SD card portable storage?

[SuperSet]

Hey guys - Maybe some computer geeks can help me... do they make a small portable drive with large capacity that automatically downloads stuff from my SD cards? I have a few SD cards that are filling up from my camcorder. Instead of buying more SD cards, is there something that I can pop my SD card into, have it automatically download the content and clear it from my SD card once done? It has to be portable so I don't have to lug around a laptop.

[old-trapper]

you download them to your computer and then to long tern storage like CD. Always back up the pictures and information on your computer so you do not loose it all. That is done with a back up drive or CD again. Most newer computers have a port where you can just plug the sd cards in and upload them. If not there are products that will let you upload them from the SB ports. You need a few bucks and a trip to raido shack

[old-trapper]

I re read your quesion and you need a portable back up drive...hhhmmmm sorry dont know about that

[SuperSet]

Yeah, I remember hearing about this a while back and it was some kind of device that you can carry with you (i.e. foreign travel) that would download your pictures so you didn't have to carry around your laptop.

[ke11str]

You would basically transfer whatever you have on your SD card's to a portable drive. I would suggest a Seagate since they're known to be really good. If you own an Apple computer make sure you get the one for apple. Best price I've seen for a Seagate is CostCo, Frys, or BestBuy.

[ocabj]

The term used by the industry for the device you describe is PSD or "Portable Storage Device". While that's pretty generic to describe any portable media, PSD is what they dubbed it.

Anyway, one of the commonly discussed PSD is the HyperDrive.

http://www.hypershop.com/HyperDrive-s/119.htm

There are a few other offerings out there, but the HyperDrive is the only one I know of off the top of my head. I have never used any of these.

I'm not entirely sure I trust these things, so if I were going to use one, I would definitely carry a lot of cards, download from the cards to the HyperDrive unit, but *don't* format/erase cards. That way I have two copies of each photo. One on the original Compact Flash I shot from and one on the HyperDrive unit's drive. But the way I'm describing how I'd use it is more of a backup ideology than primary storage.

But CF and SDHC has gotten quite cheap. Quality 32gig CF (SanDisk) is going for under $100 per card. I can't imagine shooting more than 64gigs of photos even in RAW on a trip. And if I did, I would have planned ahead for it.

But it appears you're focus is HD video. So perhaps one of these HyperDrives will work for you. How much video are you recording on trips before you can get back to a computer? Any chance you can survive with a few 32gig cards and forgo a PSD?

[SuperSet]

Thanks, ocabj. I have a Panasonic GH2 that writes huge, detailed video files so it can fill up a 16GB SD card in about 10 minutes. I'll have to look at that Hyperdrive to see if it can automatically download the video or if I still need a laptop. I need something completely standalone.

[lazyworm]

What you described is uncommon and pretty specialized. You'd be better
off copying to your PC or portable drive via your PC. You may be able
to find software or write a script to do the copying with 1 click.

[ocabj]

What you described is uncommon and pretty specialized. You'd be better
off copying to your PC or portable drive via your PC. You may be able
to find software or write a script to do the copying with 1 click.

I don't think the OP's goal is to have "1-click" copying. The OP wants to be able to transfer off the card without having to carry a laptop. It's a legitimate desire particularly for anyone traveling/vacationing. Many people who travel and take photos/video on the trip typically don't touch the files until after they get home from the trip.

When I do a location photo shoot, I bring a ton of gear. Not literally, but it's a lot. Roller bag with two camera bodies and lenses, light stand bag, two duffel bags with strobes and modifiers. Another bag with large light modifiers. Beauty dishes, etc. Even though I don't want/need to edit photos on location, I want to get my photos off the CF carts onto a second medium because the time when the photos are only on the memory card is the most 'dangerous' time in the lifetime of that photo, since lots of stuff can happen to that memory card resulting in the loss of the photo (e.g. card corruption, lost card, stolen card, etc). So I'll end up bringing a laptop for peace of mind. But then it just adds to all the crap I already lug along.

I've started to pare down my gear for location shoots quite a bit, and the laptop is still one item I'd rather not have to carry. Granted it's not a backbreaker to carry, but it's one extra piece of equipment I'd rather not have to worry about.

[sholling]

There is no way I'd trust a fully automated standalone device. I would for sure want to verify that the data had actually moved and was intact before cleaning off the card and that means using a laptop.

[weekend_plinker]

here are a few with a quick search
Stand-Alone Data Storage

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/570181-REG/Jobo_GVX120US_GIGA_Vu_extreme_Stand_Alone.html

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/buy/Stand-Alone-Data-Storage/N/4287966885