In the old days, you'd carry around a floppy disk that was actually ... floppy. Floppies turned to "hard" floppies (3.5" 1.44MB disks). Blank CD's, DVD's, Flash Drives, Media Careds.... We've got all kinds of storage to choose from, and some people need more than others. I'll give you a bit of a buying guide to help you make some choices for yourself - or others.
For those who are uncertain, yes, "floppies" are long obsolete. In fact, many computers and motherboards no longer have the controllers to install a floppy drive. For those that still have some data on old floppies, there are external USB drives , but most likely you won't have to go this route. I'll also mention tape backups here. This is something that most people won't have to deal with,
Floppies gave rise to the CD ROM . CD's came in two (basic) formats WORM (Write Once Read Many) or rewritable. Some can be reused, others cannot. CDs have a storage capacity of about 700MB. DVDs came out with similar types, though they also added a "dual layer" disc, getting 4.7 or 9.4GB respectively.
Memory cards and flash drives would come about, increasing over time in size and quality. MP3 players, PDA's, digital cameras, and such took advantage of these little cards for additional storage. Unlike a CD, files could be added and removed at will. Over time, prices would come down as newer and "bigger" ones were released. The USB flash drives became great for transporting files, programs, and information in a small package. Students could bring projects and assignments, maybe even storing a semester - or 4 years worth, depending on major - of projects and assignments. Business people could bring presentations without taking a lot of equipment around. Computer techs could bring all of their needed programs in a nice convenient package.
Nowadays, some of the formats are not used quite as often, and some have pretty much gone obsolete. CompactFlash, for instance, had been a staple of digital cameras for a long time, but has since been surpassed by the smaller SD cards, which allow for a smaller, lighter device, and can still store gigabytes of data. Today I'm going to examine CD, DVD, BD, SD, MicroSD, and USB flash drives.
The CDR (or CDRW, if you'd like to re-use them for something other than coasters or decorations) has been around for quite a while. Data capacity hasn't really changed, and there is a fixed amount of information one can put on the discs. Depending on song length, 15-20 songs in audio format; depending on compression, a couple hundred songs in mp3 format; mediocre quality video in VCD format; one movie in 700MB(ish) .avi format; a whole bunch of documents; or photo collections. Most computers have at least the capability of writing to this format, while possibly being able to play more. Blank CDs are fairly inexpensive these days. A spindle of 50 can be purchased for under $15, and even under $10 with periodic sales. They're useful for small archiving projects, or making up audio CDs.
The DVDR comes in several flavors. Purchasers will need to pay attention to the type and limitations of their burner to know specifically which kind they need to purchase. There are DVD+R, DVD-R, DVDRAM, DVD+RW, DVD-RW, etc. The basic 4.7GB DVDR can easily hold a playable movie, or several movies in .avi format (for backup purposes or home movies). They can also hold a significantly greater amount of data than a CDR (nearly 7x the capacity). 9.4GB Dual Layer DVD's will hold twice as much. DVD+R tend to be a little more expensive, but DVD-R discs trend to be a bit more than CDs. Periodically they can be found on the same sales, same prices, but with twice as many CDs as DVDs for the price. This deal from Tiger Direct is a pretty good one, though, with 200 DVD-R discs for under $50 - if you need that many, of course.
Blu-ray technology is relatively new upon us, and we now have the ability to burn data discs on Blu-ray media. Blu-ray media is still significantly more expensive than DVD, though. For instance this spindle of 15 discs is going for about $83 shipped. For the price, though, the storage capacity is significant. A dual layer blu-ray disc can hold about 50GB of data. That could easily be used to backup - in highest quality - your entire CD collection. These are good for archiving information to a much smaller location that will be safe, so long as not physically damaged. The price of media should continue to fall, as they become more commonplace on the market.
As we move on to media cards, we have two main ones to focus on today. The MicroSD, and SD (Secure Digital) card. Without getting into the mechanicals, the big difference is physical size, and to a lesser degree storage capacity. MicroSD cards are often used in smartphones and for tablets. They can be adapted to run in full size SD card readers by means of an adapter. These adapters resemble the SD card, but with a spot on the "top" into which your microSD card is inserted. The small size allows for the use is smaller devices, while still providing adequate storage capacity. Currently the storage capacity is 32GB, which can sell for as low as $24, though online - or in-store - sales may bring them cheaper on any given day.
The larger "regular" SD card is about the size of a postage stamp, and current capacities have them capable of holding about 64GB of data. These are used in cameras and camcorders, and other portable devices. They are one of the most common type on the market, and included in many notebook & netbook designs. Smaller microSD cards may be read in these readers through a special adapter (see above) which will fit into these slots. 32GB cards can go for about $20, or more, again periodic sales may yield lower prices at some online or retail stores. 4GB cards can be found on sale for about $5, if you watch local fliers.
The last thing to look at is the USB Flash Drive. There is a lot of flexibility with these, both in size and shape. They can be sold as basic as a "stick" with a USB connector on them. There are small (capacity) ones available for a couple bucks. Currently there is a 128GB drive available, but the $123.04 price tag is significantly steeper than the $33.98 price tag of a 64GB drive. (Source, Pricewatch.com 1:45 12/17/2012) More common 4, 8 & 16 GB drives are available for much less. Because the region on which data is stored is fairly small, manufacturers have been able to have some fun with the creation of themed flash drives. They have been camoflaged in jewelry, shaped as toys, or even as characters from popular programs or games - like these Angry Birds themed flash drives. This has allowed for a bit of fun, along with storage capacity.
Whether you're buying for yourself, maybe to get a new camera card to take family pictures, or looking for accessories to go with a gift, storage media is useful and practical.
Hope you enjoyed this, check back for the next gift idea!
No comments:
Post a Comment