Product Reviews

There are two versions of the uFlash reader. They both work in the same way, allowing you to read the memory cards used with devices such as digital cameras. The only difference is that the uFlash-CF works with Compact Flash cards, while the uFlash-SM reads Smart Media.

The readers are curved little pods that look a bit like the martian ray-guns in the film version of War of the Worlds. Needless to say, they're moulded out of translucent plastic, but one nice little touch is the fact that Newer provides five different coloured clip-on panels so you can tailor the reader to match the colour of your iMac or G3.

Both versions use the USB interface to connect to your Mac or iMac, so installation is straightforward: all you need to do is launch the Installer application provided with the reader. This installs a couple of extensions in your System Folder and then you can just plug in the reader.

Any memory card you insert into the reader simply appears as an icon on the desktop, just like a hard disk or a removable storage device, such as a Jaz or Zip drive. Double-clicking on the card's icon opens up a window showing the files it contains, and you can then treat them just like any other file on your computer. You can even copy files from your hard disk

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onto the reader so that, in a pinch, you could use the memory card as a kind of super-floppy.

This is a very convenient way of transferring files from digital cameras on to a computer, as it doesn't involve the transfer applications that most cameras require. It also means you can remove a card from the camera and insert it into the reader while continuing to use the camera with another memory card. Without one of these readers you'd have to keep the camera connected to the computer while transferring files.

It's also worth remembering that digital cameras have only recently begun to use USB. Most digital cameras use an ordinary serial interface, and if you've got an iMac or a new G3 that doesn't have a serial port, you've got no direct way of connecting your camera to your computer. As a result, the uFlash is the ideal solution for anyone with one of these digital cameras.

The uFlash isn't perfect, though, and we did come across a couple of minor problems. The first affected only the uFlash-SM. Compact Flash cards can only fit into the slot on the uFlash-CF one way so you shouldn't be able to insert the card incorrectly. However, we found that the slot on the uFlash-SM did allow us to insert a Smart Media card the wrong way up. Neither is there any documentation to indicate the correct way to insert the card. This could cause the card to be damaged.

We also noticed that both readers would occasionally fail to work if they were plugged in when the Mac first started up. Cards would fail to show up on the desktop, and simply reinserting them didn't solve the problem. However, it was possible to jolt the reader into life by unplugging it and then reconnecting it once more. Nonetheless, the sheer convenience of the uFlash reader makes it a worthwhile investment for anyone who has a camera or PDA that uses these types of memory card.