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PCMCIA Announces NEWCARD Format

Posted by michael on from the that's-the-best-name-they-could-come-up-with dept.

schnoz writes "Found this over at DPReview: "The PCMCIA technology association has today announced the 'NEWCARD' format. This new format makes use of PC Card, PCI Express and USB 2.0 technologies. The NEWCARD format is also aimed at both Mobile and Desktop PCs". Check out the rest of the article here."

42 of 184 comments (clear)

  1. A bit short on the info, long on the ass kissing by Michalson · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Is it just me, or did that article seem to be more toward executives who want to see their companies name than people who want to know what is going on? While I see a bunch of stuff about how this will "revolutionize" the industry, I could just barely get the info on what IT actually was. It would have been nice to actually see some info like how this USB2/PCMCIA/PCI connection is going to work or what it will look like? Is it something where you buy an adapter cable depending on which of the three you're plugging it into?

  2. The photo by Tri0de · · Score: 3, Interesting

    shows a unit labled 'Single Wide'. I wonder what that implies for the future, and if it refers to physical size or data bus size

    --
    "Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but not their own facts."
    1. Re:The photo by swordboy · · Score: 2, Funny

      The photo shows a unit labled 'Single Wide'. I wonder what that implies for the future

      Well, if it is anything like my 'Double Wide', then the future isn't so bright...

      Seriously...

      --

      Life is the leading cause of death in America.
    2. Re:The photo by Pulzar · · Score: 2, Informative

      It refers to data bus size. It's using a single PCI-Express lane for data transfer. If devices in the future require more bandwidth, more lanes can be added without much effort (first PCI-E graphics cards, for example, will be using a 16-lane bus which works in the exact same way.. except it has 16 lanes)

      --
      Never underestimate the bandwidth of a 747 filled with CD-ROMs.
  3. What I figured by hackwrench · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Its just a way for manufacturers who make USB format devices to quickly retool their devices to work in a PCMCIA format.

  4. Card-based computer by Pyrosophy · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I've always thought it would be really neat if someone could make a basically PCMCIA based computer. No PCI slots, no need to open up your computer -- just a slot in the front of the computer where you could insert a new card that gets automatically plugged in, enabling pre-existing ports on the back of one's box.

    Instead of having to make users deal with a modem PCI card, a network PCI card, sound card, etc, all they would need to do to upgrade is eject one of the old PCMCIA cards and load a new one like one loads a video tape.

    I'm not saying this would be easy or compatible with existing OSs, but it sure would be cool.

    1. Re:Card-based computer by Ducky · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I've always wanted something like this. PCI is nice, but the whole edge card + screw mounting design carried over from the ISA days always bothered me. Not necessarily PCMCIA, but some end-user friendly form factor that I wouldn't need a static bag and a screew driver for.

      The problem with PCMCIA is it's slow compared to PCI and AGP. It was designed for reduced size, not raw performace. But a PCMCIA based machine would at least be a start.

      Hard drives are just now starting to lose the ribbon cable in consumer models (Serial ATA), so I'm not going to hold my breath or anything for something only the 2 of us want. =D

      -Ducky
    2. Re:Card-based computer by infiniti99 · · Score: 4, Informative

      Actually, I don't see why it wouldn't be compatible with current software. Most OSs already can handle hot-swapping of PCMCIA / USB devices, certainly they could easily handle an entire system of similar devices.

      I could swear I read something about an entirely card-based computer maybe 6 years ago. I remember retelling what I had read to friends over and over, about the possibility of easily installing all of your hardware by just sliding it into some external slot.

      Everytime I install hardware into current PCs, I always end up losing screws or cutting my hands on those metal spikes that line the bottom of PCI cards. If I dread installing hardware into my own PC, how could anyone expect normal folks like my mom to be able to do it? It's clear we have a long way to go. Everything should be as easy as PCMCIA.

    3. Re:Card-based computer by rcw-home · · Score: 5, Informative
      The problem with PCMCIA is it's slow compared to PCI and AGP.

      PCMCIA is ISA. Cardbus is PCI.

    4. Re:Card-based computer by Raptor+CK · · Score: 2, Informative

      I don't see why anyone would add the ports without adding the hardware to use them, but otherwise, it's a good idea. PCMCIA-style devices in the back of a PC would make life easier for upgrades and the like.

      I'd love to be able to plug 6 or 7 PCMCIA cards in the back of a desktop, for example, and upgrade from 10 Mbit Ethernet to 100 Mbit without rebooting, or drop in a modem in an emergency. Some of these features wouldn't work very well with Type II cards, but a load of Type III slots would work wonderfully.

