Eye-Fi's 4GB WiFi SDHC cards start to ship out

Nah, Eye-Fi's latest Secure Digital cards still aren't nearly as capacious (nor as cheap) as other alternatives on the market, but good luck getting that free-after-rebate 8GB SDHC card from IAWANNA Corp. to upload images via a wireless hotspot. We pinged the company today to see if the company's 4GB Explore Video and Share Video SDHC models were shipping out, and we were informed that orders placed over the web were indeed leaving the docks. If you're not kosher with handing $99.99 or $79.99 (respectively) over through the intertubes, both devices will splash down in stores starting on April 19th.

[BlackCoffeeNoSugar @ Apr 9th 2009 7:42AM]

Any chance of getting a MicroSDHC version of this any time soon?

[Azayzel @ Apr 9th 2009 7:44AM]

Maybe it's just me, but I still can't imagine why I'd need one of these... Seriously, all the PC's I own have SDHC slots and most copy stores have them too, so being able to wirelessly upload from my camera just really isn't in my needs, especially given how cheap you can obtain other 8-16GB cards. Case in point, I can get a three 16GB cards for the price of one of their 4GB wireless models.

If I'm missing something here, someone please tell me (and don't be a noob about it).

[Barky @ Apr 9th 2009 7:54AM]

If I was on a very long trip it would be nice to automatically post my pics to an online gallery just by going to a spot with free wifi. It could also be a backup if you are travelling somewhere you don't want to bring a laptop to.

[coolblue @ Apr 9th 2009 7:59AM]

I agree, I can't understand what I would need one for.

I guess press photographers may get some use out of it but then they would not want every picture they take to be sent to the office as only 1 or 2 out of the hundreds they take would be of any use (although it could then be up to someone at the office to sort through them rather than the photographer).

[lpppppl @ Apr 9th 2009 9:24AM]

wrong thinking direction.

the former use of these wireless chips are for old PalmOS or WinMo 5 devices with no built-in wireless support, and with only the SD card slot for expansion.

Come on, you won't be able to work your magic in a camera if the firmwire doesn't support "uploading your photos automatically onto the Internet". It's just a card. You need the drivers.

[Wwhat @ Apr 9th 2009 9:46AM]

I find it quite annoying with many devices to pry out the SD card, sometimes in hidden compartments, and then plugging them in and then securely unplugging with that unmount icon again afterwards, not to mention that some SD slots seem to have rather sharp contacts that will probably scratch through the contacts at some point.
So I see a use for it, the hacked version that is.

[Falc @ Apr 9th 2009 2:57PM]

your missing the point of the Eye-fi cards... the point is not the storage capacity, it the ability to send the pictures & video you take directly to your computer and flickr accounts via wifi... this is ridiculously convenient. as the parent of a young child this automation has made this little chore much easier. my wife can take a picture out in the yard and i can check flickr while at work in minutes to see what she took...

[Master Bruce @ Apr 9th 2009 4:45PM]

We (the tech savvy users) aren't really the target market. I have no problem plugging my DSLR into my computer via USB and pulling the images out. My wife, on the other hand, loves shiny technology but her brain is wired for understanding the intricacies of post-modern literature. While Picasa makes it easy to pull pictures off the camera and organize them, my wife is much more likely to take advantage of the pictures she takes if they just "magically appear" on her computer.

The Eye-Fi card is great little piece of technology for simplifying digital photography for people who just want to take pictures and not have to fuss with getting them on to the computer.

[coolblue @ Apr 9th 2009 8:04AM]

There is also the problem of wifi access. In the UK at least there is no significant free wifi hotspots outside of London, especially in places where you are likely to be taking photos. If you had a hotel as a base then there is always the opportunity to upload when you get back there but they charge a small fortune for wireless access.

To be honest I just take large cards with me and sort them out when I get home.

[sonny @ Apr 9th 2009 8:27AM]

Nicely written.Its information is very meaningful and unique. You doing a good job. Keep it up.

