FAQ
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MICRODIA is committed to providing the highest level of support for the products it sells. In addition, MICRODIA is also committed to delivering quality services that will enable customers to fully leverage the benefits of the products it sells. The information contained in our FAQ section is intended to provide you with the latest information on known issues and workarounds for common problems.
Sales
Before I sign up, can I visit your factories, please?
• We do a lot of innovative work. Out of necessity, this means confidentiality is key.
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I’m still not interested.
• Why are you not interested?
• Personalised account management and flexible order quantities also play to your strengths and expertise.
• High profit margins and quality are synonymous with comprehensive product range and extensive support at Microdia.
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Who are you – I‘ve never heard of you before?
• MICRODIA Ltd is a leading innovator of mobile data storage solutions that offers the right partner the highest profit margins.
• A comprehensive product range and services provide a total turnkey solution that empowers you to cater to your most profitable target market(s).
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Why do you have only 1 service centre when your competitors have several conveniently-located ones?
• MICRODIA has a defect rate of 0.0001%, which means only one in 100,000 pieces is ever returned.
• This means a product whose aesthetic and functional qualities are very high.
• Hence, only 1 service centre is needed.
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I’m still not convinced regarding defective products.
• MICRODIA has a defect rate of 0.0001%, which means only one in 100,000 pieces is ever returned.
We have a strict quality control and improvement system in place for every stage of our processes. This means any issues are caught and corrected long before they reach our representatives and clients.
• Also in place is the Microdia Warranty that is printed on the packaging. It explains in detail what the end-user should do if they ever need to use the Warranty.
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How do I handle returned defective products?
Ask the user to do the following:
1. Go through the Troubleshooting Guide in detail. NB: Most issues will be resolved at this stage.
2. If (1) is not feasible, a fact-finding process is required.
3. Should (1) and (2) not be able to resolve the issue, the user should email support@microdia.com.
4. If none of the above provides a suitable solution, the product itself should be returned. The return must include the following:
- Product
- Original packaging
- Purchase receipt
- Warranty registration (as proof that warranty was registered in the correct country).
- Signed waiver form that users know and accept that data recovery is not guaranteed at 100%; there will be data loss and/or corruption.
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What guarantee do I have that you can meet demand / deliver?
• 23 years of expertise and experience in the OEM, ODM and OBM industries.
• 5 factories in 3 major manufacturing and export-friendly countries.
• SMT & COB facilities:
- Operated by 500+ engineers
- Anti-static & clean-room Class 1000 environments
• Fully- & semi-automated facilities:
- “Green Project” implemented in all areas
• Certification: ISO 9001:2000
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What’s so good about your products versus your competitors?
• Internationally localized company: MICRODIA drills down into the regional levels and tailors its P&L strategy to the region, thus empowering representatives to perform at their best.
• Innovative and novel products ahead of the competition.
• Largest capacities are available now.
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Why should I carry MICRODIA?
• Dynamic company that reacts to market forces very quickly and is also proactive in the market.
• Accurate vision of future market trends, which translates into having the right product just in time to fully capitalize on the beginning of a trend as it takes off. This is a win/win situation for everyone.
• Comprehensive product range; something to suit everyone.
• Extensive backend support; exclusive, dedicated team.
• High profit margins: market price fluctuations already accounted for in the cost price, therefore adaptable profit margin per market / segment / target.
Flash Memory Cards
How do I recover missing files or accidentally deleted files on flash drive or memory card?
For functional memory cards and flash drives
If the memory card or flash drive is still functional, you can try using a data recovery program. There is a high probability that your data can be recovered after you get an error while using the card, accidentally format it or delete files.
DO NOT attempt to access the flash drive or memory card to another host device, it might overwrite your existing files. You can download a Demo Disk Recovery Program (or purchase an official version). These Recovery Programs will show you what files can be recovered and provide a preview of the files for some common picture file types. The demo versions will require purchase of a license key to enable the feature to save the files. This is an excellent way to see if the program will work before you purchase.
For Non-functional memory cards and flash drives
If your memory card or flash drive is no longer functional or cannot be accessed by your computer/portable device, then you will need to send it to a data recovery company. They will attempt to recover data on your memory card or flash drive. Please contact your local distributor for help.
NOTE: MICRODIA warranty does NOT provide reimbursement for data recovery services. The warranty covers the product itself, but does NOT cover any compensation due to data loss. It is recommended to backup all your data and pictures regularly.
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Why do I get a “The disk is write-protected” message when I transfer files to my SD card?
Case 1 – Move the lock switch
There is a Lock switch on the left side of the SD card. Make sure the Lock switch is slid up (unlock position). You will not be able to modify or delete the contents on the memory card if it is locked.
Case 2 – Cannot move the lock switch
If the lock switch is lost or moves easily, it is likely the switch is sliding to the locked position as the card is placed in your host device. In this case the card will need to be replaced.
Please contact your local distributor for support and check the warranty status.
Warning: All data may be lost and unrecoverable in the process.
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I cannot transfer a single 4GB or larger file to my flash drive or memory card!
This is due to file system limitation. File larger than 4GB can NOT be stored on a FAT32 flash memory.
Formatting the flash drive as exFAT or NTFS file system will resolve this issue.
Please backup your files before formatting!
1 – Format in exFAT
exFAT file system is compatible with Windows/Mac.
