Customer Reviews

Lexar Media FIREWIRE COMPACTFLASH READER ( RW019-001 ) (Retail Package)

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I bought this item with the idea of using it with both my desktop and notebook computers. The included 6-pin Firewire cable works fine with the standard Firewire port on my desktop. However, my notebook has a 4-pin Firewire port. FYI, the missing 2 pins carry the power. This device requires power and, according to Lexar's tech support, I would need a powered Firewire hub in order to get it to work. For me, this negates the portability and convenience that I was seeking. In the end, I decided to get a PCMCIA CF Reader for the notebook.

This device is very fast and I highly recommend it IF you have a 6-pin Firewire port. I gave it 4-stars because the caveat regarding the 4-pin Firewire port isn't documented.

This new Lexar firewire CompactFlash card reader is substantially faster than the older purple model. It is small, fast, and reliable.

I highly recommend it.

I own several CF card readers, and this one is pretty much the same as all the rest (size, shape and functionality.) I believe it is a little faster than USB, based on the articles I read, but the nicest feature is the hinged cover that protects the card slot from dirt and dust, especially while travelling. It is sturdy and should hold up well even packed in a suitcase.

My laptop only has the 4 pin firewire plug (not self powered) so the Lexar will not work with it. If you have the 6 pin firewire plug the Lexar will work just fine for you.

Remember, the Lexar is firewire only and it only works with CF cards.

Finally a FW CF card reader that works & that the average user can afford to purchase. This unit seemed to transfer CF cards at a faster rate than the USB2 units will do. It comes with a real light gauge FW40 cable for those times that you want to carry the reader. I still like my Granite Digital FW cables for home/office use.

The unit is a little larger than may be needed, but smaller than what I came to expect from Lexar for a self-contained card reader/holder. The cap is a sliding cap that stays with the unit & can be used as a stand while leaving the unit open. This card holder is just a little bigger than their USB2 SD card reader. My son already purchased one for his photography business. He agrees with me about the speed.

I've already reccommended this reader & will reccommend it in the future. I'm waiting for them to produce a FW SD card reader that will operate as well as this FW CF card reader.

Mac user's will like this unit. Window's user's with FW will enjoy this while those without may find another reason for adding a FW card.

Buy-It you'll like it.

There are 4 small rubber feet providing a firm grip on any surface. However, when you open up the front door and angle it down (see customer photo from "programmer"), the rubber feet does not come in contact with the surface.

Pulling the door open requires some force, and unless you're careful, the door comes right off. It's simple enough to push it back, but it's a little frustrating.

If you have a laptop, get a CF to PCMCIA adapter instead since many notebooks come with the mini firewire (unpowered) port, and the firewire port is the only source of power for this reader.

The included firewire cable (3 ft long) is just barely long enough to reach from my computer's front firewire port (located near bottom of the case) to top of my table.

No CF eject button - seemed to be missing on just about all readers I've checked recently.

Minor rant : why print "Do not remove card if LED is blinking" at the bottom of the device? Doesn't it make more sense to print it near the LED?

As with all modern OS, no drivers are required. In fact, no software or driver is included.

Now, the most important part, speed. I'm getting slightly over 9 MB/s reading speed with Lexar 80x media. Compare this with around 6.5 MB/s on my fastest USB 2.0 reader (generic brand, ICSI IC1210 chipset). With another reader I only get 4.5 MB/s. The USB reader cost 1/3 the price, however, and reads multiple flash card types.

To put the read speed into perspective : you're saving almost 1.5 minutes on a 2 GB card. 45 seconds on a 1 GB card. Is it worth the time saved? Only you can decide. Do note that USB 2.0 card reader speeds are highly variable, and most of them either don't list their speed, or give you the useless "up to 480 Mbps" figure. The 6.5 MB/s figure I use for comparison is the fastest of the 5 readers I have.

I only know of one site that reviews speed of readers. I don't know what's the policy over posting URLs here, so if you're interested, google / a9 for "cardspeed card reader".

For its read performance alone, I'd rate it 4.5 stars. Since there's no 1/2 star, I feel it's closer to a 4 than 5.

Update : For what it's worth, it's been a year since I got it, and I still continue to use it, and it continues to work well.

I noticed that, under XP, I cannot seem to eject the CF card (right click on device, select EJECT), remove, insert another CF card. It may be the OS, my motherboard's firewire chipset, my particular installation or sunspot activity, but whenever I try to do that, my firewire freezes solid. I have to remove the device, unplug the firewire cable, remove CF, insert new CF, and insert firewire cable.

I'm also using Breeze System's Downloader Pro. Search for it if you're interested. It makes transferring and sorting photos a breeze (pun unintended). Disclaimer : I have no affiliation with the author of the software or the company. I'm merely a satisfied user.

Well, it doesn't really weigh very much ...but that's one of its features.

When I first opened the package, I thought this reader seemed a little cheap. The fact is, it's probably the best $40 I've ever spent. I used to download my photos directly from my camera. This drained my camera battery, required that I use the clunky Canon software, and ...took ........forever.

The Lexar reader pops up on my desktop as a drive. I can use photoshop's image browser to look at thumbnails and very quickly download the images I need. I don't have to plug it in to anything other than the computer. There's no wall-wart! I've put away the proprietary Canon-to-USB cable, and I'm no longer worried about using the USB jack so much that I end up breaking my camera's rubber door that covers the connector. The drive is so small and light that I keep it in my camera bag all the time.

WARNING: Because this drive gets its power from the firewire cable, you must have a standard 6-pin firewire port. Many laptops only have the tiny 4-pin type.

This reader really shines with a fast card. I was able to transfer files from a full 1GB card (Lexar 80X) in 1 minute and 43 seconds.

The only issue I have with the reader is that it gets warm, much warmer than my older Sandisk USB reader. Even with no card attached, it's warm. I've made it a routine to remove the card as soon as the download is finished.

This product work really good in this computer, I used to work with USB1 memory card readers, this device is fantastic and make your file transfer operation at least four times faster. If you work with 1 GB cards or greater you MUST buy this device.

My laptop is several years old and only has slow USB 1.1. I didn't want to spend the money on a new laptop, so I purchased this product. What a difference! Super fast! Do keep in mind that it requires POWERED (6-PIN) Firewire. I don't understand why some companies are putting those 4-pin ports on their computers. I highly recommend this product, especially for Macintosh owners!

I had difficulty getting this product to work initially, it would not read my Kingston Elite Pro flash card. It turns out this was due to a problem with Kingston memory. I tried it out on another pc and with other cards, it is really fast,faster than the usb2 products, but it runs warmer than other readers. According to the Rob Galbraith site the higher temperature is normal for this product ( they have 4 of them}.

It now reads my Kingston card, Kingston replaced the card under warranty and all is well except for the higher temperature.


Raymond