ePorter Memory Card eReaders

Gadgeteer Hands On Review by Judie Hughes

June 20, 2006

One of the results of my sending out that blanket Linked-In email last month was that I got replies from people I had not corresponded with in ages. One of those respondents, James Porter, happens to be the inventor of a product that I reviewed last year, the handy  iPorter xSD Memory Card Case. He mentioned that he had two new products on his site, and asked if I would like to give them a try. These new ePorter products are compact USB readers that accept various flash memory cards.

The first reader we'll talk about is the Single Slot SD / MMC USB Card eReader. According to the web site blurb, "This handy USB 2.0 card reader allows you to swap files fast. No driver required for Win2000/ME/XP, Mac OS 9.x & 10.x Reads and writes to SD/MMC without adapter. Will read and write to RS-MMC/MiniSD/Micro SD with adapter."

The card reader measures approximately 3" long x 1.3' wide x 0.5' thick, and it weighs just 0.7 ounces. It is available in either red with brushed aluminum trim, or green with brushed aluminum trim as seen here.

One end is a cap that when removed reveals the USB connector.

The other end features a hinged lid that covers the SD/MMC slot.

The hinged lid will snap closed, protecting and completely enclosing any inserted SD sized card or adapter.

The hole visible in the aluminum clad shell is actually an LED status light.

Transfer time for a 161MB music file to an older 256MB SanDisk SD card installed in the reader was 3 minutes 13.60 seconds. Hmmm - that didn't seem very speedy at all! Inserting a much newer SanDisk 1GB MiniSD gave a respectable total of 46.22 seconds to move the same file. So obviously transfer speeds will greatly depend on the particular memory card used.

The Single Slot SD / MMC USB Card eReader retails for $14.95.

The second device sent was the Matrix Multi-slot 2.0 USB Card eReader. This reader is approximately 3.0" long x 1" wide x 0.6" thick and weighs 0.6 ounces and it has a matte silver plastic body with slots for three types of cards, Trans Flash (T Flash) / Micro SD, Memory sticks & SD cards. It is also available in black.

According to the site blurb, "This is the ultimate reader in capability and portability. Multi-slot flash card reader. Reads and writes without adapter to SD/MMC/MiniSD/Micro SD (T-Flash) All styles of Memory Stick, including MS, MS-Duo, MS Pro, MS Pro Duo Turn your card into a full fledged disk drive. No Drivers needed for Win2000/ME/XP, Mac OS 9.x & OS 10.x."

The bottom side of the reader has an indention that looks like it is ready for a branding sticker. This reader would probably be a very welcome form of schwag, should a company be searching for that perfect customer appreciation give-away.

The reader will accept T-Flash cards / micro SD cards without an adapter, as well as SD/MMC cards, Memory Sticks and any of the smaller cards that can fit in adapters made to fit those two larger slots. Worth noting is that there is no flashing LED to remind the user when the reader is plugged in or when the cards are being accessed.

Transferring the same 161MB music file to an older 256MB SanDisk SD card installed in the reader gave a time of 3 minutes 20.20 seconds. Inserting a much newer SanDisk 1GB MiniSD gave a total of 53.13 seconds to move the same file. So once again, I reiterate that transfer speeds will depend at least in part upon the particular memory card used.

The Matrix Multi-slot 2.0 USB Card eReader retails for $19.95

And let's not forget the product that started it all, the iPorter xSD Memory Card Case, which I reviewed in April 2005.

As a refresher, the iPorter is a memory card holder which can carry and protect up to three cards.

The iPorter xSD is available in a pack of two for $9.95.

The ePorter line of products are great for anyone that needs a compact and portable way to access media stored on memory cards, or a product that can store said memory cards. These gadgets are attractively priced, and they perform exactly as advertised.

ePorter products may be purchased here.