Differences in XD Memory Cards

The xD memory card was developed in 2002 by the Fuji and Olympus companies for use in digital cameras. The card is tiny, measuring 1 inch by 1 inch by 2/3 inch, and is offered with a capacity of either 512 MB, 1 GB or 2 GB. Since it was developed by Fuji and Olympus, these companies have used this memory card in most of their newer generation cameras. There are four basic configurations of this card: the standard xD Type-S, the xD Type-H, the xD Type-M and the xD Type-M+.

Standard xD

This is the first generation of the xD picture card. Both Olympus and Fuji offered this card in capacities of 32 MB, 64 MB, 128 MB, 256 MB and 512 MB. By today's standards, this card is slow. This card will display "xD" on the front of the card. This card does not support the current generation software available on Olympus cameras (Panorama and 3D).

Fuji then developed the Type-H xD card. The primary difference between this and the previous card is that this one is 1.5 times faster than the standard xD. This is useful when snapping photographs in quick succession or when the digital camera is in video mode. This card will display an "H" on the front.

Olympus developed the xD Type-M, which stands for "Multi-Level Cell". This card has a theoretical maximum capacity of 8 MB, although they are currently limited to 2 GB. They are slower then the xD Type-H but faster than the standard xD. This card will display an "M" on the front of the card. This card, like the standard xD, does not support the newer generation of software in Olympus cameras and therefore will not process Panorama or 3D imaging.

The newest generation xD card from Olympus is the Type-M+ card. This memory card transfers data up to 1.5 times faster than both standard xD and the M card. In addition, the embedded serial number allows the 3D mode in the camera software in Olympus cameras to be activated, something which neither standard xD or the M card will not do. It also allows longer movie recording times in resolutions of up to 640 by 480 at 30 frames per second. The M+ card also supports the new generation of Olympus software found in newer cameras which offer Panorama picture storage. Other xD cards do not.