Sony Ericsson to drop M2 for Micro SD
Proprietary out, standard in
A Sony Ericsson executive has hinted that the firm will drop the Memory Stick Micro - aka M2 - storage card format from its future phones.
The firm recently unveiled two new phones - Yari and Aino - both of which support the Micro SD memory card format instead of Sony's proprietary M2 format, which it’s been pushing since about 2006.
Upcoming SE phones are also known to use Micro SD rather than M2, too.
So that's it for M2, then? "Yes, we are moving in that direction,” SE’s Global Marketing Director, Fortuné Alexander, said recently, Trusted Reviews reports.
A timeline for M2’s phase-out hasn’t been announced. ®
COMMENTS
does it really matter?
as you either plug your handset into your home computer via the usb cable OR put the little memory stick into the usb dongle/adapter. My samsung kit seems to use Memory Stick duo and my media centre PC takes all memory sticks.
The K850 took both media types, but the C905 only takes M2. I have all the adaptors for Memory Stick and microSD - as do most IT folk that are bothered. I have to say that the transfer rate is quicker via the USB adapter rather than the cable.
I'm still using my mini-disc player/recorder as I can still (a) time-shift my radio four programmes using the Sony hi-fi and (b) lots of my talking books / bbc comedy is on them in SP4 mode. ie a round the horn cassette on one mini disc.
@AC
F*** me rigid - you are right and I owe you, along with Hewlett-Packard, an apology!
The Pavilion does take a Memory Stick/Pro, which I hadn't noticed before... of course I didn't have any Sony removeable media until much more recently so it wasn't a problem, just a little more troublesome that my Vaio didn't have a native slot for the SD from my camera.
Of course, someone may well point out that my blind spot missed one on the TR5 as well!!
Why am I even posting this.
>> all my other machines including the 7 year old HP Pavilion, support every other kind of card under the sun, EXCEPT for Memory Stick!
My Pavillion supports MS/Pro - though it isn't quite seven years old.
IMHO, the "Memory Stick" deserves to die, if only because of it's name. Calling a memory card standard "Memory Stick" is almost as bad as calling a word processing application "Word" or a RDMBS which uses SQL "SQL Server" or an operating system with a WIMP interface "Windows". You know, if Bill Gates every gets around to breeding a new variety of Rose, he will call it 'Flower' (I can't believe I have turned this into an anti-Bill rant). One good thing to be said about Sony's MS standards - they aren't as bad as Apple memory card standard for he iPhone.
@Jase
Congratulations. You've been sucked in by the Sony haters, and their made up propaganda.
Where do I start...
Blu-Ray is not a Sony proprietary format. Google for BDA, it's almost every company under the sun (Microsoft and Toshiba aside...)
Betamax was just as proprietary as VHS was (which was owned by JVC), in the same way that SD Card is also a proprietary Panasonic/Sandisk format. Both are used outside their manufacturers, you can get endless other makes of Memory Stick and SD card, as you can readers and other hardware that accepts them. I have photo frames and a laptop that accept Memory Stick, neither are made by Sony..
You also got sucked in by the DRM thing. If you look at Sony products, they have typically LESS DRM than the competition. The current Walkman devices for example, play DRM and DRM-Free music just fine, no proprietary software needed to load music (drag and drop). Compare that to iPod and Zune, which are DRM to the hilt. Playstation3, very relaxed DRM, you can gameshare PSN purchses with upto 6 other users, it's got open standards like DLNA (no closed proprietary formats like the Xbox Extender), the PS3 also supports almost all codecs and open formats out there, Bluetooth controllers using open Bluetooth 2.1 spec, the Xbox supports Microsoft closed formats and very strict DRM.
Nice try at the FUD, buy you might want to try some research before making yourself look silly and uneducated.
