Taking 2 hours to transfer 500 images from MemoryCard to Computer????

I have Sandisk Extreme III cards, all of them are new, I have SD and CF cards.

For the last week it is taking 2+ hours to transfer data to my computer. I have a 27" iMac with the works. The files I am trying to transfer are mostly Large JPG and some RAW files from 1DmarkIII.

Transferring 500 raw images usually takes about 20-30 minutes. Now it's taking 2 hours? That's not cool, anyone have this issue before?

What means are you transferring them by? CF/SD reader (usb? FW?) or cable to the camera?

I use a FW800 card read for this specfic reason.

The USB interface between camera and computer is usually very slow (especially with older camera models). I thought my 5D was broken as it was taking 2-3 hours to dump RAWs.

A dedicated card reader is the best solution. Have you tried using the SD slot on the iMac? Does that make a difference at all?

dche5390 wrote in post #10020565
I use a FW800 card read for this specfic reason.

The USB interface between camera and computer is usually very slow (especially with older camera models). I thought my 5D was broken as it was taking 2-3 hours to dump RAWs.

A dedicated card reader is the best solution. Have you tried using the SD slot on the iMac? Does that make a difference at all?

I believe their question was regarding the fact that it is now taking the pictures four to six times longer than usual whilst under the same circumstances.

To the OP: Have other activities on your computer started to run slower when they involve writing to the hard drive? Such as moving files from a flash drive to the computer?

Jim G wrote in post #10020549
What means are you transferring them by? CF/SD reader (usb? FW?) or cable to the camera?

I have been using 2 different USB readers.
- SDHC Card Reader 150x
- Sandisk Micromate (The one came with the SD cards)

dche5390 wrote in post #10020565
I use a FW800 card read for this specfic reason. The USB interface between camera and computer is usually very slow (especially with older camera models). I thought my 5D was broken as it was taking 2-3 hours to dump RAWs. A dedicated card reader is the best solution. Have you tried using the SD slot on the iMac? Does that make a difference at all?

Will look into the FW800 for the future, but really i'm just wondering what happened and why I lost all the performance that I did have and now it seems like I have a memory card and computer from 1996... Never tried the USB interface between camera and computer, I wouldn't consider mark3 an older camera model. Humm.. Never noticed a SD slot on my imac

That_Fox wrote in post #10020603
I believe their question was regarding the fact that it is now taking the pictures four to six times longer than usual whilst under the same circumstances.

To the OP: Have other activities on your computer started to run slower when they involve writing to the hard drive? Such as moving files from a flash drive to the computer?

Exactly! I have never had to wait more than 30 minutes to dump a full 8 gig card. Now it's taking 2 hours to dump less than 4 gigs... Yesterdays dump took close to 4 hours.

Only thing that runs slow involving the hard drive is image preview when looking at them on memory cards. I haven't noticed any other lack of performance in any other department. Haven't tried moving files from flash drive to computer, I will try soon though, just downloaded "the crazies" gonna transfer it to my iMac and see how that works..

Adaptive wrote in post #10020800
Exactly! I have never had to wait more than 30 minutes to dump a full 8 gig card. Now it's taking 2 hours to dump less than 4 gigs... Yesterdays dump took close to 4 hours.

Only thing that runs slow involving the hard drive is image preview when looking at them on memory cards. I haven't noticed any other lack of performance in any other department. Haven't tried moving files from flash drive to computer, I will try soon though, just downloaded "the crazies" gonna transfer it to my iMac and see how that works..

Hmm, if you have a 4GB or larger flash drive, make a file of some sort that is 4GB and see how long it takes to move the file from the flash drive to the computer. What you might also want to do is try a different USB port when moving the images from your camera to the computer to rule out a rogue USB port.

Are you running any other tasks while transferring? Is the RAM full from other previous tasks? That's what I would investigate if it were my computer.

format the card in camera?

How much RAM do you have? Open up activity monitor and see what is going on with the system. You may need more RAM or might just need to reformat the card.

That_Fox wrote in post #10020815
Hmm, if you have a 4GB or larger flash drive, make a file of some sort that is 4GB and see how long it takes to move the file from the flash drive to the computer. What you might also want to do is try a different USB port when moving the images from your camera to the computer to rule out a rogue USB port.

Will try this tonight.

goldboughtrue wrote in post #10024401
Are you running any other tasks while transferring? Is the RAM full from other previous tasks? That's what I would investigate if it were my computer.

Just running iTunes, Photoshop, Firefox, Filezilla.... Nothing out of the ordinary.

rogazilla wrote in post #10024421
format the card in camera?

Do this every time.

Staszek wrote in post #10025458
How much RAM do you have? Open up activity monitor and see what is going on with the system. You may need more RAM or might just need to reformat the card.

8gb RAM.. better not need more..

I don't have a mac, but my pc started running slow. Turned out to be the virus protection that my internet provider offers for free. Had to upgrade to the latest version, even though it was "up to date",to get things running smooth again.
Good luck.

What changed before it slowed down? Perhaps a program update? New software?

Check that you're not running things on startup that you don't need/want. (System Preferences|Accounts|L​ogin Items)

There could be a problem with the USB connectors, the cables or the reader itself. Try different combinations. Is there a USB 1.0 item plugged in on the same hub? Unplug it. I know they used to slow down the USB channels in PC's, but I have no idea on Macs. How many read/writes on the cards? They don't last forever, but it's a pretty high number of cycles.

For sure try the FW800. Those rock.

Hope that helps.

It sounds like the computer has for some reason dropped down to USB 1 speed.

I don't know what the cause of such a thing could be on a Mac, but it's been known to happen.
If you have another USB post, try that, if not,.

Do you have a drive benchmarking utility? Something that can test the speeds of hard drives etc..?


Might be worth a try to see what the app reports as max transfer speed from your cards.

Also look to see if your hard drive is full?

Adaptive wrote in post #10026886
8gb RAM.. better not need more..

Yeah, hopefully not. I'm still at 1GB RAM You can always take always take it into the local Apple store and have them take a look at it (make an appointment on apple.com) for free. They'll run some tests and see why its slowed down. These Macs aren't supposed to slow down over time like PC's.

Adaptive wrote in post #10020542
For the last week it is taking 2+ hours to transfer data to my computer.

First, most obvious question: What (if anything) changed?

Have you tried DLin from the camera instead of cardreader?
Other port?