Windows 7 and Mac OS 10.6.6 or higher are compatible with exFAT file system. Older operating systems may need a patch installed for exFAT compatibility.
However, exFAT file system is NOT compatible with some host devices such as TV, game systems, older operating systems, car stereos etc. Please contact the suppliers of your host devices for more details.
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To format a device on your Windows:
1. Double-click on My Computer.
2. Right-click on the flash drive or memory card, then select Format.
3. In the File System list, click exFAT.
4. Click Start.
5. Click OK to start formatting.
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To format a device on your Mac OS X:
1. Double-click on Macintosh HD – or in the Finder menu click File > New Finder Window
2. Click the Applications folder – if using a Finder Window Applications will be in the left side menu.
3. Click the Utilities folder.
4. Double-click Disk Utility.
5. On the left side of the window are the drives connected to the computer. Select the capacity of the drive respective to the one containing the device you wish to format then click the Erase tab.
6. Verify Volume Format is set to exFAT, then click Erase.
- Format in NTFS
- Formatting the device as NTFS will make it unwriteable on Mac OS. Most Mac computers can read NTFS, but not write.
- Once the device is formatted as NTFS, you MUST use “Safely Remove Hardware” to remove your device.
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Format the flash drive on Windows:
1. Double-click My Computer.
2. Right-click on the flash drive, then select Format.
3. In the File system list, click NTFS.
4. Click Start.
5. Click OK to start formatting.
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What is VPG ?
• VPG stands for “Video Performance Guarantee”.
• It’s introduced since Compact Flash (CF) specification 5.0
• Designed for very high-end HD/FHD/4K video recording.
• Ensures the video stream is saved without interruptions that would affect the video quality.
• VPG logo is a “clapper board” with a number inside specifying the minimum guaranteed write speed.
VPG Minimum Write Speed
20 20MB/s
65 65MB/s
130 130MB/s
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Why does my computer / laptop / mobile device report a less capacity than the advertised capacity?
• As is common with all data storage media, USB drives have a smaller true capacity versus the advertised capacity due to the historical definitions of GB and MB, as well as Memory Management and Partition Accounting information also uses some memory on the drive.
• Many people also mistakenly attribute the discrepancy in reported and advertised capacities to reserved space used for file system and partition accounting information. However, for large (several GB) file systems, this data rarely occupies more than several MB, and therefore cannot possibly account for the apparent “loss” of tens of MBs or even GBs.
• Nearly all operating system utilities report capacities using binary definitions for the prefixes. This is largely historical, because when storage capacities started to exceed thousands of bytes, there were no standard binary prefixes (the IEC only standardized binary prefixes in 1999), so 2^10 (1024) bytes was called a kilobyte because 1024 is “close enough” to the metric prefix kilo, which is defined as 10^3 or 1000. This trend became habit and continued to be applied to the prefixes “mega,” “giga,” and even “tera.” The discrepancy becomes much more noticeable in reported capacities in the multiple gigabyte range, and users will often notice that the volume capacity reported by their OS is significantly less than that advertised by the manufacturer.
• For example, a drive advertised as 200 GB can be expected to store close to 200 x 10^9, or 200 billion bytes. This uses the proper SI definition of “giga,” 10^9 and cannot be considered as incorrect.
Since utilities provided by the operating system probably define a Gigabyte as 2^30, or 1073741824 bytes, the reported capacity of the drive will be closer to 186.26GB (actually, GiB), a difference of well over ten gibibytes.
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Is MICRODIA Flash Memory Card Resistant to Vibration, Magnetic Fields & Humidity?
Yes.
MICRODIA XTRA™ / XTRA Plus™ / XTRA Pro™ / XTRA Elite™ Series flash memory cards are honoured with the following features:
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Extreme Durability
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Drop-Shock-Vibration-Resistance
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Water-Dust-Heat-Resistance
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Electro Static-Proof
How Many Pictures & Audio/Video Hours can be Stored in a Flash Memory Card?
The number of pictures/musics/videos you can take varies depending on your device setting, like resolution, picture/video/audio mode and complexity of the scene/video being taken.
However, we can estimate by simple calculation:
MP=Megapixels / MB=Megabytes / GB=Gigabytes
1GB=1000MB=1,000,000,000bytes
Capacity of a Photo / Music / Video file divided by Total Capacity of Memory Card
= No. of Photo / Music / Video could be stored
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What are the differences between the products in the XTRA™ / XTRA Plus™ / XTRA Pro™ / XTRA Elite™ Series?
MICRODIA family of flash memory cards offers 4 different performances & specifications to fulfill everyone’s expectations.
Because “WRITE” performance is so important, MICRODIA implemented a system to indicate speed difference: XTRA™ / XTRA Plus™ / XTRA Pro™ / XTRA Elite™
XTRA™ : made for everyone to enjoy
Speed class is C10/U1, reaching up to 333X (50MB/s) rated speed for SD/microSD cards or VPG-20, and up to 266X (40MB/s) for CF cards.
XTRA PLUS™ :
Speed class is C10/U1, and can reach up to 533X (80MB/s) rated speed for SD/microSD cards or VPG-20, and up to 500X (75MB/s) for CF cards.
XTRA PRO™ : made for serious professional photographers.
with C10/U3 speed class and up to 667X (or 100MB/sec) rating speed for SD/microSD cards or VPG-20 up to 800X (or 120MB/sec) for CF cards.
