FujiFilm FinePix digicams - durability of xD-Picture card ..

Archived from groups: rec.photo.digital (More info?)

Hello,

I have a FinePix A203 that I've had since May 2004 that is working fine.
Great little 2MP camera.

Before buying the A203, an on-line reviewer wondered about the durability of
the contacts in xD-Picture card slot (or maybe it was the contacts on the
xD-Picture card itself) over numerous insert/eject cycles. The reviewer
thought that it might be wise to merely use the provided USB cable to
download pictures from the camera rather the using a media card reader.

Anyway, for $20Cdn I couldn't pass up getting SanDisk's 8-in-1 ImageMate so
I could more easily transfer data from the cards to the PC. I'm just curious
if numerous xD-Picture card insert/eject cycles in the A203 or other FinePix
cameras is a genuine concern? Or, will I tire of the camera long before I
have to worry about the component durability?

Thanks.

Ken

Archived from groups: rec.photo.digital (More info?)

My Fuji S5000 has just clocked up 26000 photos...
After ever 200 or so (when the card is full) I rip the xD out and throw it
in my Card Reader... it hasn't failed me yet...

Cheers,
Richard


"ASAAR" <caught@22.com> wrote in message
news:5j4lg1ts8fbb7ltgbqeh55dblrtoer751t@4ax.com...
> On Mon, 22 Aug 2005 22:40:12 -0400, Ken Hartlen wrote:
>
>> I'm just curious if numerous xD-Picture card insert/eject cycles
>> in the A203 or other FinePix cameras is a genuine concern? Or,
>> will I tire of the camera long before I have to worry about the
>> component durability?
>
> The number of insert/remove cycles is not a concern. The joints
> in your fingers, wrists and elbows will fail first. Chalk it up to
> a reviewer that needed to fill space and had nothing better to say.
>

Archived from groups: rec.photo.digital (More info?)

"Richard" <richard@kinky.cx> wrote in message
news:430d592f$1@news.eftel.com...
> My Fuji S5000 has just clocked up 26000 photos...
> After ever 200 or so (when the card is full) I rip the xD out and throw it
> in my Card Reader... it hasn't failed me yet...

Wow 26000 pix with one card.

I have several cards (16MB, 32MB, 5x64MB, and a 256MB) so I guess I
shouldn't be overly concerned about FujiFilm's statement:

"The memory card can be used reliably for a long period of time, but will
eventually lose its ability to store and play back image data."

After reading this in the A203 manual, I thought it wise to put aside some
unused cards in the event the xD-Picture card format falls out of favour.
This became more of a concern when I noticed in recent months that some of
the chain stores (Zellers, Future Shop) seem to be reluctant to restock
xD-Picture cards.

Ken