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There have been many reviews of this product in recent weeks...all with good reason. However, the Brando 55-in-1 Card Reader is not just for tech-heads. In today's world, with its ever-changing memory paradigms, this device is brings real benefit to any person with personal electronics...or (make that especially) children.
Let's start with my collection of memory media: a hodge-podge of SD cards from digital cameras, old MP3 players, and outgrown Treo cards (64MB, 128MB, 512MB and 1GB). That's a lot of storage space, that I don't like to cart around with me...but hate to see wasted...what to do? I had always wanted to use the cards to back up files from the old (but still very good) Win98 PC shared by my wife and son. Although I use an external hard drive on my own (business and blog-centric) PC, I don't consider the 'spare' PC worth the cost. That's where these spare cards could be handy. Backing up digipix from my wife's Canon ELPH, and key program files (especially the Palm files for my wife's Zire and my son's Treo).
Previously, I had managed my SD cards via my Treo and the terrific app, Softick Card Export II. However, it was too cumbersome an arrangement to be efficient for real memory card management. When I got the 55-in-1 Card Reader, it all fell into place. I just plug it into the powered USB hub on the old PC with my selected SD card, and it immediately shows up in WinExplorer as an external drive. This allows me to do a simple drop n' drag operation. I then take the Reader back to my desk, and file away the cards until the next backup session (I promise to get them a backup HD when I replace their machine!).
However, the Reader showed its real value to the 'average' household this Christmas Eve. My wife and I hosted her family's annual Christmas Open House, and we had relatives and friends from as far away as California, Texas and Florida cramming into the old homestead. Not only did they bring their kids...they brought their kids' MP3 players, and their own digicams...loaded with SD cards, mini SD cards and Memory Sticks. As pix were taken and shown, everyone wished they could take copies away with them.
55-in-1 Card Reader to the rescue! Limiting each family unit to 1 member each, I brought them into my office, used the reader to bring each group's photos into my PC, and then let each group select which pix they wanted to take home with them.
For those with memory cards (and spare capacity), I simply did the old drag 'n drop, courtesy of my Brando Reader. For those who didn't have digital cameras or memory card capacity, I quickly burned CD-ROMs with their selected pix. Once I was finished, I thought that it was a job well done...right? WRONG!
My son and his cousins came down to my office en masse...brandishing their iPODS, SanDisk Sansas, Zunes (not too bad!), and Sony Walkmen. They all had music files they wanted to swap...and 'could you please do it, Daddy?' Faster then you could say 'Scrooge is meanie', I was loading cards of every type, and wielding iTunes and Win MediaPlayer like a madman.
While an extreme example, this kind if file/format swap will become more and more commonplace as these personal devices continue to permeate our homes and lifestyles. As a platform to enable simple fast and stable management of the growing memory card formats, I have found the Brando 55-in-1 Card Reader to be a champ. When you add in that at only $28 (USD) its very easy on the wallet, its obvious why I have named it a Treo Editor Choice product