XTRA ELITE™ :
Speed class is C10/U3, reaching up to 2000X (or 300MB/sec) rated speed for SD/microSD cards or VPG-65 up to 1066X (or 160MB/sec) for CF cards.
MICRODIA introduced its EPM technology in the XTRA PRO™ and XTRA ELITE™ series to improve the read and write speeds as well as prolong the service life of the flash memory cards.
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What is EPM Technology?
EPM is the acronym for “Enhanced Processing Management”.
This proprietary controller firmware was developed and patented by MICRODIA. It allows multi-channeling data transfer between Controller and Flash Memory to enhance the read and write speeds, as well as increase the service life of the flash memory card by averaging the utilisation of each memory cell intelligently.
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What are the Differences Between Speed Ratings & Speed Classes?
Rated Speed / Speed Rating:
This is the maximum transfer speed for reading and writing images to and from a card. This measurement is pertinent to still photography, especially for taking pictures with high resolution and/or saving in RAW format where the files created are very large. High rated speed gives your camera the capability to capture images faster.
Speed Class:
This is the minimum speed based on a worst case scenario test. The Speed Class is important for video mode or camcorders where the device is actually saving a steady stream of data. The Speed Class refers to the guaranteed sustained rate with no dropped frames at which a video is captured. Speed Class 10 means a minimum write speed of 10MB/s.
UHS (Ultra High Speed):
This is the latest performance category available today, was introduced in 2009 by the SD Association and is designed for SD and microSD memory cards. UHS utilizes a new data bus that will not work in non-UHS host devices. If you use a UHS memory card in a non-UHS host, it will default to the standard data bus and use the “Speed Class” rating instead of the “UHS Speed Class” rating. UHS Speed Class defines bus-interface speeds up to 312 Megabytes per second for greater device performance.
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SD, SDHC, SDXC specification & compatibility
The SDA set the capacities of these three standard form factors as follows:
Form Factor Capacity File System
SD Up to 2GB FAT 16
SDHC 4GB – 32GB FAT 32
SDXC 64GB – 2TB exFAT
Existing SD devices and SDHC devices are not compatible with new SDXC memory cards. However, existing SD memory cards and SDHC memory cards will work in SDXC devices.
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What is a microSD Card?
MicroSD was announced by SDA at CTIA Wireless 2005 as a small form factor extension to the SD card standard. The card is also called TransFlash (sometimes abbreviated TF).
The microSD card was developed in order to meet the demands of the smart phone market and offers significant savings in card area and volume.
A key benefit of the microSD card is that it is both electrically and software compatible with the existing SD standard. To allow interoperability with standard SD devices, it also has an adapter that converts the microSD card into the SD card form factor. The adapter allows the microSD card to fit into existing SD card slots, and thereby provide compatibility with the rapidly growing number of SD compatible devices in the market.
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What is a SD (Secure Digital) Card?
A Secure Digital (SD) card is a non-volatile memory card for use in portable devices, such as DSLR cameras, GPS navigation devices, handheld consoles, and notebooks.
SD memory card and SD host device are the terms for licensed products that meet SD standards which are maintained by the SD Association (SDA). SD memory card standards are available in a variety of formats, capacities (SD/ SDHC/ SDXC), bus speed ( Normal Speed/ High Speed/ UHS-I/ UHS-II ) and speed class options.
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What is an XQD Card?
The CompactFlash Association (CFA) touts the XQD card as a high-performance flash memory card. Specifications for the newest version (Version 2.0), released on 13 Feb 2014, noted that the new card leverages the dual PCIe Gen2x2 and USB3.0 interface for higher performance. Read and write speeds can reach up to 1GB/s (1000MB/s), and storage capabilities extend beyond 2TB.
This speed enhancement enables a new generation of flash memory cards to meet the demands of professional 4K video processing requirements. Consequently, the new specifications will further increase capabilities and value for photographers, videographers, and cinematographers.
Dimensions:
38.5mm x 29.6mm x 3.8mm
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What is a CF (Compact Flash) card?
Compact Flash is a small form factor that combines non-volatile storage, high-capacity options and industry-standard compatibility, which is absolutely essential for digital cameras and handheld computing devices.
There are two main subdivisions of CF cards:
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Type I (3.3 mm thick)
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Type II (CF2) cards (5 mm thick)
CF Type I is widely used and all CF cards from MICRODIA are of Type I.
The high level performance capability of CF storage cards continues to improve with each version. To get the most out of your CF card purchase, match or exceed the host (camera) capability with the CF storage card version. For camera use, both the write speed in camera and the read speed for later image processing should be considered.
Today, Compact Flash cards are available in capacities up to 1TB, with both read and write speeds reaching up to 160 MB/sec.
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What do I need to know when choosing flash memory cards?
Physical Format:
The first consideration is where you will use the card: Different cameras, camcorders, action-cams, and smart phones use different sizes of cards. They also sometimes have different interfaces. For example, the SD card is equipped with a 9-pin interface to fit a 4-bit data bus, but a CF card has a 50-pin interface for a 16-bit data bus.
Capacity:
Flash memory cards offer different storage capacities. Especially for SD/microSD cards. Most SD/microSD cards you’ll find today are technically SDHC, with capacities between 4GB and 32GB. The largest class is SDXC (Secure Digital Extended Capacity) which can range from 64GB to 2TB.
