correct card reader for d90

[User_2019667]

<p>I have a SanDisk Ultra 4GB card in my Nikon D90. What card reader would you recommend for downloading images into my computer?</p>

[craig_shearman1]

<p>SanDisk makes card readers so you might as well buy their brand, but just about any card reader that accepts your type of card (SD, CF, etc.) will work just fine. You don't actually need a card reader -- you can connect the camera to your computer and let it function as the card reader.</p>

[purplealien]

<p>It don't think it matters that much. I just bought a couple of these:<br>

<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Integral-USB-Single-Slot-Reader/dp/B000VY80AM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1310422198&sr=8-1">https://www.amazon.co.uk/Integral-USB-Single-Slot-Reader/dp/B000VY80AM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1310422198&sr=8-1</a><br>

Can't really go wrong at that price...<br>

Chris</p>

[Peter_in_PA]

<p>Any one that sees SDHD cards will do. That's probably all of them that are actually in a reputable store these days.</p>

[wpahnelas]

<p>i have owned a couple of all-in-one card readers that were absolutely abysmal performers speed-wise. apparently it was because the various ports share USB bandwidth in such a way that no single interface got all of it. besides this flawed multi-port design, i've found that USB 2.0 CF and SD card readers all perform at adequate speed -- with any variations largely dependent upon the speed of the media.</p>

[homer_arment1]

<p>A little depends on how serious you are about photography. If you only need to download a dozen or so images every couple of weeks then just about any card reader that will connect to your computer and that can read a high capacity SD card will do. If you shoot a lot then depending on what kind of computer you use you might want to look at one that can download faster. On an Apple that would be one with a firewire connection and on a PC I would look for a USB3 connection. Since the USB3 interface is relative new on PC's getting a USB3 reader might mean you will need to also purchase and install a USB3 interface card in your computer however the USB3 is also backwards compatible with USB2 so you could use it connected to a USB2 port until you install a USB3 interface card.</p>

[User_2019667]

<p>Thanks to all who responded in answer to my question about the card reader. I do appreciate that.</p>

 

[Spearhead]

<blockquote>

<p>On an Apple that would be one with a firewire connection</p>

</blockquote>

<p>A firewire 400 SD reader is not going to be faster than USB2 and costs more. Firewire 800 SD card readers are difficult to find and very, very expensive.</p>

<p>Also, if you are using Lightroom to import photos from a card, you can start working as soon as the first images download. It's capable of being used for all normal operations on the photos as they download.</p>

[ShunCheung]

<p>I use a Lanovo laptop that has a built-in SD card reader. Therefore, I don't even need an external reader to being with.</p>

[hank_b]

<p>Most laptops today have a slot for a SD card.</p>

[Spearhead]

<p>So do iMacs and probably other non-laptops.</p>

[rp1512]

<p>I've had a couple card readers. The first worked fine until it corrupted some important images. Tossed it. The next worked fine also but doesn't recognize cards larger than 2 Gigabytes. Now I use the USB cable connected to the camera and to my keyboard (iMac 24"). Works flawlessly (knock on wood).<br>

Use the cable whether you download a little or a lot. If you shoot a lot of images across multiple cards in a session, I would recommend getting faster SD cards. 15Mb a second at a minimum, 30Mb a second ideally.</p>

[moi1]

<p>Since I first owned the D70 then the D200 and now the D300, I have always hooked up the camera to the computer and have never had any problems whatsoever and it's actually pretty fast . I figured that Nikon gave us the cable to hook up to a computer for that reason so why not use it...</p>

[jose_angel]

<p>... Because downloading speed is noticeably slower than with the card reader (don`t ask me why, it is my experience with CF cards, -don`t know SD ones-). Also, if you use a L-shaped plate, it could be difficult to attach the cable without the pain of removing the plate (at least, partially), -it`s way easier just to remove the card from the camera-. If you use several cards, and specially if you practice somekind of security procedure, an external reader is a must and/or if you don`t have the camera everytime at the desk.</p>

[rodeo_joe1]

<p>In the UK we have a chain of shops called "Poundland" where everything costs - guess what - £1 (about $1.6 US). I've bought cardreaders from them that work just fine, in fact one of their multicard USB 2.0 readers is almost permanently attached to my laptop. OTOH I once had a far more expensive reader that was unreliable from the outset, overheated and eventually died on me - luckily without damaging any cards. If you have a problem with a cardreader it's worth checking or changing the cable IME. Cheap readers generally come with a cheap thin cable and it's usually the cable that lets the whole thing down rather than the hardware. If you're buying now though, it might be worth seeking out a USB 3.0 reader for future compatibility, even if your computer doesn't support USB 3.0 at the moment. A USB 3.0 device will be backwardly compatible with USB2.0 or even USB 1.1 type "A" sockets (the common flatish type) but not type B sockets (the larger square/mitred corner type). Not sure what the situation is with mini or micro USB sockets. Perhaps someone else can add some info.</p>

<p>A previous poster says that a cardreader corrupted their card, but this shouldn't really be possible unless you're using it to actually write to the card. However some image "reading" software, notably the dreadfull Windows Image & Fax Viewer, will try to rewrite your image file when you simply ask it to rotate an image on screen. There's no warning that this is taking place, which IMHO is an unforgivable sin by Microsoft, so beware!</p>

<p>A bit off topic, but I'd recommend the amazing little freeware viewer called "Irfanview", which reads RAW and almost every other file format going. Also reads the full EXIF info with the correct plugin downloaded and allows a few simple image editing functions as well. More importantly it doesn't overwrite your existing image file when you simply rotate the image on screen!</p>

[Jerry_]

<p>"...you can connect the camera to your computer and let it function as the card reader." Yes, but you need a fully-charged battery ... and you need to keep your camera '<strong>on</strong>' for the entire process.</p>

<p>Sony has a little USB SDHC card reader (about $15) that works fast on transferring files.</p>

<p> </p>

[jay_poel]

<p>Jerry, the battery doesn't have to be fully charges - that is for firmware updates. <br>

I use both a UBS cable from the camera and a multicard reader depending on my mood. I've never had an issue either way and my battery will get down to 20% sometimes. Unloading a card only take a few minutes and doesn't draw much power. </p>