      Of course, the main issue is, as always, one of engineering. Bus speeds increase over time. PCMCIA can't handle anything close to 100Mbit/sec, so I've got a Cardbus Ethernet Adapter instead. Gigabit might eventually become an option, or Firewire 800, and then we'll need a new bus *anyway.*

      You'd need an expansion backplane to handle this properly, such that you would crack open the box, replace the backplane, and then you can support the next PCMCIA standard. Of course, ideas like this have been done before, and tend to fail miserably for consumers, if only because they're too expensive to implement.

      There are a handful of desktops that have had PCMCIA slots, though. DEC Multias come to mind, although I'm sure that there are others. It's a good concept, although it's apparently just not useful enough to take off.

      --
      Raptor
      "Procrastination is great. It gives me a lot more time to do things that I'm never going to do."
    5. Re:Card-based computer by gilesjuk · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Cables break, pins can bend. Edge connectors are tried an tested reliable technology.

      Of course something like a ZIF socket might work, but you would need a reliable locking mechanism and motherboards that support hot plugging.

      I persoanlly would like to see PCI/AGP cards with the connector opposite the backplane, you could then design a system where you slide the cards in from the back of the PC.

    6. Re:Card-based computer by red_dragon · · Score: 5, Interesting

      IBM once made a PCMCIA-based desktop computer, the PS/2E, which was basically a Thinkpad built into a pizza box chassis. The machine was designed as a "green computer", meaning that it'd consume as little power as possible. It came with four PCMCIA slots built into the back, but the rest was pretty middle-of-the-road: XGA2 graphics, 486SLC2 processor, and an IDE disk interface. As you might imagine, they didn't sell too well.

      --
      In Soviet Russia, Jesus asks: "What Would You Do?"
  5. Re:A bit short on the info, long on the ass kissin by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Umm, well it IS just a press release, so...

  6. Re:So small by baxissimo · · Score: 3, Informative

    Read the article. They've made it possible to cram 2 cards in one slot by making a half-width card. Standard size cards aren't being eliminated.

  7. Newcard by SILIZIUMM · · Score: 4, Funny

    Thanks 'Newcard' is just the codename. Imagine if it would have been the actual name... the next version of the product would have been called 'Newer Card', the following 'Even newer card' and so on.

    1. Re:Newcard by swordboy · · Score: 2, Funny

      And rounding out the pop charts this week at number two is Ezra. Once again, number one is, Better than Ezra!

      --

      Life is the leading cause of death in America.
  8. picture of it by adpowers · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Here is a picture of it in an actual computer.

  9. I find this very good... by zoloto · · Score: 4, Interesting

    ...if companies support it widely enough. It would be nice to slip this into a dumb terminal, and presto! instant user desktop with our personal info on it. Then take it out and carry your stuff with you.

    this is just one of the possibilities

  10. It's not the size, but how you lose it by Kaz+Riprock · · Score: 5, Insightful


    No, that's not a typo. The picture shows how this thing is barely bigger than a pair of quarters edge-to-edge. Great. You know how often I lose change?

    There's a certain advantage to having small media/cards/devices. For example, having a 128 MB SD disk in my digicam is nice. I don't have to have a backpack to store more than 100 pictures at a time. But some of these things aren't even big enough to fit your initials on them, let alone some sort of recovery info if you *were* to lose what amounts to not much more in size than pocket lint.

    It's nice that I can take my entire mp3 collection anywhere I want to go in a thimble. That's a real advance in computer technology. But are these guys banking on the idea that I'll lose one out of every 10 to 20 of these things that I'll buy?

    I hope any NEWCARDs that I might need or buy come with a carrying case that's about as big as a floppy or CD. I'm still finding jelly beans, pen caps, and AA batteries under the furniture that have probably been there since Reagan was in office....oh..there's my entire work portfolio...

    --
    Mordor...a magical, mythical land where women are more rare than dragons--but where every man would rather find a dragon
    1. Re:It's not the size, but how you lose it by kfg · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Everything has an ideal size. For portable computer devices it's about the size of a 3 1/2" floppy.

      That's the real reason they became popular, and have refused to die off. It has nothing to do with technical merits or storage capacities. They're simply the *exact* right size and thickness for comfortable human handling.

      Big enough to hold onto. Thick enough not to fold or break. Small enough to fit in a shirt pocket. The media itself protected by a shell.