While larger is better, you need to make sure your device is compatible with the larger capacity. Note that older cameras can only read SD cards, and similarly, cameras that aren’t SDXC-compatible won’t accept 64GB cards.
Speed:
When it comes to shooting high-resolution RAW photos with a digital SLR, you’ll need a quick card to take more than two or three shots at a time. SD (CF) cards are described by their speed class, which ranges from Class 10 to U1/U3 (from VPG 20 to 65) ; these are defined by the minimum operation speed. Another parameter is given as speed rating which indicates the maximum read and write speeds of the card.
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What type of cards does the XTRA™ Series offer?
MICRODIA provides three types of flash memory cards to fit your needs and devices:
•CF (Compact Flash) cards
•SD (Secure Digital) cards
•microSD cards
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Why are flash memory cards important?
Nowadays, many people carry smart phones, digital cameras, pocket camcorders, and action-cams in order to take snapshots and videos of life’s precious memories.
As picture quality and resolutions on mobile devices have improved, so the need to save and store larger picture files has increased.
High quality flash memory cards have become the norm. They provide larger capacities and faster operating speeds to match the capabilities of your mobile devices, and the cards ensure that every shot is captured and kept safe and secure from life’s little mishaps.
USB Flash Drives
How do I recover missing files or accidentally deleted files on flash drive or memory card?
For functional memory cards and flash drives
If the memory card or flash drive is still functional, you can try using a data recovery program. There is a high probability that your data can be recovered after you get an error while using the card, accidentally format it or delete files.
DO NOT attempt to access the flash drive or memory card to another host device, it might overwrite your existing files. You can download a Demo Disk Recovery Program (or purchase an official version). These Recovery Programs will show you what files can be recovered and provide a preview of the files for some common picture file types. The demo versions will require purchase of a license key to enable the feature to save the files. This is an excellent way to see if the program will work before you purchase.
For Non-functional memory cards and flash drives
If your memory card or flash drive is no longer functional or cannot be accessed by your computer/portable device, then you will need to send it to a data recovery company. They will attempt to recover data on your memory card or flash drive. Please contact your local distributor for help.
NOTE: MICRODIA warranty does NOT provide reimbursement for data recovery services. The warranty covers the product itself, but does NOT cover any compensation due to data loss. It is recommended to backup all your data and pictures regularly.
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I cannot transfer a single 4GB or larger file to my flash drive or memory card!
This is due to file system limitation. File larger than 4GB can NOT be stored on a FAT32 flash memory.
Formatting the flash drive as exFAT or NTFS file system will resolve this issue.
Please backup your files before formatting!
- Format in exFAT
exFAT file system is compatible with Windows/Mac.
Windows 7 and Mac OS 10.6.6 or higher are compatible with exFAT file system. Older operating systems may need a patch installed for exFAT compatibility.
However, exFAT file system is NOT compatible with some host devices such as TV, game systems, older operating systems, car stereos etc. Please contact the suppliers of your host devices for more details.
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To format a device on your Windows:
1. Double-click on My Computer.
2. Right-click on the flash drive or memory card, then select Format.
3. In the File System list, click exFAT.
4. Click Start.
5. Click OK to start formatting.
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To format a device on your Mac OS X:
1. Double-click on Macintosh HD – or in the Finder menu click File > New Finder Window
2. Click the Applications folder – if using a Finder Window Applications will be in the left side menu.
3. Click the Utilities folder.
4. Double-click Disk Utility.
5. On the left side of the window are the drives connected to the computer. Select the capacity of the drive respective to the one containing the device you wish to format then click the Erase tab.
6. Verify Volume Format is set to exFAT, then click Erase.
Format in NTFS
- Formatting the device as NTFS will make it unwriteable on Mac OS. Most Mac computers can read NTFS, but not write.
- Once the device is formatted as NTFS, you MUST use “Safely Remove Hardware” to remove your device.
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Format the flash drive on Windows:
1. Double-click My Computer.
2. Right-click on the flash drive, then select Format.
3. In the File system list, click NTFS.
4. Click Start.
5. Click OK to start formatting.
​
Why does my computer / laptop / mobile device report a less capacity than the advertised capacity?
• As is common with all data storage media, USB drives have a smaller true capacity versus the advertised capacity due to the historical definitions of GB and MB, as well as Memory Management and Partition Accounting information also uses some memory on the drive.
• Many people also mistakenly attribute the discrepancy in reported and advertised capacities to reserved space used for file system and partition accounting information. However, for large (several GB) file systems, this data rarely occupies more than several MB, and therefore cannot possibly account for the apparent “loss” of tens of MBs or even GBs.
• Nearly all operating system utilities report capacities using binary definitions for the prefixes. This is largely historical, because when storage capacities started to exceed thousands of bytes, there were no standard binary prefixes (the IEC only standardized binary prefixes in 1999), so 2^10 (1024) bytes was called a kilobyte because 1024 is “close enough” to the metric prefix kilo, which is defined as 10^3 or 1000. This trend became habit and continued to be applied to the prefixes “mega,” “giga,” and even “tera.” The discrepancy becomes much more noticeable in reported capacities in the multiple gigabyte range, and users will often notice that the volume capacity reported by their OS is significantly less than that advertised by the manufacturer.