[scoutconnor @ Apr 9th 2009 9:09AM]

Is that a real rebate? "good luck getting that free-after-rebate 8GB SDHC card from IAWANNA Corp"

[Mike @ Apr 9th 2009 9:34AM]

No, these cards aren't for everyone, but they do have their uses. I bought one of the earlier ones that only did photos for my Mom. She's not as computer literate as those of us here, and she loves it. She takes a picture, and by the time she walks to her desktop her picture is there, right in the folder she expects it to be. No pulling cards out, connecting cables, launching software, or finding drive letters or folders. Plus, the settings are pretty resilient. She can reformat the card and the settings remain. My only wish was that the card would automatically erase the pictures from the card after sending them. As it is, she has to delete them manually (or reformat the card in the camera).

Would I buy one for me? No.

[Azayzel @ Apr 9th 2009 9:57AM]

Thanks for the spin on that Mike (and everyone else's comments too!). I guess the targeting of this does point to the users who might not be as tech-savvy as most people here, so it makes sense, or if people are too busy to do it the manual way. Guess it's also useful for older laptops/PC's w/o SD/SDHC slots.

The geotagging dcborn61 mentions sounds cool too, but I didn't see any mention of that feature in this run. I do recall seeing something like that mentioned a month or so ago as a feature that may pop up in future editions... now that would be cool!!

[dcborn61 @ Apr 9th 2009 9:45AM]

I got one of these. The big draw to me was not the wireless uploading, but the geotagging.

And to the guy who said it needs drivers to upload, it doesn't.

[gb @ Apr 9th 2009 11:36AM]

The big thing for me was also the geotagging. Although like most geolocators of this type, it can be a ways off. But the auto upload is pretty cool. I've liked that more than I thought. But i was under the impression that it only worked with the Eye-fi software? Are you saying you don't need it?

Also annoying- I can't seem to get it to work in my Rebel XSi. It's not on the Eye-fi list of supported cameras, which is really annoying.

[Jeff @ Apr 9th 2009 9:50AM]

The Eye-Fi looks great ,but has one REALLY big flaw. It only supports JPG's

So until it supports raw files its pretty useless.

I would buy it in a second if it supported NEF's or other formats.

Jeff

[CraigJ @ Apr 9th 2009 12:23PM]

Call me when it has RAW support and works with Ad-hoc Wi-Fi networks.

[SLow rAM @ Apr 10th 2009 12:48AM]

I agree with the Ad-Hoc, don't really care about Wi-Fi. If these or something similar did Ad-Hoc that would really open up the options out in the field.

[SLow rAM @ Apr 10th 2009 12:49AM]

Hehe Oops meant I don't care about RAW, course I care about WiFi.

[CartoonChris @ Apr 9th 2009 12:51PM]

I read a news story where someone stole a lady's camera with one of these cards in it. They caught the idiots after they took pictures with the camera and those pictures were uploaded to the owner's site when they went through a hotspot. I think they used the pictures and the geotagging to locate them.

[Jon Speed @ Apr 9th 2009 1:05PM]

Why doesn't eye-fi just make an empty SD card shell and leave a spot open at the bottom for a micro SD card? Seems like a better idea to me than just a 4GB SD card that I could normally buy for like 5 bucks.

[larry gonzales @ Apr 9th 2009 2:20PM]

lpppppl,

Wireless transfers happen from within the card. No drivers or camera firmware are necessary. All the card needs is power from the camera to start the uploading process once a jpeg file is written to the card.The firmware and radio are all incorporated internally in the Eye-Fi Card.

Lifetime geotagging is included with any Eye-Fi Explore Card. Past and Present. The Eye-Fi Geotagging service can be added to any other Eye-Fi Card for a yearly subscription of $14.99/year.

[Joe @ Apr 9th 2009 5:15PM]

Can someone please explain to me this automatic Flickr upload thing... How does it know what photos to upload or does it just upload every picture when it has been taken? Isn't that rather frustrating? I always thought one of the great things about digital photography was the ability to review pictures and delete bad ones.

[john mcging @ Apr 9th 2009 6:57PM]

What's cool is having the wife and daughter in Ireland and England and having the Eye-Fi in the camera upload the pictures (geotagged in many instances) onto the home computer via hotspots while they are still travelling. Sure we could put the card in a computer but why if you don't have to? The geeky factor is worth the price of admission.

[FILA @ Apr 9th 2009 8:08PM]

yea but how many people really upload every single photo they take to an online album, and if they do how many people like there friends actually see them, prob not many, I would have no use at all for this shit. I dont have a problem carrying a 32 GB card with me and loading them on HDD when I get home, lol, one quick drag and there off