There are many options today for laptops, and one of them is having a built-in card reader, notice I said option there, that’s because it’s not a standard thing on all laptops, even though you would think it would be. What do you do if you have a laptop that didn’t come with a card reader? Well you could use a USB type reader, but then you’ll loose a USB port, and if you’re like me those are in use all the time for one thing of another. Today for review I have a great option that uses a free PCMCIA slot, most people don’t even use their slots so why not utilize it if possible to add some functionality to your laptop? The 5-in-1 PCMCIA Multi Card Reader from USBGeek is just the thing to do this, it adds the ability to read several types of memory card while freeing up those precious USB ports.

USBGeek 5-in-1 PCMCIA Multi Card Reader

Reviewed by: Kristofer Brozio AkA Dracos

Sponsor: USBGeek

Tech Specs,Features or the Basic Info:

USBGeek 5 in 1 PCMCIA Multi Card Reader

Features: 

Compatible with PC card Type II slots.

Support MS, MS Pro, SD, MMC, xD

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True plug & play, and hot swapping.

View, edit, and copy photos/data/music.

No driver us needed for Windows 98SE, ME, 2000, XP, Mac OS 9.X or Above.

Compatible with Notebook.

Rugged and reliable stainless cover.

Dimension: 85.6 x 54.0 x 5.0mm

Weight: 30g

Price: US$ 22.00

A Better Look at Things

:

The 5-in-1 PCMCIA Multi Card Reader from USBGeek comes in an easy to open plastic clamshell though which we can easily see the reader itself.

On the back of the package we find the features and specs listed.

The PCMCIA 5-in-1 Adapter is small, the size of a standard PCMCIA card, and actually when installed it sits flush with your computers case.

One end of the adapter has the PCMCIA connection while the other has the card slot.

Nothing else is included in the package, just the reader, no drivers are needed for installation, and all you have to do is slide the card into your free PCMCIA slot, so there is really no need for instructions either.

Installation, Testing and Comparison

As I said installation is very easy, of course if you laptop has the PCMCIA plastic protectors you’ll need to remove one, and then slide the 5-in-1 PCMCIA Multi Card Reader from USBGeek into the open slot, all done, no drivers, no nothing.

To use the card reader all you have to do is insert a card, then Windows will recognize it and automatically install it as a reader and then access the inserted card.

I was curious to see how the PCMCIA adapter compared to what I normally used, a USB style card reader so I fired up HDTach from SimpliSoftware and ran a couple tests on my PNY 256Mb SD Card. My laptop is an older one, but for the basic stuff I use it for it is more than enough. It is a Dell Latitude C640 with 1.8Ghz P4m CPU, it only has a USB 1.1 port on it so no USB 2.0, I think that’s the only drawback to this laptop for general use. Anyway, here’s the scores:

Average Read and Burst are the higher the better and Random Access is lower the better. We can see that the PCMCIA card reader is actually a bit better than the USB 1.1 reader especially when it comes to the Random Access, but for the most part they are pretty much even.

Overall not too bad, I personally welcome this little gadget as something that is very much needed for my laptop, and I’m sure quite a few others out there will agree with me.

Summary:

The 5-in-1 PCMCIA Multi Card Reader from USBGeek is one of those must have gadgets, pretty much everything out there today uses some sort of memory card and if your laptop does not feature a card reader then you have to use a USB Reader. This product is a welcome addition to my collection of things that I now carry with my laptop, but this one can remain installed in my computer without having to worry about loosing it. It truly is a useful product that adds functionality to you computer while utilizing a PCMCIA port that most people don’t use anyway.

DragonSteelMods gives the 5 in 1 PCMCIA Multi Card Reader a 5 out of 5 score and our Recommended Award as well.

Pros:

-Works great

-Small, won’t interfere with other cards

-Adds functionality to your laptop

-Can be left installed for instant access

-Very easy to install

Cons:

-None really

I would like to thank USBGeek for the chance to review the 5 in 1 PCMCIA Multi Card Reader and for their continued support of DSM.