I want SD Card slot standard on thinkpads just like wireless

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DentdHalo · #1 Post by **DentdHalo** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 1:14 am

Its amazing how many SD cards i have now and how many SD capable items in the house I have. From camcorders, to digital cameras, to two PDAs (Ipaq and a zarus) and now my cell phone (in Japan).

Sure woudl be nice to have an SD slot come standard on the thinkpads.

The price of 1GB SD cards are now as low as 89 bucks.

dpb · #2 Post by **dpb** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 2:08 am

Totally agree.

lfeagan · #3 Post by **lfeagan** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 3:01 am

My personal vote is for compact flash...but honestly, the adapters to PCMCIA aren't exactly expensive, esp for compact flash they tend to run about 10 bucks. SD would also be good.

DentdHalo · #4 Post by **DentdHalo** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 3:10 am

lfeagan wrote:My personal vote is for compact flash...but honestly, the adapters to PCMCIA aren't exactly expensive, esp for compact flash they tend to run about 10 bucks. SD would also be good.

Boooo compact flash!

Everything I use is SD, havnt come across much CF items. But I do know they are out there!

Yes sure I can throw in a 10 dollar 6 in 1 card reader, that can do sony memory stick, SD, CF, MicroDrive and what not, but its just nice to not have your PCMCIA slot filled all the time with one of those card readers. Call me picky but i like having it built in.

I think its clear (at least in my eyes) that SD Cards are the small form factor memory devices for most people, other than Sony users.

lfeagan · #5 Post by **lfeagan** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 3:20 am

Everything I use is CF, digital camera and all the small network appliances I custom build are all CF based. PDA uses CF too. I find CF's native ATA interface to be particularly easy to deal with while programming low-level functionality with no OS to help with things.

apoll0 · #6 Post by **apoll0** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 3:29 am

Don't ask a company to build a standard reader to a market that is NOT standard. Not everybody use SD, and yes, there are people with CF. My old HP laptop came with an SD card reader built in. It was nice to have for about a week, after which it sits there and collect dust because I don't use SD cards.

But for those who prefer, yes, IBM should give us an option to choose models that meet our needs cause we're all unique

. Just don't standardize something like that and make us CF users jealous

Plinkerton · #7 Post by **Plinkerton** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 3:55 am

I think they should put it in as an option, but I'm glad they don't have them. I would use it sometimes, as I do have a digital camera, but really, not enough to make it worth it.

I'd rather not have something I don't really need on there, then have to deal with the occasional use of my mini SD card reader from Crucial.

Elhabash · #8 Post by **Elhabash** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 12:01 pm

By reading the posts you can see why no card reader is built in: Too many "standards".
I use CF, and wouldn't want any other slot I don't use. Other people use different cards, so I am happy with the PCMCIA adapter for $10.

On the other hand a serial port would be nice, since many scientific devices use it, and an USB adapter doesn't work all the time...

lfeagan · #9 Post by **lfeagan** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 12:01 pm

Elhabash wrote:...
On the other hand a serial port would be nice, since many scientific devices use it, and an USB adapter doesn't work all the time...

Dude, you totally mentioned my BIGGEST pet peeve of all time. Notebooks without serial ports but that still have parallel ports. I don't know why companies fail to understand that serial ports are very useful for many people. I would much rather have my serial ports back over the lousy parallel port. I have three different USB-Serial adapters b/c every system I have seems to have different levels of ability to play nicely with them and no one USB-Serial adapter has been a silver bullet for working universally with no issues with any devices for me thus far.

Plinkerton · #10 Post by **Plinkerton** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 12:27 pm

I want a serial port also. I would much prefer that over a parallel port or SD card reader. It does kind of suck they they don't have them.

dr.b · #11 Post by **dr.b** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 1:32 pm

Ok, you get your ports, so give me firewire

Elhabash · #12 Post by **Elhabash** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 2:20 pm

Yes, that would be nice, too. With the saved space of the dumped parallel port, right next to the new serial port!

skanky · #13 Post by **skanky** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 2:45 pm

i'll take a 6pin firewire. wouldnt mind charging and transferring music to my ipod

aleung · #14 Post by **aleung** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 6:30 pm

oops.. I just notice T4x don't have serial.. come on.. we need serial.
i used 1 dell laptop from work before.. no serial. how can i hook up to sun/cisco box to have console ?

dbonds · #15 Post by **dbonds** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 7:32 pm

aleung wrote:oops.. I just notice T4x don't have serial.. come on.. we need serial.
i used 1 dell laptop from work before.. no serial. how can i hook up to sun/cisco box to have console ?

You need a USB to serial dongle. I have one from Belkin that I carry around in my bag for exactly that purpose (console on network equipment and servers).

FWIW, I also have a compact flash PC card reader and a "multi-card" reader (SD, MMC, MS, Smart Media) in my two PCMCIA slots. CF for my digital camera and SD for my PDA. As I don't have a need for any other PC cards, I personally consider that a pretty good compromise as I just leave them in the slots and they don't add any bulk. However, I'd really like to have a serial port without having to carry around that stupid serial-USB dongle.

