Memory Stick PRO Duo
Originally a Sony Proprietary Standard
The Development of the Memory Stick PRO Duo started in October, 1998, when its smaller capacity single sided older brother, the Sony Stick Memory Card was first announced. The second generation, the Memory Stick Pro was introduced at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas in 2003. The final step to the current Memory Stick Pro Duo was announced at CES in 2006. As the demand grew, Sony licensed SanDisk and Lexar. A number of other manufacturers produce memory that will emulate a Memory Stick PRO Duo through the use of an adaptor unit.
The memory stick family is available in sizes from 128MB to 2 GB. The theoretical maximum for the Memory Stick Pro Dup is 64GB - 32GB per card side. The user may select the memory bank via an on-card switch. The memory stick format has out-lived most other flash memory standards. The user’s opinion has been that the stick was a ‘handy’ form to use in transferring between devices. The format has strong demand both as a straight memory card and in a form that uses an adapter to accept other memory forms. Many people use the Memory Stick, in its various forms, to transfer data between a number of popular devices.
Specifications
The Memory Stick PRO Duo minimum specifications are:
o Transfer: 159 Mbit/s (20 MB/s)
o Minimum write speed: 15 Mbit/s
o Maximum write speed: 80 Mbit/s (High Speed PRO Duo)
o Standard and PRO: 50.0 mm (W) × 21.5 mm (H) × 2.8 mm (D)
o Duo and PRO Duo: 31.0 mm (W) × 20.0 mm (H) × 1.6 mm (D)
o Micro: 15.0 mm (H) × 12.5 mm (W) × 1.2 mm (D) (i.e., ~1/4 the size of Duo)
Many devices require a memory that is MagicGate (TM) compatible. All of the memory sticks that are ‘PRO’ devices meet the MagicGate (TM) standard.
MagicGate is a Sony copy-protection technology often used to satisfy Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI). It works by encrypting the content on the device requiring the use of MagicGate chips in both the storage device and the reader to enforce copy control. MagicGate (TM) encryption was used in the memory cards for the PlayStation 2, and has been introduced into all of Sony's Memory Stick products. The Sony Network Walkman will only accept Memory Sticks which use MagicGate(TM) technology.
The ‘PRO’ versions of the Memory Stick PRO Duo are also compatible with a non-Sony proprietary encryption scheme OpenMG which is a SDMI-compliant digital rights management scheme. It is designed for audio files in ATRAC3 format. The compliant software, e.g. Sony SonicStage, is usually capable of translating MP3 and wav files to OpenMG/ATRAC3. The file extensions OpenMG-encrypted files are .omg and .oma. Updates include an option to remove DRM from an entire media library for allowing unrestricted use. This system prevents more than one copy from being unlocked on a device. There are no statistics, however, that this has actually hindered the proliferation of copies.
Low Price Memory Product Availability
Low Price Memory (www.lowpricememory.co.uk) stocks many memory cards products, along with such products as SanDisk memory products, Sony Ericsson memory, Memory Stick Pro Duo products, SD Memory, SDHC Memory Cards, Compact Flash memory, Micro-SD memory, XD-Picture Cards, USB Memory, USB Pen Drives, Memory Card Readers, Camera Cases for digital cameras, Bluetooth Headsets, PC Memory in a number of formats, Laptop Memory for most portable c
