Reviewed
by: Jack
Reikel, August 2004, updated Jan 2007
Manufactured
by: Zio
Corporation
Requires: USB
2.0 Hi-Speed connection (PC or Mac), backward compatible
with USB 1.1, Windows 98SE through Vista; Mac OS 9.x
or OS X 10.x or higher
Available
at : Stylus
Central
MSRP: $49.99
The
Dazzle Hi-Speed Universal 8 in 1 Digital Media Reader/Writer
is a removable media reader capable of reading and
writing to all the popular storage cards on the market
today. Because the Dazzle 8 in 1 is designed with
the USB 2.0 Hi-Speed interface, data transfer speed
to and from your storage cards is limited only by
the media itself (as long as the Dazzle is plugged
into a USB 2.0 Hi-Speed port on your computer). If
you own or need to access a number of different types
of storage cards from digital cameras, video cameras
and Palm or Pocket PC handhelds you need something
that will read their storage cards. And although
all of the aforementioned hardware is supplied with
synchronization and connection cables, often all
you really want to do is copy or move files on and
off the cards at a faster rate than the interfaces
built into your hardware can provide. Besides that,
a handy 8 in 1 reader/writer is usually a lot less
trouble than fiddling with the connection cable specific
to a camera.
Now
I'll bet you didn't think there were actually eight
different types of removable media on the market
right now. I mean all you ever see in stores are
CompactFlash, Secure Digital and Sony Memory Stick
cards right? True enough. The catch (for multimedia
reader/writer users) is that all the different
storage cards have variants with (unfortunately)
slight differences in their connection circuitry.
It's one of the reasons Kickstartnews reviewer
Lianne Reitter's Sony digital camera (DSC-F505)
is incompatible with Sony Memory Stick Pro cards
used in the newer Sony digital devices. If she
wants to view something from a friend's camera
(one model newer, uses Memory Stick Pro), she's
out of luck and that is another reason to have
an 8 in 1 storage card reader/writer. Here's the
list of storage cards the Dazzle can handle:
- CompactFlash
(CF) Type 1
- CompactFlash
(CF) Type 2
- IBM
MicroDrive
- SmartMedia
- Sony
Memory Stick (Standard)
- Sony
MagicGate (Memory Stick Pro)
- Secure
Digital (SD)
- MultiMediaCard
(MMC)
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The
Dazzle is bundled with the OnDVD software, a small program
which helps you make photo slideshows and burn them to
DVD.
Kickstartnews
reviews are supposed to be based on real-world, everyday
experiences with software and hardware. But after using
the Dazzle 8 in 1 for a couple of weeks, the urge to
run some real timing tests became irresistible. So we
chose a group of large digital photo files as the test
data and proceeded to copy and move them back and forth
between the Dazzle and one of our workstations, using
the identical set of files to test each storage card,
timing everything (accurate to +/- half a second) along
the way. Here are the test results:
Test
Criteria
We
wrote 30 digital photo files totaling 762.8MB to the
1GB cards, 11 digital photo files totaling 106.7MB to
the 128MB & 256MB cards and 6 digital photo files
totaling 30.4MB to the smaller cards. We used a Tissot
T-Touch digital stopwatch for all of the timing runs.
Timings began exactly as the confirmation clicks were
made for copying or moving data and ended as soon as
the screen was cleared of the Windows progress dialog.
The tests took place on a Pentium 4/2.8GHz workstation
(Asus P4S8X motherboard with native USB 2.0 Hi-Speed
ports) with the Dazzle 8 in 1 connected directly rather
than through a hi-speed hub. The temporary folder used
to store data for the test runs was cleared before each
test.
A
quick look at the data will tell you that the SanDisk Extreme
CF cards are clearly the fastest cards available today.
For digital photographers shooting 4 megapixels and up,
the fast CF cards are absolutely the best choice. Sony's
Memory Stick Pro cards were disappointing to say the least,
especially considering the long wait that Sony users had
to endure before the company released the large capacity
cards in 2003 (standard Memory Sticks are limited to 128MB
in size). Of course the other detail to note is that the
Dazzle 8 in 1 did not hinder the tests in any way because
its USB 2.0 Hi-Speed interface can handle well in excess
of 50MB/sec. Proof is proof however. We just love the fast
new storage cards combined with our favorite digital camera
and the Dazzle 8 in 1. Obviously, SD, CompactFlash and
standard Memory Stick media are s-l-o-w; not the ideal
formats for data backups (albeit ideal when using BackupBuddy
on your PDA of course). None of these storage cards comes
anywhere close to challenging the Dazzle's USB 2.0 Hi-Speed
interface.
Some
of you may have noticed that the Dazzle web site listed
above is located at Zio Corporation. It's not a typo—Pinnacle
Systems spun off their card reader business to Zio in
August 2003. Pinnacle still develops its Dazzle video
editing software and hardware however. Zio has a full
line of card reader products and provides full support
for the 8 in 1 model. But wait! Zio is now also gone
the way of the Dodo bird and the Dazzle brand is being
made and distributed by a number of companies. So use
the test criteria below to make comparisons with other
card readers on the market, and if they meet or beat
the Dazzle, you can make a good choice.
Cons: The
separate vertical base for the card reader (the device
normally sits horizontally) does not lock onto the product,
and because all of these sorts of card readers are quite
light, vertical mounting can be hindered by the weight/tug
of the USB cable. A lot of these sorts of devices are
supplied with the same type of base and we think it's
kind of useless. It's a minor quibble and doesn't affect
the operation of the Dazzle (or any other, similar, card
reader). We did not install the bundled OnDVD photo album
software supplied with the Dazzle.
Pros: Zippy — we
certainly like USB 2.0 Hi-Speed — with data transfer
rates limited only by the speed of the media being used.
In the case of Palm OS handhelds you need special software
in order to access the storage card in the handheld directly
through the HotSync cable or cradle, so a media reader/writer
is an absolute necessity when transferring large music
and photo files (because HotSync can be really slow).
Ditto for copying data via cable-connected camera—most
of those camera connections move data at what can only
be described as glacial speeds. The Dazzle 8 in 1 is
small and fits anywhere on your desk or on top of the
computer. It's a passive USB device so it requires no
external power (now power block is needed or supplied)
and runs completely cool. As usual with these sorts of
devices, no drivers are required in Windows Me, XP, Vista
or Mac OS. Highly recommended.
(Ed.
Note: Zio Corporation's products have been absorbed
by other companies since this review was published.
As of June 2006, drivers and support are available
through SmartDisk.
Note also that some well spec'd card readers are now
on the market for well under $20).