Daniel

Plinkerton · #16 Post by **Plinkerton** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 8:37 pm

Yeah, I want a serial port, and a firewire port. That would be cool. i can do without the SD card.

I actually just went a got a PCMCIA card today, SD card reader thingie, because of this thread.

It's now like I have a permanant sd card reader built in. Is there any reason I shouldn't leave this in for extended periods of time?

DentdHalo · #17 Post by **DentdHalo** » Thu Nov 18, 2004 8:38 pm

I'll support having the Serial port still available instead of the stuipd parallel port.

down with the parallel port!! Hell most printers have USB now.

BTW my searching on the internet yieled this resource. Seems as if they have one of the better USB to serial adapters out there.

http://pfranc.com/cgi-bin/P/USB_G4

CChoi83 · #18 Post by **CChoi83** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 1:09 am

Forget all that stuff. They need to figure out a way to integrate a coffee machine in to the TP.

BTW, YES, they seriously NEED to put a 9-pin serial port instead of the parallel port in.

Plinkerton · #19 Post by **Plinkerton** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 1:49 am

They should have a coffee maker. I mean, they already have the cup holder...

nello · #20 Post by **nello** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 2:43 am

Agree!

lfeagan · #21 Post by **lfeagan** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 3:19 am

As far as the coffee maker goes...it already has the heating element built in! If you play a game ever on your Thinkpad I am sure you know just how hot they can get

And then combine that with some CD-ROM vibration and you could get some good agitation going too!

dr.b · #22 Post by **dr.b** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 3:28 am

serial ata...

best would be a upgradable connection module for the board.

lfeagan · #23 Post by **lfeagan** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 3:41 am

Alvisio wil have SATA.

lvlolvlo · #24 Post by **lvlolvlo** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 7:15 am

I would love an Sd card reader in my thinkpad. I have a 1gb sd card for my 6315 and transfering files via active sync is kinda slow, esp on bluetooth.

dbonds · #25 Post by **dbonds** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 8:30 am

I think we need to be clear that the coffee maker should also include a coffee *grinder*... and none of that USB attached external device stuff either.

But seriously, another vote for down with the parallel port too. I can appreciate that a business user might need to connect to a printer, but:

1) How often do you need to parallel port attach to a printer when you couldn't just network share from a stationary computer / print server?
2) As many have mentioned, lots of printers are going USB now anyway (an interface that's meant to be plugged and unplugged regularly).
3) If you don't have the ability to print across some network medium (perhaps this is your only computer), isn't that what port replicators or docking stations are for? It's not like that would ruin the portability of a parallel port attached printer..

It seems there are plenty of typical business uses (IT related) uses for a built in serial, or I could also see dumping both and going with a newer interface for less "business" related uses like firewire for digital movies or portable devices.. but parallel?

BTW, I only say all this because it just seems like an odd choice. I do love my T42 and wouldn't hesitate to buy another one.. even with a parallel port.

Elhabash · #26 Post by **Elhabash** » Sat Nov 20, 2004 7:18 am

DentdHalo, I got the adapter you mentioned, and it doesn't work with all devices as well.

What is another problem ist that COM1 is already taken on the thinkpad, and some devices (older ones) don't accept any other port than COM1...

#27 Post by **JaneL** » Sat Nov 20, 2004 9:45 am

>It seems there are plenty of typical business uses (IT related) uses for a built in serial, or I could also see dumping both and going with a newer interface for less "business" related uses like firewire for digital movies or portable devices.. but parallel?
>

Dongle.

MadeInJapan · #28 Post by **MadeInJapan** » Sat Nov 20, 2004 10:37 am

Ummmm, do need the parallel port. I travel a lot and come accross printers I need to print with that don't have the USB, so keep the parallel port. By the way, I have a Parallel to serial port adapter I carry with me sometimes when I need serial. Don't know who made it....have had it for years....since Win95 days, but it works great.

beeblebrox · #29 Post by **beeblebrox** » Sun Nov 21, 2004 1:42 pm

Only recently I saw a laptop (Samsung?) that had an integrated card reader, just one slot that took all cards. This is what I miss on my TP.

I think serial ports are so outdated and their only use is in some technical areas where you need control an RS.232 device.

However, Thinkpads are business tools, and in almost every office I worked there was a laser printer that was attached with a parallel port. Only the very newest printers had also USB (very rarely!). So I am glad that parallel is still on board. However, Firewire is a MUST on the next generation. But, to be honest, looking around my T40p there is no space for at all.

aleung · #30 Post by **aleung** » Sun Nov 21, 2004 11:16 pm

well.. a lot of tech people using thinkpad.. if ibm businese oriented. i think a lot of tech people may move to Dell ?

I want SD Card slot standard on thinkpads just like wireless

I want SD Card slot standard on thinkpads just like wireless

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