Low price. Does an excellent job at moving files from an SD card(SDHC) for my digital camera to my PC using USB port. No complaint. Well, the cap pops out easily. I guess if you are not careful you could probably lose it. Not really a problem for me. I used it for a few months now and the cap is still there. Transcend P5 9-in-1 USB 2.0 Flash Memory Card Reader TS-RDP5K (Black)
When using a digital camera, the Transcend 9-in-1 allows you to forget all the cumbersome cables that comes with your camera ...it's also very transportable so you can easily pack this in your camera bag without adding to your bulk. There are times when you take just a few photos and want to share them with a friend or upload on Flickr or other hosting site, just remove your memory card and insert it into the 9-in-1 and plug it into a laptop, netbook, or desktop computer!...essentially with the memory card, it becomes a usb flash drive. No need for special cords, no need for special software, just upload and go. And since this takes a number of different cards (including cellphone micro SD cards or blackberry memory cards, you can just fit the card to the 9-in-1 and upload pictures, data, whatever and use it as you would use any flash drive...it's now all I use when transferring pictures or data when using a camera, cellphone or blackberry.
The small form factor makes the P5 a stylish accessory in my digital camera case. The P5 permits me to transfer SDHC memory card data from my digital camera at USB2.0 rates. It has a sleek stylish look. No cables are needed with the P5.
Since another reviewer indicated this P5 card reader transfers data only at USB1.1 (700-900 KB/sec) rates and not at USB2.0 (12-15 MB/sec) rates, I conducted the following transfer speed demonstrations.
I used a Transcend SDHC (16 GB) flash memory card loaded with 1.13 GB of files (3 MPEG-4 clips ~ 300MB each, 24 JPEG ~ 1 MB each). If reading this amount of data through the Transcend card reader works only at USB1.1 rates, then reading these files should take about 19 minutes. If it reads data at USB2.0 rates, then reading these files should take between 1-2 minutes. For this test, the data transfer from the SDHC through the P5 to a macbook pro took right at 60 seconds. This translates into 18.8 MB/sec average transfer rate for reading. Clearly, the Transcend P5 Card reader is capable of USB2.0 high-speed data transfers.
After deleting the files on the SDHC memory card, I timed how long it took to write 1.13 GB (same set of files) from the macbook pro back to the memory card. For this second test, the write transfer time for 1.13GB was 105 seconds. This translates into 10.7 MB/sec average transfer rate for writing. Clearly, the Transcend P5 Card reader is capable of USB2.0 high-speed data transfers in either direction.
Why buy: The USB interface permits this card reader to be compatible with nearly every computer on the planet. The P5 fits easily in my digital camera case. Transfer speed is great!
First off I want to say I ordered 2 of these and they both preform to the same levels. I tested them against each other and against other SD card readers using a class 10 card.
Pros:
They work. There easy to use and compact enough for camera bag travel. Plus the blue LED is a nice touch.
Cons:
Slow speed (700-900KB/sec. (See explanation below)
Might not fit in to the front ports on some computers due to computer manufactures compact designs. Not really Transcend's fault, just a note.
Ok, so I'm not sure what I expected for the price of these readers, just that they preform as posted. They are USB 2.0 Compliant and will work on a 2.0 system, however they are not capable of USB 2.0 Speed. I have tested them both against 2 other adapters and on 2 USB hubs in my system and they preform at the USB 1.1 standard. I reliably get 700-900KB/sec read out of these moving 8+MB pictures off of them. When I plug in my other reader (the one I thought I lost) I get the proper USB 2.0 speeds of 12-15MB/sec read. It was going to take over 40 minutes to copy over my card. I swapped my reader for my recently found one and it doped to 2 minutes. Enough said. Use Sandisk MicroMate SD/SDHC Reader (Black) instead to get the right speeds (came with an old card but still works great).
Conclusion:
If you only have a USB1.1 system then these are great. I can't think of many computers that are stuck with the old standard any more, but hey there cheep. If you think your buying a "Hi-Speed" adapter then your being misled. It's compatible with 2.0, it just doesn't use the 2.0. Get one that actually transfers at 2.0.
I bought this to read the memory card for my digital camera. It replaced a much larger and more expensive SanDisk "all in one" reader which puked and died for no reason after a year or so of very light use. This unit is very easy to use, just plug it into any USB port and slide your SD card into the slot. You do not need any specialized software or drivers, it just pops in and your PC sees it and will read it like any drive. File transfer was very fast with no problems. When you're done, you can leave it in place or easily pop it out and stick it in your pocket, kit bag etc. I'm using it on an older Dell desktop running Windows XP. I also used it in my wife's HP Laptop running Windows Vista Premium and it worked like a charm. I highly recommend it.
I used this to read and recover erased files, which I had accidently deleted from my camera's memory card. As long as you DON'T record files over the erased files or format the memory card, you can in most cases recover deleted files. I found a very nice completely FREE program called "RECUVA" that I downloaded and used to recover my pics. I highly recommend this if you have deleted or erased files and you need to recover them.
[I found many other programs that were advertised as "free", but in fact would only show you the deleted files, not recover them; you had to go online and buy the activation code or license key at $30 to $60, depending on the program, to actually use their software. Not so with RECUVA] - All In One Usb Card Reader - Sd Card Reader - Usb Card Reader - Multi-card Reader'
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