Older MacBooks and Macs do not have DS slots built in, in-fact most do not. Until last week, I was on the hunt for a perfect media card reader and after receiving Moshi’s Cardette Ultra, I might have found it.

Design

The Cardette Ultra is the definition of Moshi design, it is slim, sleek, and portable. The top slides open to allow the USB wire to be hidden inside as well as labels hidden to name each port. The size of the Cardette is just about that of a deck of cards, which, to me, is perfect.

Features

This is a media card reader, nothing more, nothing less, well except the two built in USB ports, but besides that it’s the same. It can read: all series of CompactFlash (CF) and MicroDrive, all series of Memory Stick (MS,MS Duo, MS PRO Duo), M2, MultiMediaCard (MMC),SecureDigital (SD), micro SD / TF, eXtremeDigital (xD-Picture), and SecureDigital High Capacity (SDHC). As for performance, there is no lag in loading images of my camera’s SD card nor any when loading a flash drive leaving you nothing besides a flawless experience.

Competition

The “Ultra” must mean expensive as this is a pricy media card reader at $35 when you can get them on NewEgg, Buy.com, and a lot more places for a little over $10, just look on Google. Maybe is is the aluminum design, maybe not.

Conclusion

The design of the Cardette Ultra is what sets it apart, the features are what makes it a success. I do believe the Cardette Ultra is a great product, but you have to be able to deal with the price. If you are willing to throw out the $35, by all means, but if not, there a plenty other great readers out there for less. To purchase or learn more about Moshi’s Cardette Ultra, you can view its page on Moshi’s website here.

USB Power

If you were wondering what the USB ports will work with, this might help:

The integrated USB 2.0 hub can supply up to 300 mA of power, which is sufficient for powering most USB peripherals such as flash drives, MP3 players, mouse, keyboard and PC cameras. Separate power may be required for devices such as external hard drives or DVD drives when attached to Cardette.