14 DAY TRIAL // SanDisk Corporation announced the launch of a new line of flash memory based products, the SanDisk Express, which are all aimed at the high performance video and photo market segments where speed, durability and reliability are most demanded. The new line of products achieves such high performance marks as it is based on the innovative ExpressCard technology standard.
The SanDisk ExpressCard is one of the first products of the new line and it is in fact a flash memory card which was specially designed to meet the demands of the latest generation of camcorders that use the ExpressCard standard in order to store and transfer data rather than magnetic tapes or hard disk drives and optical mediums. The new product from SanDisk is expected to become widely available in November and it will come with 8 and 16GB storage capacities, which would translate into a recording time of around 30 minutes for the 8GB model and approximately 60 minutes for the 16Gb version when using the high-definition video capture mode.
The new media storage card will be integrated and supported by camcorders manufactured by Sony, as the two companies jointly developed the SxS standard, a technical specification that verifies the support of high speed data transfers by the ExpressCard memories. The newest SanDisk ExpressCard memory carries the SxS logo and the manufacturing company expects it to be fully compatible with the XDCAM EX camera built by Sony.
''With the SanDisk ExpressCard, professional videographers for the first time will have access to a high-speed, solid-state digital recording solution,'' said Wes Brewer, vice president of SanDisk's Cards and Accessories Division. ''What's more, because the PCI Express interface is an open industry standard, and because of the continuing decline in the cost of flash, we expect other video equipment manufacturers to adopt this compelling new format.''
The ExpressCard is a relatively new standard created by the Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA for short) as the proffered method and successor of the now old and obsolete PC Card file transferring standard. The main advantage of the new standard over the PC Card is derived from the fact that it directly connects to the PCI Express system bus and so it is able to achieve much higher data transferring rates. As the ExpressCard is also much thinner than the old standard, it contributes to the overall slim design favored by most mobile computing manufacturing companies.
Thanks to the fact that the SanDisk ExpressCard uses a solid state drive in order to store data, overall the card is much smaller and lighter than similar products which are based on a traditional hard disk drive and above all, the flash memory needs a lot less power to operate so the camcorders' battery life is improved. As there are no moving parts inside the ExpressCard, the general design of the camcorders is also simplified because they will no longer need the mechanisms required for turning tape reels.
When it will be launched, in November, the SanDisk ExpressCard will be priced according to its storing capacity, so the 8GB model will come with a price tag of $499.99 in the United States, while the bigger 16GB version will cost $899.99.