      CD's fit none of these parameters. Mini disks would if you didn't have to worry about scratching them.

      You don't need the smallest card possible, you need the *right* sized card.

      KFG

  11. Excuse me Sir... by greymond · · Score: 3, Funny

    "Hi I wanted to get a NEWCARD for my computer."

    "Sure, what kind of new card did you want to get, a modem, video card, etc...?"

    --
    Ave Molech Setting
  12. what does it stand for? by fermion · · Score: 5, Funny
    does anyone remember what PCMCIA stands for.

    I think I head it was People Can't Memorize Complicated Industry Acronyms?

    Any want to confirm/correct this?

    --
    "She's a scientist and a lesbian. She's not going to let it slide." Orphan Black
  13. Re:A bit short on the info, long on the ass kissin by Dr.Enormous · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Never trust a press release that uses "leverage" as a verb three times in less than a page. Unless it's a press release about levers.

  14. that's what most people say by SweetAndSourJesus · · Score: 4, Informative

    It's Personal Memory Card International Association, but nobody cares.

    No, I don't know where that extra C came from.

    --

    --
    the strongest word is still the word "free"
    1. Re:that's what most people say by SweetAndSourJesus · · Score: 5, Informative

      Guh, read the first sentence, self.

      Personal Computer Memory Card International Association.

      It's been one of those days, sorry.

      One of those days where you miss entire words in sentences, yes.

      --

      --
      the strongest word is still the word "free"
  15. Why USB 2.0: such a slow standard? by adzoox · · Score: 3, Interesting
    Isn't USB 2.0 already slower than the PCI Express or cardbus i/o?

    Why didn't they choose FireWire 800 or something like an AGP type i/o so that video card PC cards could be ultrafast?

    --
    Yell & scream & rant & rave... it's no use... you need a shaaaave ~ Bugs Bunny
    1. Re:Why USB 2.0: such a slow standard? by Fulcrum+of+Evil · · Score: 2, Informative

      Why didn't they choose FireWire 800 or something like an AGP type i/o so that video card PC cards could be ultrafast?

      Well, you can only have one AGP slot, and who wants to handle 30+ watts coming from a plugin card? Anyway, If you support 64bit/66MHz PCI, then you can just plug a Firewire card in.

      --
      "We returned the General to El Salvador, or maybe Guatemala, it's difficult to tell from 10,000 feet"
    2. Re:Why USB 2.0: such a slow standard? by g4dget · · Score: 5, Insightful
      Probably for the same reason why you aren't driving a Formula 1 race car to work: it's not necessary, and it's not cost effective.

      In different words, with PCI, they have communications at bus-speed covered for the few applications that need it. But for almost all PCMCIA applications (networks, modems, storage, etc.), USB 2.0 is already much faster than what is needed. And USB 2.0 is cheaper and more widely supported than any serial bus alternative.

  16. Re:What??? by baryon351 · · Score: 2, Funny

    Yes, it's changed recently.

    For quite a while it was "The way skriptkiddies interact with people's PCs is a key component of development at Microsoft"

  17. It's just a refinement by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Typical press release doubletalk. Based on the "single-wide" (which implies double-wide) and the quotes which refer to two cards in the same form factor as one PCMCIA, I'd bet a dollar or two that:

    1) NEWCARD is simply specs for a new version of PCMCIA that allows for two NEWCARDs in the place of one PCMCIA. This allows notebook manufactures to keep their dies the same and just swap out the card bay. If they get cute, they might even be able to make a hybrid version that takes either 1 old or 2 new cards--depends on connector pinouts).

    2) Since they will be restricted in connector pin space, they're using a USB2.0 serial bus for communication rather than PCMCIAs parallel bus/bizarre IDE disk protocol. Fewer pins, better reliability and speed.

    3) This is nothing more than a packaging standard. PCMCIA is just worried about impingement from Compact Flash cards for network/serial/bluetooth/everything else. Note the emphasis on "mobile" computing. Subtext: don't buy Flash, we're better.

    4) (Personal opinion). Unclear to me why they'd trumpet any sort of connection to USB, given the incredibly bad compatibility story it has.

  18. The IBM PS/2 E was exactly this. by isaac · · Score: 3, Interesting

    IBM made such a machine - the PS/2e was a low-power (fanless!) machine with a single ISA slot. This slot was almost always filled with a pcmcia adapter that put 4 PCMCIA slots on the front panel (behind the lil' door.)

