Memory cards will become an essential part of mobile technology, as soaring data needs exceed on-board memory capacity.
By 2006, half of all cellphones in use will carry memory slots, says Gary Shap, MD of local SanDisk distributor, Tudor. "This is because of the increased functionality being added to phones."
Photographs, audio, video streaming and gaming will boost memory requirements on phones, adds Shap.
Motorola project manager Brian Burns says half of all Motorola`s phone models for next year will have memory slots, with the impending 3G being a key driver.
"With 3G you can download a lot more, a lot quicker. Multimedia, cameras, storing MP3s - it will all drive memory demand.
"By the end of 2005, I would say that only the low entry-level phones being brought to market will not feature memory slots," says Burns.
With the ever-increasing demand for memory, various offerings are quickly becoming obsolete, says Panasonic junior project manager Gail Fisher. "A year ago, the 16MB and 32MB were our best sellers among digital camera owners. Now, anything smaller than 128MB is dying out."
Shap believes 512MB could soon become the entry-level, and consumers should look to buy a larger card in order to keep up with requirements. "With each size up, the storage capacity doubles, but the price doesn`t. So I would recommend people buy the slightly bigger ones."
Although data requirements continue to rise, the good news is that consumers can expect to see memory card prices drop even further as the economies of scale kick in, says Fisher. "Prices are dropping all the time. In fact, they drop almost every week, and our prices have almost halved in the last year. It`s a very competitive market."
Shap concurs, adding that a 1GB card will now cost R1 000, compared to R3 000 a year ago.
So what`s the catch?
While prices may be plummeting, the lack of standardisation and interoperability in the memory card market remains a key stumbling block.
The problem is twofold, says Shap, as not only are cards being built for a host of different devices, but there is also the lack of vendor interoperability. "Our smallest card for a phone is about the size of a fingernail, whereas our top of the range card has an 8GB capacity, so it is obviously bigger."
More aggravating for the consumer is the lack of interoperability between vendors; an issue that is unlikely to be resolved any time soon, says Fisher. "Sony and Panasonic are two of the big players in this space. Both have different products driving different needs, so I don`t see [brand interoperability] happening soon.
"People will tend to follow either one or the other. It`s a case of brand loyalty, like VHS versus Beta. At present both [Sony and Panasonic] are getting interest from the market, and will likely stick around for a while. However, I don`t think we will see a device that will accept different brands."
With data requirements on mobile devices continuously increasing, coupled with the lack of interoperability, consumers are in danger of spending money on a chip that could soon be obsolete, says Shap.
"Some formats and cards are already falling by the wayside. For example, SanDisk are discontinuing the Smart Media card. So consumers need to be aware of where things are going to ensure the format they invest in won`t fade away.
"I would say either Compact Flash or Secure Digital look like they will be around for a while."
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