SD CARDS: iSDIO standard now offers high-speed contactless data transfer with TransferJet

Memory card standards group the SD Association has expanded its iSDIO specification to include support for TransferJet, a short range contactless communications technology that enables data to be transferred between devices at high speed.

“TransferJet technology provides high-speed contactless data transfer capability with the convenience of simply placing devices next to each other,” the association says. “Data is transferred at 560Mb per second with an effective throughput of up to 375Mb per second.”

“TransferJet data transfer speed is more than 1,000 times faster than the typical speed of NFC, allowing large data files like videos to transfer through TransferJet almost instantaneously,” it explains. “Products using the specification will be simple to use and feature secure connections for quick peer-to-peer data transfer.”

The iSDIO standard was originally developed to enable SD memory cards to intelligently communicate with WiFi-equipped devices, enabling consumers to transfer pictures and video wirelessly from most existing cameras and video cameras. The expansion to the standard means that communication via Transferjet is supported as well as WiFi.

“The iSDIO TransferJet specification offers consumers another method of contactless communication,” the SD Association says. “The advanced, intuitive ease of use enabled by TransferJet technology gives consumers high performance file transfers without the complicated configuration procedures common with other wireless systems.”

The association is also working with the NFC Forum to promote the use of smartSD, a standard introduced in June 2013 for memory cards that contain an NFC secure element and are designed to be used in phones with a built-in NFC antenna. The two organisations signed a memorandum of understanding in February 2014 “to jointly educate the market and help build the ecosystem for NFC among users of smartSD memory cards”.

“The SD Association is giving consumers and businesses more convenient choices to move their large movie, photo, music and data collections wirelessly between devices in record time,” says Brian Kumagai, president of the SD Association. “We know that it’s difficult for just one technology to do everything, so we continue to expand our renowned data storage capabilities with wireless conveniences whenever possible.”