• For example, a drive advertised as 200 GB can be expected to store close to 200 x 10^9, or 200 billion bytes. This uses the proper SI definition of “giga,” 10^9 and cannot be considered as incorrect.
Since utilities provided by the operating system probably define a Gigabyte as 2^30, or 1073741824 bytes, the reported capacity of the drive will be closer to 186.26GB (actually, GiB), a difference of well over ten gibibytes.
​
Can I format myFlashKey™?
All myFlashKey™ flash drives are pre-formatted as FAT16, FAT32, or ExFAT.
If you need to re-format:
Select the correct drive
Right click to choose Format
Choose one of the file system types
Click start “Quick Format”
Note that all data will be lost due to re-formatting. Please back up all the data before proceeding.
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How do I transfer a 4GB-file or another large file to myFlashKey™?
The FAT32 file system is not capable of transferring a single file larger than 4GB.
To transfer 4GB or larger files myFlashKey™ must have a NTFS of ExFAT file system. So you should format your Flash-Key and select NTFS or ExFAT as the format option for quick format. However, all data will be lost due to formatting. Please back up all the data before proceeding.
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myFlashKey™ was not detected by Windows™. Help!
There are several possible reasons which may explain why Windows™ didn’t detect myFlashKey™:
The Flash-Key could be conflicting with a pre-assigned drive letter.
The Flash-Key may be conflicting with pre-installed software.
The USB ports on the computer may not be enabled.
Make sure the USB ports are working and enabled via the BIOS.
Also check whether you have the latest BIOS and/or firmware installed.
Make sure you have the latest Windows Service Pack.
If using a desktop PC, make sure myFlashKey™ is inserted directly into the main USB ports at the back of the PC. Other USB ports may not supply sufficient power for the high-speed myFlashKey™.
The drives may be hidden in Windows Vista and 7, so they will not show up in My Computer. However, they should be visible in Disk Manager.
Some systems cannot support more than one USB device, so insert and use myFlashKey™ on its own.
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What is a USB OTG?
USB On-The-Go, often abbreviated to USB OTG or just OTG, is a specification that was first used in late 2001. It enables USB devices, such as digital audio players or mobile phones, to act as a host, allowing other USB devices like a USB flash drive, digital camera, mouse, or keyboard to be attached to them.
MICRODIA’s new MicroFlash microDUO is a USB OTG and is suitable for use with the latest Android smartphones which bypasses the need to remove and insert smartphones’ microSD cards. Consequently, speed of data transfer is increased and data management is more efficient.
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USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 specifications and compatibility.
USB 3.0 is the latest standard of the USD. It provides better speed and more efficient power management than USB 2.0.
USB 2.0 is a high speed standard with 480 MB/s data transfer speed, while USB 3.0 is super speed standard with a data transfer speed that is 10 times faster, reaching up to 4.8 Gb/s .
The power usage of UBS 3.0 tops out at 900 mA, but uses almost no power when it is idle, thus USB 3.0 enables better power management. This latest standard also empowers power banks and similar devices to run more devices from one hub and allows smart charging.
USB 3.0 is backwards compatible with USB 2.0 devices. However, data transfer speeds are limited to USB 2.0 levels when these devices inter-operate.
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What is the difference between myFlashKey™ and a USB hard disk drive?
A USB hard disk drive is heavier and more delicate than myFlashKey™.
Unlike NAND flash memory, hard drives are susceptible to damage through shock and vibration. Although they are shielded by their casings, they are vulnerable when exposed to strong magnetic fields. In addition, mechanical latencies seriously impact hard drive performance.
myFlashKey™ is much smaller, lighter and rugged. It’s also ideal for mobile use.
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What is the difference between myFlashKey™ and a Flash Memory Card?
The main difference and greatest advantage of myFlashKey™ over a flash memory card is that myFlashKey does not require an external card reader or adapter.
myFlashKey™ can be directly connected to a USB port and the data can be immediately accessed.
Additionally, flash memory storage products and drives are not compatible with each other.
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Is myFlashKey™ resistant to vibration, magnetic fields and humidity?
myFlashKey™ is highly resistant to vibration and can be operated under a wide range of magnetic fields and humid conditions.
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How many times can I use myFlashKey™ and how long can data be stored?
You can write and erase at least 1 million times to the myFlashKey™.
Data on the flash drive can be stored for over 10 years.
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Can I recover files stored on myFlashKey™?
Note that the MICRODIA warranty covers only the manufacturing defects of its products, but does NOT cover any damage due to data loss.
However, there are methods to help you recover missing files or accidentally deleted files.
If your myFlashKey™ is still functional, you can try using a data recovery programme.
If your myFlashKey™ is not functional, or cannot be accessed, you may need to seek help from data recovery professionals.
It is recommended that you back up your data regularly.
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Does myFlashKey™ have a security or write-protect feature?
Yes.
myFlashKey™ has a write-protection switch on the side. Write protection prevents modification or erasure of valuable data on your Flash-Key.
When the switch is closed, the data can only be read; data cannot be written to the flash drive.
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Can viruses infect the myFlashKey™?
Yes.
myFlashKey™ is just like your hard drive: it can get viruses via any file that you save onto it. Therefore, anti-virus software is recommended.
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When the light flashes, what does it mean?
When the light is flashing, it means that the drive is in use and data transfer is taking place between the drive and host machine.
