SmartMedia Cards Explained

A SmartMedia card is a type of flash memory card created by Toshiba. It was first launched in 1995 as a successor to the floppy disk. As one of the oldest types of portable media formats still in use today, it is slowly but surely being out-shined by more advanced technology.
 
Still, many desktop and laptop computers have SmartMedia slots built in. Although they are an older version of flash memory cards, the multi-card readers in newer computers are also compatible with SmartMedia cards.
 
When it was first introduced, the SmartMedia Card was one of the smallest and thinnest of the early smart cards. The first Smart Media cards also worked with what's called a FlashPath adapter, making it possible to use them in old floppy drives. SmartMedia Cards reached their peak in 2001 by capturing approximately half of the digital camera market.

Flash Memory Cards

As mentioned, a SmartMedia card is type of flash memory card. A flash memory card is a small electronic device that stores data and can be used with digital cameras, computers, phones, PDAs, mp3 players, video game consoles and many other electronic devices. The technical definition of flash memory is a non-volatile computer memory that can be electrically erased and reprogrammed. So what does that mean?
 
Non-volatile memory (NVM), or non-volatile storage, simply means computer memory that retains the stored information even when it’s not powered. This is different than a computer’s primary storage (RAM or random access memory), which is lost when the computer is shut down.
 
Flash memory cards are convenient storage devices because they are reusable. You can save data on the card, delete it, then use the card again to save other files. Flash memory cards are also convenient because they are small, require no extra power and have better shock resistance than hard disks. They are also a great way to transfer data between devices.

Advantages of SmartMedia Cards

The biggest advantage of SmartMedia cards is that you don’t have to record or erase the entire card at once. Instead, you can select specific data to save or delete as necessary. This feature helped SmartMedia cards corner the digital camera market since users could select specific photos to keep or delete from the cards.

Downsides of the SmartMedia Card

The biggest downside is the limited capacity of these cards – they can only hold up to 128MB of storage. In the early days this wasn’t a problem, but as technology has advanced, the SmartMedia Card hasn’t kept up with larger capacity flash memory cards.
 
In addition, with the shrinking size of portable devices, SmartMedia cards are now too big to be compatible. Unfortunately, the smart card designers never even considered this possibility – or the need for more than 128MB of storage, since that was already so much larger than floppy disks.
Newer technology has now replaced SmartMedia cards. Current popular types of smart cards include XD cards and SD cards.
 
These cards have faster transfer rates, sturdier casing, and higher storage capacities. Toshiba and other manufacturers have now discontinued the SmartMedia Card format, which has driven up the price of the existing supplies. On EBay, the 128MB size card costs roughly $60, while many media stores no longer sell them at all.
 
Resource
 
Supermediastore.com (n.d.). What Is Smart Media Card? Retrieved March 12, 2008. from the Supermediastore Web site.