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You can't possibly get 12 Gbytes in one CF card! Can you?

One we missed at the last CeBIT show: only for really enthusiastic photographers - yes, a 12 GByte Compact Flash memory card was included in the Pretec new range of storage packages. Finally, a shipping date is announced. But the price?

Photography specialist Digital Photography Review didn't just raise eyebrows at the capacity; the comment focused automatically on the eye-watering price. "The first three cards (3, 4 and 6 GBytes) are available in Japan as of today," said the reviewer; "the larger 12 GBbyte card by the end of the year."

And then, obviously really wanting to have this much memory, there was a cry of pain: "Despite lower NAND flash prices these cards are still unbelievably expensive," it said.

Apparently the 3 GB card is 166,000 YEN ($1,490), the 4 GB card is 207,00 YEN ($1,860), the 6 GB card is 525,000 YEN ($4,700), the 12 GB card is expected to be 1,659,000 YEN *yes that's $14,900 dollars* in America."

And for camera freaks who really want 12 Gbytes: "Just buy three Creative Labs Nomad MuVo 4 GB ($200), each one contains a 4 GB Hitachi Microdrive. $600 vs. $14,900." Full article and discussion at their news site

The card was announced at CeBIT in Hannover, Germany, earlier this year.

It almost makes the Sandisk 256 megabyte WiFi card in SD format look piffling, doesn't it? It's the world's "first card to include both memory and WLAN (802.11b) communications in a single SD card" and needs SDIO drivers in a Microsoft Pocket PC or smartphone device. And at $129, I know which one I'd buy ...