• SATA To CF Adapter...
• • Dell Small Business
  • $39.99

Conclusion: No Replacement For USB Card Readers

The performance values for the Addonics SATA CF Adapter are superior to those of the two other flash card readers we tested. Although we did not have the advantage of using the fastest CF cards at the time of our test, even with the middling 60X cards from Corsair - capable of transfer rates up to 9 MB/s - we were able achieve improved transfer rates with the same memory card.

Admittedly, however, this adapter only represents a real improvement with the very latest systems that support hot plugging of SATA devices; otherwise, there's no getting around rebooting the system every time you switch cards. For conventional applications, such as working with digital photos, a USB card reader remains the device of choice, even if it is a tad slower.

Addonics throws in some extra components with the SATA CF Adapter. These make it possible to use standard components like SATA for mass storage devices, and flash cards as storage media for special applications such as quieter or more compact computers.