Sony now support SD Cards as well as Memory Stick

The term USB Memory Stick is an umbrella term used to describe the plethora of differing Memory Sticks currently available on the market, but it was formally coined by Sony to describe their original removable flash Memory Card format that was initially launched in 1998 to be used in conjunction with Sony portable digital devices. Since then we have witnessed rapid developments in the portable data storage market. For example USB Memory Sticks have been developed for use in conjunction with laptops and PC’s, a move that represents a significant deviation from the originally intended use of the Sony Memory Stick.

In a bid to secure market share, as well as ensuring product conformity throughout the differing ranges of Sony devices, Sony have continued to develop Memory Stick to keep pace with technological advancements in their product ranges whilst other manufacturers of comparable devices have committed to developing SD Cards as an alternative. But just over a year ago Sony shifted the goal posts by beginning to support both SD Cards and Memory Sticks in their most recently developed products. In January 2010 Sony announced that all future Digital Cameras and Camcorders will support both SD Cards and Memory Sticks. This new development is indicative of a clear move towards SD Card usage and marks a distinct deviation from their previously monopolistic approach.

Much has been made of this announcement with some pundits declaring that this move marks the beginning of the end of the Memory Stick format. They support their opinion with some pretty convincing arguments, the most viable of which is the fact that Sony is developing its own range of SD Cards. However, Sony have not as yet abandoned their Memory Stick format and are currently in the process of developing a special Memory Stick Pro Duo with WiFi Transfer capabilities. This level of commitment to developing the technology represents a considerable investment and ultimately indicates that Sony have no intention of moving away from their original format for the foreseeable future.

It is difficult to apprehend what this will mean in terms of market share where the major players in the digital portable device market are concerned. It is clear however, that Sony believes that they are poised to maintain their stronghold regardless of recent developments.

It is much easier to predict what the response will be amongst new consumers and existing users. A standardisation of data storage formats across the portable digital device product ranges will definitely be seen as a cause for celebration. The fact that users will be able to share data from one brand of device to another much more easily in future will simplify things dramatically.

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