Introduction

Digital cameras, cell phones, GPS devices, Blu-Ray players, video game consoles and handhelds, you name it, there is some sort of removable storage attached to it. Typically these come in the form of media cards such as SD or xD. In order to access the data on those cards you usually have to plug the gadget directly into the computer, which might require special plugs , drivers , adapters  or software,  as not every manufacturer keeps their products universal. My video camera uses SDHC cards but requires a firewire plug that my current desktop doesn't have. My cell phone requires a special USB plug specifically made for the phone but also has transfer speed limitations because of the phone hardware itself. This is where the demand for media card readers comes into play, but most of the card readers out there are dull and boring.

A big part of computer accessories today is style and portability. People want to be able to take their products out and show them off to their friends and colleagues, or at least not be embarrassed. If you look around at the market today, the media card readers are cold and unimaginative. The majority of products available are either black or white. The ones that do have a tiny bit of life to them aren't very universal, rather small readers for a select few cards. The truly universal ones are all internal. Vantec looks to change that.