compact flash card readers

[reemas]

is there a difference in card readers? im looking for the fastest solution, as i have a pretty fast SanDisk Ultra II Compact Flash card.

i was told card readers are faster than connecting a cable straight to the camera. is that true also?

[Todd Jacobsen]

Depends on camera.

The fact that the camera is tied up downloading, wasting battery is enough for me not to do it.
10D is USB1.1 which also inhibits me from doing it.

[reemas]

i have the Rebel XT. will a card reader be faster?

[robertwgross]

Card readers, USB 1.1 or 2.0, are almost universally faster for transfers than the camera on a straight USB cable.

Note that if you purchase a USB 2.0 card reader and plug it into a USB 1.1 port on your computer, it will work, but only at the USB 1.1 speed. That's still better.

---Bob Gross---

[reemas]

any reccomendations on card readers for compact flash / SD? also, is the XT at 2.0 or 1.1?

thanks!

[DionM]

My Sandisk brand 12-in-1 card reader is faster than my no-name cheapie card reader if that's any help ...

[reemas]

thats good to know because im going to order that one. does it come with a dock? buy.com doesnt mention it but some sites did.

[cactusclay]

If you have a fire wire on your computer, I would get one of those.

[reemas]

firewire? for the sandisk reader?

[smittymike19]

the xt is a usb 2 connection from the camera. i have a sandisk usb 2 reader it works pretty well. you need a usb 2 card installed in your computer to get the usb speeds. also, if you ahve a choice between usb 2 and firewire, usb 2 is FASTER, not as the last poster noted. im not sure which readers are faster, but my guess is that a sandisk reader for a sandisck card is probably the way to go. im sure the difference between other usb 2 readers is negligible as the usb 2 is rtransferred at 480/s so idont think youll notice much difference (maybe a few seconds over the transferring of a whole card)..just my guess. i have bothe the ultra 2 card and sandisc reader fyi. i wouldnt suggest using the camera as 1. itll drain the battery and the recharges on the battery are limited, so you will need anew battery sooner. 2, would you rather paly with the cmaera, on and off,plug unplug, etc.. or a 20$ reader. ;)

[Jupiter19]

I have the Lexar firewire compactflash reader. It works fine for me and is obviously much faster than doing it from the camera. Only thing is that it feels kind of cheap.

[Jesper]

When you buy an USB 2.0 card reader, make sure you get an USB 2.0 Hi-Speed card reader. There are also USB 2.0 devices which run at "normal" speed, which means they are compatible with USB 2.0, but run at slow USB 1.1 speed.

Make sure you see the following logo with the red "Hi-Speed" tab on the package:

http://www.usb.org/images/headermain/hi_speed.gif

Firewire or USB 2.0 doesn't matter. Both the Firewire and USB 2.0 have maximum transfer rates which are much faster than what the fastest CF card can handle, so the CF card itself will be the bottleneck, not the interface.

[Dew]

yeah - I think firewire (iee1394?) is rated at something like 400mbps, and USB 2.0 is 480. Either way, they're both rated higher than the cards can deliver.

Just got a Lexar 8-in-1 reader (http://www.mymemory.co.uk/memory/Lexar/USB2.0/8/in/1/Card/Reader) from mymemory.co.uk for £9.99 - just the ticket!

[Bosman]

USB2 is only faster on "paper"


Firewire is the way to go.
If you have a Mac you have a firewire port for sure.

http://www.usb-ware.com/firewire-vs-usb.htm

http://www.frozentech.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=7&Itemid=1

[Kostyanych]

Well, than the question is
What Brand and What Model? :)
I am going to buy one. :)

[Bosman]

Well, than the question is
What Brand and What Model? :)
I am going to buy one. :)

Here is the one I am getting

http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=10357753&loc=101&sp=1

[KenE]

Here's what I use. It works fine at USB 2.0. I like that it's so tiny, makes it great to store (and lose, lol).

http://www.newegg.com/app/viewproductdesc.asp?description=20-180-210&DEPA=0