    It didn't sell well, on account of it was way overpriced ($5000+ with a 10.4" VGA TFT, IIRC) - ultimately, it ended up at closeout places.

    This type of "slimtop" machine is moderately popular in Japan where space & power efficiency are more highly valued than in the US.

    -Isaac

    --
    I am not a lawyer, and this is not legal advice. For Entertainment Purposes Only.
  19. less PR, more info by Turadg · · Score: 5, Informative

    Good summary from the BBC

    Techie details from EE Times

  20. Re:Why USB 2.0? by g4dget · · Score: 2, Informative
    From what I've seen, Firewire devices still have a faster transmission rate than the USB 2.0 devices even though the burst speed is lower.

    What difference does it make? USB 2.0 is faster than almost any device you might care to connect through it.

    Plus, Firewire isn't some much of the hack that USB is

    Again, who cares? Both FW and USB2 work fine, and USB2 support in operating systems is really simple (because most of it is just like USB1).

  21. Ohhhh, USB2 by evilviper · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I suppose PCMCIA/CardBus was too fast, and worked too well. "Let's throw USB2 in the mix and watch the hilarious results."

    The advantage I see, is that USB and firewire have been smart enough (where everyone else was moronic) to have just one software interface, meaning one driver will support all the USB/Firewire cards.

    However, they could have done the same thing with something better than USB2.

    --
    Slashdot gets worse every day... Pipedot: News for nerds, without the corporate slant
  22. N-E-W-C-A-R-D by FS · · Score: 2, Funny

    As long as we don't have to spell it "N-E-W-C-A-R-D" every time we say it! People mispeak PCMCIA more than any other acronym I can think of.

  23. Cooling and speed by foldedspace · · Score: 3, Interesting

    You guys thinking you can just upgrade the entire computer with a closed up little plastic card, forget it. Gigabit ethernet outruns the 32 bit/33 MHz PCI bus. Video cards, gigabit network cards and even some sound cards have heatsinks and (some even have) fans. I'm having a hard time imagining exactly what this will be good for.

  24. FireWire 2.0 [sic] already exists by pauljlucas · · Score: 2, Informative
    Why not use something worth a damn like Firewire or even Firewire 2.0 (which I've heard about being developed though I haven't seen much on it)
    FireWire 800 already exists and is in production in new Apple computers.
    --
    If you reply, do so only to what I explicitly wrote. If I didn't write it, don't assume or infer it.
  25. Great just what we need.... by los+furtive · · Score: 3, Insightful

    ...more dongles in our future. Most if not all recent laptops have built in 10/100 ethernet and 56K modem, as well as USB/firewire ports...there is less and less need for PCMCIA/PCCards of any size at all.

    --

    I'm a writer, a poet, a genius, I know it. I don't buy software, I grow it.

  26. Speaking of stupid names... by ediron2 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Hey, laugh it up about 'newcard'.

    Seriously.

    Have fun. All I know is any name beats the everloving s**t out of PCCard. I can't count
    all the times I've had to break out of a conversation to make sure whoever I was doing
    a support call for was talking about a PC-CARD (like a credit card) and not a PC card (like
    one you open up the PC and install inside).

    Oh god. I just channeled my own voice from the future: "No, is that a *NEW* card you've installed, or is it..."

  27. Old vs. New by DarwinDan · · Score: 3, Funny

    So now they're gonna call the older PCMCIA standard OLDCARD?

    --
    $DEITY bless $NATION
  28. Wrong. by daoine_sidhe · · Score: 2, Informative

    Gigabit ethernet has a maximum transfer rate of 128MB/s. The PCI bus can handle up to 132MB/s. Read this: http://www.pc.ibm.com/us/infobrf/ibpci.html That completely aside, this does not use the PCI bus. It uses PCI-Express or USB 2.0 (decided by the particular NEWCARD in question). PCI-Express can do 10GB/s in either direction (the NEWCARD will be limited to 2.5GB/s) while USB 2.0 can handle up to 400megabit/s. There is also no need for gigabit NICs to need heatsinks. There is a HUGE market for these things in the portable computing world. In the future, please read the specs before commenting.

  29. So, is it just me... by tlambert · · Score: 2, Insightful

    So, is it just me, or have they failed once again to put the ejection under software control so the pig can have it's driver's detached and the hardware powered down, FS's unmounted, etc., before the thing disappears out from under the OS?

    Way to go... we're back at the same place PCMCIA was back in 1994, yet again. 8-(.

    -- Terry