Sd Card Support

[BCable]

I remember that the GP2X didn't have support for SDHC, and I also remember hearing they fixed that for the Pandora. I've been searching on Amazon for 32-64 GB SD cards (no 64 ones yet, unfortunately) and noticed that they have "classes" associated with them. For instance:

http://www.amazon.com/Kingston-Class-Memory-SD4-32GB/dp/B001C9P5TO/ref=sr_1_1/175-8427808-9677424?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1265380536&sr=8-1
http://www.amazon.com/Sandisk-ULTRA-SDSDH-032G-Hassle-Packaging/dp/B0024BQ214/ref=sr_1_2/175-8427808-9677424?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1265380536&sr=8-2

The Kingston one says "Class 4" and the SanDisk one says "Class 2" (they also have a class 4 one, though).

Is there any limitation as to which ones will work on the Pandora or is this something internal to the SD card itself? If not, I assume the Class 4 one would be the best (bigger numbers > smaller numbers ).

Thanks!

 

[gruso]

This is a little lazy of me because I'm about to go to bed, but read this: http://pandorapress....de-to-sd-cards/

The short, short answer is get Class 6 if you can afford it. And avoid "bargains".

 

[rmm2131]

I remember that the GP2X didn't have support for SDHC, and I also remember hearing they fixed that for the Pandora. I've been searching on Amazon for 32-64 GB SD cards (no 64 ones yet, unfortunately) and noticed that they have "classes" associated with them. For instance:

http://www.amazon.com/Kingston-Class-Memory-SD4-32GB/dp/B001C9P5TO/ref=sr_1_1/175-8427808-9677424?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1265380536&sr=8-1
http://www.amazon.com/Sandisk-ULTRA-SDSDH-032G-Hassle-Packaging/dp/B0024BQ214/ref=sr_1_2/175-8427808-9677424?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1265380536&sr=8-2

The Kingston one says "Class 4" and the SanDisk one says "Class 2" (they also have a class 4 one, though).

Is there any limitation as to which ones will work on the Pandora or is this something internal to the SD card itself? If not, I assume the Class 4 one would be the best (bigger numbers > smaller numbers ).

Thanks!

Sandisk and Patriot both are top quality SDHC cards to buy and will be at or above the class 2 mark which is fine for the Pandora. Patriot has a lifetime return policy too.
I'm still deciding on which one to buy myself.

 

[BCable]

This is a little lazy of me because I'm about to go to bed, but read this: http://pandorapress....de-to-sd-cards/

The short, short answer is get Class 6 if you can afford it. And avoid "bargains".

Thanks, that article is helpful. Does anyone know if there are 32GB Class 6 cards out there? Also, what is the timeline of 64GB cards coming? (since the Pandora is coming out soon!)

 

[BCable]

This is on NewEgg, so I actually find it fairly reputable, but are there any Class 10s or is this fake?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820220452&cm_re=32gb_sd-_-20-220-452-_-Product

Never had a problem with Patriot in the past.

 

[BCable]

Sandisk and Patriot both are top quality SDHC cards to buy and will be at or above the class 2 mark which is fine for the Pandora. Patriot has a lifetime return policy too.
I'm still deciding on which one to buy myself.

I'm looking to buy at least 32GB, preferrably 64GB. I want to have my entire music collection on one card (currently 26GB, but it seems to grow exponentially).

 

[BCable]

Sorry for the quadruple post.

I read the reviews on that Patriot one and it's supposedly slower than class 6 cards. I'm going to guess that was fake.

I think I'll plan on buying the 32GB Class 4 Kingston card unless someone here can find a reputable Class 6 equivalent.

Thanks for the help!

 

[WizardStan]

Thanks, that article is helpful. Does anyone know if there are 32GB Class 6 cards out there? Also, what is the timeline of 64GB cards coming? (since the Pandora is coming out soon!)

