SD Card vs. xD-Picture Card
Comparing 2 standards across 13 specifications. 13 key differences identified.
The SD Card (Secure Digital) is the global standard removable flash memory form factor established in 1999 by Panasonic, SanDisk, and Toshiba (SD Association). Measuring 32.0 × 24.0 × 2.1 mm, it spans capacity generations from original SDSC (up to 2GB) and SDHC (up to 32GB) to SDXC (up to 2TB) and SDUC (up to 128TB).
xD-Picture Card ('eXtreme Digital') is a proprietary flash memory card format developed by Olympus and Fujifilm in 2002 (manufactured by Toshiba and Samsung). Measuring 20.0 × 25.0 × 1.7 mm with 18 surface pads, it utilized a controllerless architecture where the host camera directly managed the raw NAND flash silicon, before being discontinued in 2010 in favor of SDHC.
Specification Comparison Table
13 Parameters| Parameter / Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Physical Dimensions
|
32.0 mm × 24.0 mm × 2.1 mm | 20.0 mm × 25.0 mm × 1.7 mm (Weight: ~2.8 g) |
|
Governing Body
|
SD Association (SDA) | — |
|
Pin Configurations
|
9 pins (UHS-I / Legacy) / 17 pins (UHS-II / UHS-III dual-row) / 19 pins (SD Express) | — |
|
Capacity Standards
|
SDSC (≤2GB), SDHC (4–32GB), SDXC (64GB–2TB), SDUC (2TB–128TB) | — |
|
Standard File Systems
|
FAT12/16 (SDSC), FAT32 (SDHC), exFAT (SDXC / SDUC) | — |
|
Operating Voltages
|
2.7V–3.6V (Standard) / 1.8V (UHS-I/II signal voltage) | — |
|
Mechanical Features
|
Write-Protect slide notch (left edge), 45-degree polarized corner keying | — |
|
Governing Manufacturers
|
— | Olympus Corporation & Fujifilm (manufactured by Toshiba/Samsung) |
|
Introduction Year
|
— | 2002 (superseded SmartMedia) |
|
Pad Configuration
|
— | 18 gold-plated contact pads (bottom surface) |
|
Controller Architecture
|
— | Controllerless (Host camera CPU directly controls raw NAND flash) |
|
Variants & Capacities
|
— | Standard (16–512MB SLC), Type M (256MB–2GB MLC), Type H (256MB–2GB High Speed), Type M+ (up to 2GB) |
|
Nominal Operating Voltage
|
— | 3.3V nominal |