

[jrw]

I have found that if I judiciously identify what camera equipment I need versus what I want, we can still afford to live in a house and eat regularly!

 

Of course, it's not a perfect science...the house needs painting and there's been a skipped a meal or two.

 

:D

 

Dave

 

A fine balancing of priorities! :D

[SheilaNC]

So true, Dave, but that depends on whether or not you have a friend named DAVID, who keeps throwing out bones to the dogs (meaning me, not casting eyes at any other members). Although clearly not in your league where camera equipment is discussed, I still find myself considering a couple more cards, and remember buying my underwater housing which I used once due to skipping a port :) Oh, well...just means I'll have to use it on the Mexican Riviera cruise next year :)

[pierces]

So true, Dave, but that depends on whether or not you have a friend named DAVID, who keeps throwing out bones to the dogs (meaning me, not casting eyes at any other members). Although clearly not in your league where camera equipment is discussed, I still find myself considering a couple more cards, and remember buying my underwater housing which I used once due to skipping a port :) Oh, well...just means I'll have to use it on the Mexican Riviera cruise next year :)

 

I see your used-once underwater housing and raise you an as-yet-unused underwater housing!!

 

:D

 

Dave