While the light is flashing do NOT remove your USB flash drive. It is very important that you stop the device by double-clicking on an icon in the system tray. Failure to do so could result in data loss or damage to the drive.
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How do I know what capacity I need?
The maximum available storage capacity of the USB has reached 1 TB, but that is likely far more than the average user needs.
myFlashKey™ provides capacities up to 512 GB.
For reference, a 32GB flash drive can hold 1000 photos in JPEG format, 2000 songs and 80-minutes of video, with 4GB left over for office files.
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Do I need to install drivers for myFlashKey™?
No.
USB flash drives are “plug and play,” meaning they simply need to be plugged into your computer and can start transferring data immediately via the USB interface.
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What operating systems can myFlashKey™ work on?
Most flash drives ship preformatted with the FAT32, or ExFat file systems.
The ubiquity of the FAT32 file system allows the drive to be accessed on virtually any host device with USB support, including:
Windows XP,
Windows Vista
Windows 7
Windows 8.1
Mac OS 9
Mac OS X
Linux 2.4.0 or above
Bluetooth
Are Bluetooth-enabled devices harmful to health?
No.
The maximum power output from a Bluetooth radio ranges from 1mW to 100mW in different devices. Even the maximum power output is lower than the lowest-powered mobile phones.
Therefore, Bluetooth-enabled devices are not harmful to health.
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What is the difference between Bluetooth and Wi-Fi technology
Bluetooth and Wi-Fi have similar applications like setting up networks and transferring files.
However, Wi-Fi is intended as a replacement for high-speed cabling for a general local area network, whereas Bluetooth is for portable equipment and applications.
Wi-Fi is also usually access-point-centered. This means all communication is routed through the access point. In contrast, Bluetooth communicates by pairing two devices. That means Bluetooth is more efficient for simple applications where two devices need to connect with minimal configuration, for example, a smart phone and a headset.
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My mobile cannot print to a Bluetooth-enabled printer. Why?
Check the Bluetooth profile in the printer and your mobile device to make sure they both support the same Bluetooth profile.
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My smart phone has Bluetooth enabled, but I’m having trouble using my Bluetooth headset. Why?
Not all Bluetooth-enabled devices are designed to be paired. Each device has a Bluetooth profile that contains a detailed description of a certain function designed for that device.
First, make sure both your smart phone and head set support the Hands-Free Profile, otherwise you cannot pair them.
Second, ensure you have the relevant driver(s) on your host device. A driver is a software programme that enables the connection with the device. Without drivers, the connecting device(s) will not appear in your applications list.
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Can I connect Bluetooth-enabled devices to my desktop PC or laptop?
You need to ensure your computer can communicate with Bluetooth devices:
The latest laptops and desktop PCs come with a built-in Bluetooth radio chip. This chip enables communication between the computer and the Bluetooth-enabled device(s).
A computer that does not have an embedded Bluetooth chip can use an external Bluetooth adapter, which will enable the communication.
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How do Bluetooth devices connect and communicate with each other?
The master device chooses which slave device to address, typically switching rapidly from one device to another in a round-robin fashion.
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What does “Master / Slave” mean?
Bluetooth is a packet-based protocol with a master-slave structure.
A master is the host who initiates the communication while the slave is the one who is listening.
One master may communicate with up to seven slaves. On the contrary, it is difficult for one slaver to listen to multiple masters. Sometimes, the devices switch roles.
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Is Bluetooth technology software or hardware?
Bluetooth technology is a combination of software and hardware.
Bluetooth is a standard wire-replacement communications protocol primarily designed for low-power consumption, with a short range based on low-cost transceiver microchips in each device. But it also needs software to connect, via Bluetooth wireless technology, to other devices.
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What is Bluetooth?
Bluetooth technology is a wireless technology standard for exchanging data over short distances (using short-wavelength UHF radio waves in the ISM band from 2.4 to 2.485 GHz) from fixed and mobile devices, and for building personal area networks (PANs).
The Bluetooth technology is managed by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG).
To be marketed as a Bluetooth device, the device must meet the standards defined by the SIG.
Card Readers
Why are there different versions of the same card reader?
As USB ports on latest desktop computers and laptops have been updated to the USB 3.1 standard, accessories need to keep up with this technological advancement. This is especially true for card readers.
If a card reader cannot match the capabilities of the flash memory card and data transfer interface, users will experience a significant increase in data transfer time between the card and the host machine.
So as to enable technical support to increasingly better serve MICRODIA’s customers, each card reader has an identifying USB version number on the back label.
Thus, MICRODA is always improving its products to provide the best experience for its customers.
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Is FlashMover™ resistant to vibration, magnetic fields and humidity?
FlashMover™ card readers are highly resistant to vibration and can be operated under a wide range of magnetic fields and humid environments.
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Which types of CF cards does FlashMover™ support?
The FlashMover™ CF card reader supports CF type I and CF type II cards and microDrives.
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Which types of flash memory card does the FlashMover™ All-in-One support?
FlashMover All-in-One provides 5 slots which support:
CF / CF+ / CFast
MMC / MMC mobile / RS-MMC
SD / SDHC / SDXC
microSD / microSDHC / microSDXC / TF
Sony MS / Sony MS PRO / Sony MS DUO / Sony PRO DUO / Sony M2
xD-Picture.
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When the light flashes, what does it mean?
