Flash memory cards come in different shapes and sizes.
Choosing a memory card for your digital devices isn't actually your choice. The decision between memory types is made by the manufacturer during the design phase and these cards aren't interchangeable. Still, understanding the differences can be helpful.
Flash Memory
All memory cards are technically called flash memory, either "compact" flash or in various other card forms, including SDHC. A flash drive is simply a storage device that can be inserted and removed easily, unlike a fixed-disk drive like a computer's hard drive or an MP3 player's internal memory.
Compact Flash
Compact flash memory cards are common in digital SLR cameras and, until 2005, were the only types of cards used by high-end camera manufacturers. Compact flash cards range in size from 1GB up to 64GB. There are two different compact flash formats -- Type I and Type II -- which have different thicknesses and can't be swapped for one another.
SDHC
Originally developed by SanDisk Corporation, hence the "SD," these cards are high-capacity versions of the SD memory card format. SDHC cards are classified by speed as Class 2, Class 4 and Class 6, for the megabytes-per-second rate of the card. SDHC memory cards range from 2GB to 32GB in size.
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