SanDisk ImageMate 12-in-1 USB 2.0 Flash Memory Card Reader SDDR-89-A15

SanDisk is a well known manufacturer of flash memory and associated devices. Memory flash cards are now part of nearly anything electronic that stores user data. From digital cameras to digital music players (even cell phones), the memory flash card is the way these devices record their data.The SanDisk SDDR-89-A15 is one of the products in their "ImageMate" memory reader line. It is a 12-in-1 reader, which integrates with your personal computer flawlessly. No drivers are needed to connect this device with your Windows PC (assuming you are running Windows 2000 or newer). It is a USB 2.0 compliant device, but is backwards compatible with USB 1.1 (although at slower transfer rates). The drive does come with a driver utility disk, in case you wish to take advantage of the one-touch transfer button, on the top (or side, if you have it mounted vertically) of the drive. This button will allow you to transfer, print, e-mail, or view the contents of your flash card, by simply pushing the button. However, most of us do not have much use for this feature, and therefore adding the extra software to your computer is completely unnecessary.The SanDisk SDDR-89-A15 ImageMate 12-in-1 Reader is compatible with the follow flash card formats:1. CompactFlash®2. CompactFlash® II3. SD(tm)4. SDHC(tm)5. miniSD(tm)6. miniSDHC(tm)7. MultiMediaCard(tm)8. MMCplus(tm)9. MMCmobile(tm)10. RS-MMC(tm)11. RS-MMC Dual Voltage(tm)12. Memory Stick(tm)13. Memory Stick Duo(tm)14. Memory Stick PRO(tm)15. Memory Stick PRO Duo(tm)16. SmartMedia(tm)17. xD18. xD Type M19. xD Type HSome other card formats can still be used with this reader, such as the MicroSD cards, but would require the use of an adapter.Overall I am extremely happy with this card reader. Simply plugging it into an open USB port, on my Windows XP computer, prompted Windows to detect new hardware, and it installed drivers within Windows and automatically added 4 new drive letters in Windows Explorer. My only complaint is that sometimes Windows seems to lose track of this card reader, after the computer has gone to sleep. The drive letters still appear in "My Computer" and Windows Explorer, but when I insert a card it is not detected by Windows. I can't really blame SanDisk for this problem though, as I'm sure it has something to do with the operating system, or the power management of my PC itself.For those of you that are still plugging your digital cameras into your computer, using a USB cable, stop wasting the batteries in your camera and simply purchase this great flash card reader. You can then pop out your memory card, insert it in the reader, and you will have instant access to all of your photos immediately. And the transfer rate between this reader and your computer will be so much better than the time it takes to transfer data from your camera to your computer. I highly recommend this reader, and plan to enjoy the convenience of mine for many years to come.

Overall this is a great flash reader, but you need to be careful if you use both a USB 2.0 PC adapter card for a laptop and a high capacity flash memory card.I was going to return this to Amazon because at first I couldn't get it to work with my Sandisk Ultra II 2gb card when connected to my laptop via a USB 2.0 PC Card. I have 3 other CF cards of 512mb capacity each, 2 by SimpleTech and 1 by Transcend, and all these would work fine with the ImageMate. But for some reason, the 2gb card would not show up. After much experimentation, I tried connecting a small USB power cord to the USB 2.0 PC card, and finally the Ultra II card worked fine. The cord I used came with the PC card when I bought it, and one end plugs into the card below the 4 USB ports and the other end plugs into my computer's native USB 1.1 ports.Apparently, the ImageMate reader requires a little more power than a laptop PC card adapter can supply on its own to read a higher capacity CF card -- at least the Sandisk Ultra II 2gb card. At first I thought it was a flaw in the ImageMate, but I tried a Lexar 2.0 reader on the same USB 2.0 PC card without the extra cord, and the same thing happened -- it could read lower capacity CF cards but not the 2gb Sandisk Ultra II. When I used the extra cord, the Lexar could read the card just fine.So you only have to worry if you're using a higher capacity card on a hub or PC card that might not supply enough power. If your PC card came with a supplementary power cord, use that. If not, then go buy a PC card adapter that comes with such a cord. If you're using lower capacity CF cards or your computer's native USB ports, you won't have to worry.The speed of this reader is pretty fast. I tested it against the Lexar 2.0 reader I have, and the ImageMate is about 20% faster. I transferred 1.89gb of data from the 2gb card to my computer in 4 minutes and 41 seconds.Don't bother installing the ArcSoft button software they supply with this reader. It didn't do anything special, IMO, but most importantly it caused some hiccups on my Windows XP Pro-SP1 system on shutdown and reboot.This is a well-made, sturdy and attractive reader with a little rubber strip on the bottom so it won't slip, plus a separate cradle. You can use the reader with or without the cradle.If you're looking for a good, fast multi-card reader, this ImageMate will fill the bill.

The good:It's easy to use and gives me the equivalent of four additional disk drives -- F: through I: in my case. It accepts the cards from both of my digital cameras. I've been using it for daily backups, then burning everything to a CD-R once a month or so.It was also handy for transferring necessary files to my spare computer when my main one was going to be down for a few days. The CF card worked just like a diskette for that, only it had much more capacity.I don't remember the installation procedure the first time. It must've gone smoothly or I would've been sure to take notes.The bad:When it quit recently, it took me two days to realize that it wasn't a computer problem (e.g., driver or configuration). I tried uninstalling and reinstalling but repeatedly found myself talking to a Windows (98SE) New Hardware Wizard that claimed it couldn't find any drivers for the new device. By coincidence I'd JUST bought a second unit to use with another computer. I just plugged the new one in in place of the old and Windows proceeded to find the drivers and activate it!It seems to have been discontinued by now. I was going to order the "new, improved" model but noticed something in the specs (don't remember what) that made that one unsuitable for me.By the way, both of the ones I have/had say only "SDDR-89" -- nothing about "A15" that I can find.