When the light is flashing, it means that the drive is in use and data transfer is taking place between the drive and host machine.
While the light is flashing DO NOT remove your card / card reader. It is very important that you stop the device by double-clicking on an icon in the system tray. Failure to do so could result in data loss or damage to the card.
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Do I need to install drivers to use FlashMover™?
The single-slot FlashMover™ card reader does NOT require driver installation.
Only multi-slot FlashMover™ card readers need driver installation for specific systems. Drivers will be installed automatically under Windows XP / Windows Vista / Windows 7 or higher version.
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What operating system does FlashMover™ operate on?
Most flash memory cards are pre-formatted FAT32 or ExFAT file systems, so FlashMover™ can be accessed on most devices with USB support, including:
Windows XP
Windows Vista
Windows 7
Windows 8.1
Windows 10
Mac OS 9
Mac OS X
Note that the Micro-FlashMover™ with a micro USB interface can be accessed on the latest Android/Windows/Blackberry smart phones / tablets (with OTG support).
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What interface does the FlashMover™ card reader support?
FlashMover ™ card readers only supports the USB interface.
SSD Drives
Why does my computer / laptop / mobile device report a less capacity than the advertised capacity?
• As is common with all data storage media, USB drives have a smaller true capacity versus the advertised capacity due to the historical definitions of GB and MB, as well as Memory Management and Partition Accounting information also uses some memory on the drive.
• Many people also mistakenly attribute the discrepancy in reported and advertised capacities to reserved space used for file system and partition accounting information. However, for large (several GB) file systems, this data rarely occupies more than several MB, and therefore cannot possibly account for the apparent “loss” of tens of MBs or even GBs.
• Nearly all operating system utilities report capacities using binary definitions for the prefixes. This is largely historical, because when storage capacities started to exceed thousands of bytes, there were no standard binary prefixes (the IEC only standardized binary prefixes in 1999), so 2^10 (1024) bytes was called a kilobyte because 1024 is “close enough” to the metric prefix kilo, which is defined as 10^3 or 1000. This trend became habit and continued to be applied to the prefixes “mega,” “giga,” and even “tera.” The discrepancy becomes much more noticeable in reported capacities in the multiple gigabyte range, and users will often notice that the volume capacity reported by their OS is significantly less than that advertised by the manufacturer.
• For example, a drive advertised as 200 GB can be expected to store close to 200 x 10^9, or 200 billion bytes. This uses the proper SI definition of “giga,” 10^9 and cannot be considered as incorrect.
Since utilities provided by the operating system probably define a Gigabyte as 2^30, or 1073741824 bytes, the reported capacity of the drive will be closer to 186.26GB (actually, GiB), a difference of well over ten gibibytes.
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What media formats or file types does a SSD support?
Typically the same file systems used on hard disk drives can also be used on solid state disks.
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What is the maximum capacity for a SSD?
Nowadays, the maximum capacity for industrial SSDs can reach 4TB. However, due to the cost of SSD technology, the capacity of commercial SSD usually ranges from 16GB to 256 GB.
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Do I need to change my HDD to a SSD?
SSDs provide significant read speed advancements over HDDs.
So, we highly recommend those who use computers for gaming, image/video editing and processing, or using memory-heavy software like Matlab of AutoCAD to use a SSD instead of a HDD.
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Does my SSD need a driver?
No.
The SSD is a plug-and-play device, just like any hard drive. But SSDs do have firmware that has to be updated to access increased performance.
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What is the difference between SATA II and SATA III? Are they compatible?
SATA I (revision 1.x) interface, formally known as SATA 1.5GB/s, is the first generation SATA interface running at 1.5 GB/s. The bandwidth throughput, which is supported by the interface, is up to 150MB/s.
SATA II (revision 2.x) interface, formally known as SATA 3GB/s, is a second generation SATA interface running at 3.0 GB/s. The bandwidth throughput, which is supported by the interface, is up to 300MB/s.SATA III (revision 3.x) interface, formally known as SATA 6GB/s, is a third generation SATA interface running at 6.0GB/s. The bandwidth throughput, which is supported by the interface, is up to 600MB/s. SATA II specifications provide backwards compatibility to function on SATA I ports. SATA III specifications provide backwards compatibility to function on SATA I and SATA II ports. However, the maximum speed of the drive will be lower due to the lower speed limitations of the port.
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What interface does a SSD support?
SSDs can work with a variety of interfaces.
Currently most SSDs use the SATA interface. Other common interface types include SAS, Fibre Channel and ATA/IDE. USB is also used as a secondary bus option on many form factor SSDs. And the recently developed USB 3.0 standard is considered a competitive solution for compatibility and high speed advancements.
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What is the difference between a SSD and a flash memory card?
While both memory cards and most SSDs use flash memory, they serve very different markets and purposes.
SSDs were originally designed for use in a computer system as a replacement for hard disk drives, so the operating system recognised them as a hard drive.
In contrast, memory cards were originally designed for digital cameras and later found their way into smart phones, gaming devices, GPS units, etc.
Most memory cards are also physically smaller than SSDs, and designed to be inserted and removed repeatedly.
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What is the difference between a SSD and a HDD?
HDDs use rotating media for data storage which causes rotational latency and require time to read data. HDDs also have moving parts and are subject to potential mechanical failures from the resulting wear and tear .
