[kingakuma]

Overview

A microSD media card is a removable flash memory data storage device. When inserted into a BlackBerry smartphone, a microSD media card can expand the memory available for storing files such as videos, ring tones, pictures, and songs. The media card is sold separately from the BlackBerry smartphone.

The following table lists the BlackBerry Device Software versions and the media card sizes they support.

BlackBerry Device Software version Media card size limit

BlackBerry Device Software 4.2.0 Up to 2 GB
BlackBerry Device Software 4.2.1 Up to 4 GB
BlackBerry Device Software 4.2.2 Up to 4 GB
BlackBerry Device Software 4.3.0 Up to 8 GB
BlackBerry Device Software 4.5.0 Up to 8 GB
BlackBerry Device Software 4.5.0.81 and later Up to 16 GB
BlackBerry Device Software 4.6.0 and later Up to 32 GB

also when looking at the memory cards check which class they are the higher the class the faster the card is

SD Speed Class
More Speed Creates More Options

The SD Association is constantly innovating to ensure SD technology stays current with the needs of consumers and product manufacturers everywhere. All SD memory cards, in any size or memory capacity, come with different speed varieties designed to suit a myriad of uses. This flexibility allows developers to select just the right speed for the right device.

These new speeds are available in a new specification defining the minimum data transfer speeds for both SD/SDHC memory cards and SD/SDHC host products. This enhancement is easily recognized by three levels of Speed Class, class 2, 4 and 6. Speed Class 2 guarantees a minimum transfer speed of 2 mega bytes per second (MB/s), Speed Class 4 guarantees a minimum transfer speed of 4 MB/s and Speed Class 6 guarantees a minimum transfer speed of 6 MB/s.



With the new Speed Classes, the host product has the option to check the fragmented state of the card and immediately calculate the write speed in each part of the card. The host can then determine where best to write the data according to its speed requirement.

Fragmentation and Speed

The memory of a card is divided into minimum memory units. The host writes data onto memory units where no data is already stored. As available memory becomes divided into smaller units through normal use, this leads to an increase in non-linear, or fragmented storage. The amount of fragmentation can reduce write speeds so higher SD card speeds help compensate for fragmentation.

The SD Association has specified operating conditions for SDHC memory cards to guarantee the minimum speed according to the card's speed class. Class logos are provided to help identify cards that comply with these specifications.

[dieseldude]

Good info. Thanks.

[raji.t]

Great info, I have a class4 8gb microsd card, works great for me!

[bacon.jay]

Sticky, Sticky bo bicky,
Banana fanna fo ficky,
Fee Fi Fo micky,
Stiiiiickyyy

[giancarlo93]

Great info.
Thanks

[ya.dude]

do you know how much music a 32gig would hold!!!!!???

[Devlyn16]

One thing that needs to be clear in regards to the transfer speed is that it isn't only dependant on the card but on the adapter the card is interfacing with.

There is the old saying that you can't fit 20lbs of crap in a 10lb bag. If the card reader is a class 2 then a class 6 SD card isn't going to beable to transfer data at the class 6 speed.

I'm too lazy to research what speed the various BlackBerry Smartphones read the SD cards at to determine if (within the phone) a class 6 is really better than a class 2.

[_StephenBB81]

One thing that needs to be clear in regards to the transfer speed is that it isn't only dependant on the card but on the adapter the card is interfacing with.

There is the old saying that you can't fit 20lbs of crap in a 10lb bag. If the card reader is a class 2 then a class 6 SD card isn't going to beable to transfer data at the class 6 speed.

I'm too lazy to research what speed the various BlackBerry Smartphones read the SD cards at to determine if (within the phone) a class 6 is really better than a class 2.

It isn't a matter of you being too lazy

I actually could not find the details across multiple BlackBerrys to find what the R/W speeds of the device are.
This Thread contains good information, but is not overly special

what it very much lacks is a chart that includes what each Device R/W at, so that one can asses if a Class 2,4,6 is better for them

From what I read, Class 4 seems to be the optimal for the Blackberry's but I can't substantiate that with anything more then hearsay and comments across various boards, I have not seen testing..

[tnsfan]

Thanks for the info. It is helpful because I am considering which memory card to get for my new bold along with what size and class.

[ticktekk]

If memory serves SD cards can be defragged just like any hard drive when connected to your computer. Preferably in a card reader not you BB

[blackhorse]

Thanks for sharing :-D!!

[BergerKing]

do you know how much music a 32gig would hold!!!!!???

An 8gig supposedly holds approximately 6400-8000 songs.

How Many Songs Can A 32GB Memory Card Hold | Memory Cards

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[raji.t]

An 8gig supposedly holds approximately 6400-8000 songs.

How Many Songs Can A 32GB Memory Card Hold | Memory Cards

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

Only if encoded at AAC+ Enhanced at 48kbs bitrate... Which in fact is rather hard to find a converter that converts to eAAC+ !!

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[sasan]

great info...i have a 16 gig microsd...still have 9 gigs left...

[makuwel]

I have a 4gb card and want to upgrade to a larger card. How do i transfer the data from my one card to the new card?

[Iceman]

I have a 4gb card and want to upgrade to a larger card. How do i transfer the data from my one card to the new card?

You can use a micro sd card adapter and plug the old card into your pc. Then take the new card and place in your phone, enable mass storage mode then transfer all the data that way as the bb acts like any removable drive. Or if you have two card readers plug them both into your pc then transfer the data that way, then put the new card in your berry. Either way make sure you format the new card first.

[BigBadWulf]

One key point that hasn't been brought up. If you have a "Safely Remove Hardware" icon on your taskbar, failure to use it will possibly result in the corruption of some of the files on your SD.

[pam1226]

Thanks for the great write up. Good info for us newbies!

[DontLikeCrack]

Can a BB use SD and SDHC? Or ONLY SD?

[BigBadWulf]

Yes they can, is the short answer. The 2G and a few 4G (but I wouldn't use them), are not High Compression. Almost all 4G, and anything beyond 4G are High Compression. That's the difference in the labeling.

[DontLikeCrack]

Thanks! I laughed when I saw my Flip came with a 256mb card.

[cherryjuice]

I bought a 4gb SD memory card for my phone when I bought it and haven't used but about half of it.

[BBjstolte]

I bought an 8GB card and it said I had 7.3GB free. I formatted it and it immediately dropped to 3.3GB! What happened and how do I get it back to 7.3GB?

[samenzijn7]

I just really need to know what kind of memory card to get for my bberry storm......sd or sdhc?

[rysgirl]

When I insert my media card in my blackberry it says " a media card has been inserted that contains errors please run a disc checking utility program on a computer" I have called verizon they dont know what to do, and I have sent scan disc a e-mail that was about a week ago and still no response from them.. Can anyone help me