There is no timeline on 64GB SDHC cards that I've seen. 64GB is outside the realm of official SDHC cards, and now that SDXC is out, we may not ever see such cards, even unofficially.
We may be able to use SDXC cards however (or maybe not, we need to wait and see). Timeline for those is "soon". There seems to be one or two that have "launched" according to the internet, but I can't find anywhere to buy them yet.

 

[Grench]

Lots of half-information in this thread. A VERY quick search would have turned up a few threads that have LOTS of good information in them.

http://www.gp32x.de/board/index.php?/topic/51566-couple-questions-about-sd-memory/
http://www.gp32x.de/board/index.php?/topic/50499-sdhc-how-fast-is-fast-enough/

Gruso's thread is good - but deals more with avoiding the scams on Ebay - which is an admirable goal. However, there really isn't any information -anywhere- that will tell us which card is fast enough that the card speed itself is no longer the bottle neck on the device.

Please provide some form of link, quote, or reference for your claim of the Patriot memory available on NewEgg being a fake. I have several Patriot SD cards and have never had an issue with them. If the Pandora were shipping tomorrow, I would have two of these Patriot cards on their way. The best review I found of this card stated that it would qualify as a Class 15 if such a spec existed.
http://www.ccereviews.com/reviews/patriot-memory-lx-series-32gb-sdhc-memory-card/

News flash - Class 2 cards are -SLOW-. They -may- meet the minimum bit rate for streaming audio and low res video, but sheesh - most of them are 3 year old tech.

Class 4 is available in 32GB. I have a Kingston 32GB class 4 and it's OK, but isn't exactly fast.

Class 6 cards are generally 1.5x faster than class 4 cards.

As far as I can tell from the reviews I found:
The fastest SDHC card currently available is the Sandisk 32GB Extreme III. It is VERY expensive.
The Patriot Class 10 is the 2nd fastest SDHC card on the planet. It isn't expensive. It is not a fake when purchased through a reliable retailer.

A new contender is coming out from Toshiba that promises read/write well in excess of the Pandora's bus.

Why is everyone so bent on chasing class 2 and class 4 cards when the price difference for speed is only 10%?

I'm looking forward to when we have more people with consoles so we can run some actual benchmarks to see what card really is the fastest in them.

 

[kev187]

To my understanding... SDHC maxes out at 32GB & there will not be any 64GB SDHC cards.

The new format is SDXC, and I do not believe there will be any support on the Pandora for these.

So 2x32Gb + USB 2.0 options for storage ;-)

 

[rmm2131]

To my understanding... SDHC maxes out at 32GB & there will not be any 64GB SDHC cards.

The new format is SDXC, and I do not believe there will be any support on the Pandora for these.

So 2x32Gb + USB 2.0 options for storage ;-)

Imagine all the Wizards of Waverly Place episodes that would hold.

 

[Pleng]

Sandisk and Patriot both are top quality SDHC cards to buy and will be at or above the class 2 mark which is fine for the Pandora. Patriot has a lifetime return policy too.
I'm still deciding on which one to buy myself.

I'm looking to buy at least 32GB, preferrably 64GB. I want to have my entire music collection on one card (currently 26GB, but it seems to grow exponentially).

If you only need the card o store your music collection, don't waste your money on a Class 6 card. You'll never see the benefit.

 

[WizardStan]

If you only need the card o store your music collection, don't waste your money on a Class 6 card. You'll never see the benefit.

He'd see the benefit exactly once: when initially copying his entire collection onto the card. It'd take a few hours with just a class 2. But once on there, yeah, no difference.

 

[Grench]

If you only need the card o store your music collection, don't waste your money on a Class 6 card. You'll never see the benefit.

He'd see the benefit exactly once: when initially copying his entire collection onto the card. It'd take a few hours with just a class 2. But once on there, yeah, no difference.