The random memory access time of HDDs is approximately 7 – 8 ms on average.
HDDs also consumer more power than a SSD, thus your laptop battery power is depleted faster.
In contrast, SSDs have most of the HDD advantages, but are not subject to mechanical failure as there are no moving parts in a SSD. This means the SSD has a considerably longer lifetime and less delicate.
Random memory access time for SSDs is also typically under 0.1 ms.
SSDs also save two thirds more power compared with HHDs. This allows your laptop to operate longer.
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What is a “SSD”?
SSD, or “solid state drive”, is a data storage device that uses NAND-based flash memory to store data. It is persistently regarded as a replacement for current HDDs in computers.
A controller, memory, battery or super capacitor, host interface and other optional components comprise a SSD. The technology uses electronic interfaces compatible with traditional block I/O HHD, thus permitting simple replacement in common applications. Also, new I/O interfaces are created to keep up with speed advancements in SSD technology.
OTG Drives
How do I recover missing files or accidentally deleted files on flash drive or memory card?
For functional memory cards and flash drives
If the memory card or flash drive is still functional, you can try using a data recovery program. There is a high probability that your data can be recovered after you get an error while using the card, accidentally format it or delete files.
DO NOT attempt to access the flash drive or memory card to another host device, it might overwrite your existing files. You can download a Demo Disk Recovery Program (or purchase an official version). These Recovery Programs will show you what files can be recovered and provide a preview of the files for some common picture file types. The demo versions will require purchase of a license key to enable the feature to save the files. This is an excellent way to see if the program will work before you purchase.
For Non-functional memory cards and flash drives
If your memory card or flash drive is no longer functional or cannot be accessed by your computer/portable device, then you will need to send it to a data recovery company. They will attempt to recover data on your memory card or flash drive. Please contact your local distributor for help.
NOTE: MICRODIA warranty does NOT provide reimbursement for data recovery services. The warranty covers the product itself, but does NOT cover any compensation due to data loss. It is recommended to backup all your data and pictures regularly.
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I cannot transfer a single 4GB or larger file to my flash drive or memory card!
This is due to file system limitation. File larger than 4GB can NOT be stored on a FAT32 flash memory.
Formatting the flash drive as exFAT or NTFS file system will resolve this issue.
Please backup your files before formatting!
- Format in exFAT
exFAT file system is compatible with Windows/Mac.
Windows 7 and Mac OS 10.6.6 or higher are compatible with exFAT file system. Older operating systems may need a patch installed for exFAT compatibility.
However, exFAT file system is NOT compatible with some host devices such as TV, game systems, older operating systems, car stereos etc. Please contact the suppliers of your host devices for more details.
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To format a device on your Windows:
1. Double-click on My Computer.
2. Right-click on the flash drive or memory card, then select Format.
3. In the File System list, click exFAT.
4. Click Start.
5. Click OK to start formatting.
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To format a device on your Mac OS X:
1. Double-click on Macintosh HD – or in the Finder menu click File > New Finder Window
2. Click the Applications folder – if using a Finder Window Applications will be in the left side menu.
3. Click the Utilities folder.
4. Double-click Disk Utility.
5. On the left side of the window are the drives connected to the computer. Select the capacity of the drive respective to the one containing the device you wish to format then click the Erase tab.
6. Verify Volume Format is set to exFAT, then click Erase.
- Format in NTFS
- Formatting the device as NTFS will make it unwriteable on Mac OS. Most Mac computers can read NTFS, but not write.
- Once the device is formatted as NTFS, you MUST use “Safely Remove Hardware” to remove your device.
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Format the flash drive on Windows:
1. Double-click My Computer.
2. Right-click on the flash drive, then select Format.
3. In the File system list, click NTFS.
4. Click Start.
5. Click OK to start formatting.
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Why does my computer / laptop / mobile device report a less capacity than the advertised capacity?
• As is common with all data storage media, USB drives have a smaller true capacity versus the advertised capacity due to the historical definitions of GB and MB, as well as Memory Management and Partition Accounting information also uses some memory on the drive.
• Many people also mistakenly attribute the discrepancy in reported and advertised capacities to reserved space used for file system and partition accounting information. However, for large (several GB) file systems, this data rarely occupies more than several MB, and therefore cannot possibly account for the apparent “loss” of tens of MBs or even GBs.
• Nearly all operating system utilities report capacities using binary definitions for the prefixes. This is largely historical, because when storage capacities started to exceed thousands of bytes, there were no standard binary prefixes (the IEC only standardized binary prefixes in 1999), so 2^10 (1024) bytes was called a kilobyte because 1024 is “close enough” to the metric prefix kilo, which is defined as 10^3 or 1000. This trend became habit and continued to be applied to the prefixes “mega,” “giga,” and even “tera.” The discrepancy becomes much more noticeable in reported capacities in the multiple gigabyte range, and users will often notice that the volume capacity reported by their OS is significantly less than that advertised by the manufacturer.
• For example, a drive advertised as 200 GB can be expected to store close to 200 x 10^9, or 200 billion bytes. This uses the proper SI definition of “giga,” 10^9 and cannot be considered as incorrect.
Since utilities provided by the operating system probably define a Gigabyte as 2^30, or 1073741824 bytes, the reported capacity of the drive will be closer to 186.26GB (actually, GiB), a difference of well over ten gibibytes.