4.4GB Compact Flash

[brewin]

Did anybody go to the Consumer Electronics Show and see this? I was amazed when I saw it. It\'s a 4.4GB Compact Flash card from Magicstor (http://www.gs-magicstor.com). I asked a rep about it and he said it would retail for $400 when it is released (I didn\'t ask when it would be released).

Another thing, I also talked to a Socket Communications rep about SDIO. He had no knowledge of any SDIO capabilities in any Zaurus model.

[Anonymous]

its a microdrive huh!  let me tell you something about microdrive-

the motors on those things are so fragile that i actually messed up 2 microdrives from ibm.  just pop in a regular compact flash in and out of the zaurus and you\'ll understand why.  explanation for this is-you compress the aluminum case bu popping in or out of the zaurus causing the motors ram aup against the shielding and stops the spin of the disks...  i tell you i had 2 of those and was dissapointed but i switched over to regular compact flash and have had no problems at all.....microdrives are very very very fragile....i love the 400 dollar and i would recommend it but only if you use it to pop it in the zaurus once and leave it in there permanently or when you update to a 8gb if they ever come up with one.

the other issue here is battery life and the microdrive overheating or heating.  It gets hot and it sucks up power from your battery.

just my two cents

[yzord]

I criticise Microdrives for stuff like the slow (and frequent) spin up / spin down cycles, but I disagree with your assertion that they\'re fragile. I\'ve had a Microdrive for over 2 years now, and it\'s been very resilient. I move it around constantly (I have 2 pda, and multiple computers), and it\'s never been an issue - hell, I\'ve even dropped it on a few occasions with no negative consequences. I have the IBM 1gb Microdrive, so YMMV if you have a different one.

My Microdrive has never \"overheated\" either - it get\'s warm sure, but it makes no difference. Power is a definite concern, dont get a Microdrive if you\'re still using a 5x00 (I use a C760, and it\'s fine on that).

Yz

[m1rk0]

I got my 2.2G Magicstor today and came across this problem of getting it out  of the Zaurus again (the first time I used some pressure, took it out of the Zaurus and then read the sign that reads \"Don\'t press surface!\" .

Here\'s a simple solution: add some adhesive tape (Scotch or Tesa will do) to both sides of the drive so you can pull it out. I think the 5500 Zaurus model also had some plastic sleeves which were meant for this.

Mirko

[Anonymous]

yes that is exactly what i was talking about.  if you look at regular compact disk drive you see a little \"nich\" were you can jam your fingernail to pop it out of the zaurus but for the microdrives, NONE!!!...even though i admit it did come with an adhesive tape so you can pull it out, I didnt add it because the heat from zaurus, light, microdrive would \" i fear but not happened\" gummy up the glue on tape and cause a total mess........................

[yzord]

This may not be the case for other microdrives, but the IBM Microdrive is quite easy to pull out if you know how.
1) There\'s a metal notch right on the center of the rim of the CF (it looks like a bit of steel for just this purpose). You can put a fingernail there, and with a little pressure, it will come out fairly easily.
2) There are two small plastic \"bits\" you can remove from the top right and top left corner of the microdrive (the side that is opposite the pin connector). Once you remove these two bits, you\'ll have two indentations that are meant to be used to pull the CF out. This is harder for me to use, but YMMV (I find the first way quite easy after a bit of practice).
3) The microdrive comes with a clear plastic adhesive tab that is meant to be stuck on the drive to help with removal. The plastic tab can be folder over and inserted into the CF to hide it once the Microdrive is in the CF slot. I\'ve used this in the past when I used to use the Microdrive in a thinkpad, and trust me, it took the heat of the thinkpad (which is many orders of magnitude greater than anything a PDA can generate!) without any gummying up or otherwise.

Unfortunately, I dont know if any of the above is applicable to the Magicstor. I\'m just looking at my Microdrive, and it doesnt even have any indicator to warn against pressure on the CF, and when I press it it\'s pretty rigid... so maybe all of this has to do with the Magicstor drives...
Yz

[avel]

I have to disagree Magicstor drives do NOT get that hot, they get warm but thats about it. And yeah its a bitch getting them out of the Zaurus buts that why you use the plastic sticky thingy. Just try not to put pressure on the flat sides, hold it by it by the edge where it says to hold it.

[zenyatta]

All this talk of microdrives is bringing mist to my eye... anyone remember the Sinclair Spectrum version? Massive 85K per cartridge, flowing at the lightning speed of 15K per second... those were the days.

z.

[zbones]

Yes, but they were micro *tape* drives.

They worked by having a continuous loop of tape.

Total crap, but it was cutting edge at the time  

[padishah_emperor]

aaah, the memories, I had those Microdrives on my Sinclair QL, went thru four QL\'s in four weeks!  Those really were the days....