And would have the smug satisfaction of having spent $0.50 over the price of a Class 4 card or saved $1.02 over the price of a Class 6 card and saved nearly $24 over the price of a Class 10 card.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=2010170068%201053125651%201053325335&bop=And&ShowDeactivatedMark=False&ActiveSearchResult=True&Order=PRICE

PQI Class 2 = $68.99 + $5.99 shipping = $75.98
Kingston Class 4 = $75.49 + free shipping = $75.49
RiData Class 6 = $76.99 + free shipping = $76.99
Patriot Class 10 (~15) = $97.99 + free shipping = $97.99
SanDisk Class 10 (~20) = $269 + free shipping = OUCH

Ummm... I still don't get why anyone would bother purchasing a new class 2 SDHC card these days. If you have one sitting in your desk already, sure - use it. But if you're buying a new card anyway...

I put parenthesis after the two class 10 cards - because all reports I'm seeing puts them way past even the class 10 spec.

Speeds all a question of money. How fast do you want to go? Or in this case, how fast can the OpenPandora handheld keep up with?

 

[#1 GameMaster]

Lots of half-information in this thread. A VERY quick search would have turned up a few threads that have LOTS of good information in them.

http://www.gp32x.de/board/index.php?/topic/51566-couple-questions-about-sd-memory/
http://www.gp32x.de/board/index.php?/topic/50499-sdhc-how-fast-is-fast-enough/

Gruso's thread is good - but deals more with avoiding the scams on Ebay - which is an admirable goal. However, there really isn't any information -anywhere- that will tell us which card is fast enough that the card speed itself is no longer the bottle neck on the device.

Please provide some form of link, quote, or reference for your claim of the Patriot memory available on NewEgg being a fake. I have several Patriot SD cards and have never had an issue with them. If the Pandora were shipping tomorrow, I would have two of these Patriot cards on their way. The best review I found of this card stated that it would qualify as a Class 15 if such a spec existed.
http://www.ccereviews.com/reviews/patriot-memory-lx-series-32gb-sdhc-memory-card/

News flash - Class 2 cards are -SLOW-. They -may- meet the minimum bit rate for streaming audio and low res video, but sheesh - most of them are 3 year old tech.

Class 4 is available in 32GB. I have a Kingston 32GB class 4 and it's OK, but isn't exactly fast.

Class 6 cards are generally 1.5x faster than class 4 cards.

As far as I can tell from the reviews I found:
The fastest SDHC card currently available is the Sandisk 32GB Extreme III. It is VERY expensive.
The Patriot Class 10 is the 2nd fastest SDHC card on the planet. It isn't expensive. It is not a fake when purchased through a reliable retailer.

A new contender is coming out from Toshiba that promises read/write well in excess of the Pandora's bus.

Why is everyone so bent on chasing class 2 and class 4 cards when the price difference for speed is only 10%?

I'm looking forward to when we have more people with consoles so we can run some actual benchmarks to see what card really is the fastest in them.

The Patriot Memory card is very tempting (the main reason I say tempting is because I seen a few reviews where they had trouble with them until they got their cameras firmware updated.), but like you said I would like to see some of the cards tested on an actual Pandora to see how they compare. Right now I have a 16GB Class 4 and was looking at getting a couple class 6 32GB cards but if the Patriot LX performs that well I'll just buy 2 of them for extra $10 a piece.

 

[BCable]

If you only need the card o store your music collection, don't waste your money on a Class 6 card. You'll never see the benefit.

I'll probably settle with Class 4, then. As an example of how fast my collection grows, earlier today when I first made this post it was at 26GB. Now it's at 28GB. I guess I'll have to buy a couple of 32GBs since 64GBs aren't possible. Would it be possible to RAID 0 these things together on the Pandora? I assume that it should since it's basically just another Linux install.

 

[Wheels]

If you only need the card o store your music collection, don't waste your money on a Class 6 card. You'll never see the benefit.

I'll probably settle with Class 4, then. As an example of how fast my collection grows, earlier today when I first made this post it was at 26GB. Now it's at 28GB. I guess I'll have to buy a couple of 32GBs since 64GBs aren't possible. Would it be possible to RAID 0 these things together on the Pandora? I assume that it should since it's basically just another Linux install.

It's not viable because the memory bus caps out well under those speeds. From what I've read around the forums before you'd be lucky to get even Class 6 performance instead of Class 4 regardless of the card's rated speed.