Really Darn Cheap 512 MB SD Cards: $61 With Mail-In Rebate

[Pat Logsdon]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.ecost.com/ecost/shop/detail.asp?DPNo=295990' target='_blank'>http://www.ecost.com/ecost/shop/det...asp?DPNo=295990</a><br /><br /></div><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/logsdon_200400720_512mbsd.gif" /><br /><br />Friends, I have a dream, and in that dream I am using 512 MB SD cards as shingles on a house I've made for my hamster out of cereal boxes. The dream ends when giant cornflakes attempt to eat my shoes, which is probably just as well. At any rate, this is the lowest price I've seen for SD cards of this size, bringing my dream that much closer to reality. It looks like they're throwing free shipping into the bargain as well, so if you're in the market, or if you just like to buy things on impulse (darn you, <a href="http://www.flowbee.com/">Flowbee!</a>), you should probably check this out. As of now (12:30am PST), eCost is reporting <b><i><u>ONLY</u></i></b> 83 hours and 30 minutes left for this offer, but I have the sneaking suspicion that the "Bargain Countdown" clock means absolutely nothing whatsoever. Personally, I think I'm doing fine with my two 256 MB SD cards. How about you? Does this tempt you?

[ADBrown]

Yes, the countdown clock is bogus, as is the inventory counter, and the 'free shipping' claim--just add $4 handling! Still, it is a good deal. However, I'm going to stick with my 256 MB SD and 256 MB CF while waiting for prices to go down a bit further--then I'm going to buy a 512 MB SD and 1 GB CF.

[beq]

Darnit don't tempt us like this :)

I'm trying to stick to my earlier resolution to only buy high-speed MMC or SD cards going forward...


P.S. Totally unrelated, I would really love to get a portable SD/MMC keychain reader akin to the original SanDisk Cruzer, updated with USB 2.0 and much smaller size. If not possible then I'd settle for supporting RS-MMC or Mini SD instead.

[Oleander]

Dang!

Why don't we ever get theese offers in europe? :(

Btw, being from europe I really don't understand the concept of mail-in rebate, how does it work? When you recieve your item, do you then get a coupon to send in? And then what? Do you receive a cheque to the amount or what?

[mscdex]

Btw, being from europe I really don't understand the concept of mail-in rebate, how does it work? When you recieve your item, do you then get a coupon to send in? And then what? Do you receive a cheque to the amount or what?

Usually when you receive the item in the mail, you print out the rebate form online or if you got it in a store, they might have it in a rebate book (like Officemax does) where in that case you can just tear it out. Then you fill out the rebate form, cut out the UPC/Bar code from the box of the item, and make a copy of both the upc code and the receipt. Then mail the rebate form and the 2 copies (upc code and receipt). Then in about 6-8 weeks or whenever they get it to you, you get a check in the mail from the manufacturer (usually, sometimes the actual retailer as well).

I'm a rebate-a-holic :D

[scargill]

Then in about 6-8 weeks or whenever they get it to you, you get a check in the mail from the manufacturer (usually, sometimes the actual retailer as well).


Doesn't it just make more work for the manufacturers or the retailers? In the UK they just make things cheaper!! The only reason I can see for mail-in rebates is that some stupid people will forget to "mail-in" their rebate and therefore the company won't loose money on that person. Can anyone expand?

[snowlion]

The only reason I can see for mail-in rebates is that some stupid people will forget to "mail-in" their rebate and therefore the company won't loose money on that person.

that's precisely the point!

when in the store/web...person sees $20 off and suddenly something you would not normally get looks pretty good. you buy it and of course pay taxes on the whole thing. then i read somwhere, close to 50% of these rebates are either not sent in/or without proper form/couons - so voided.

i've actually had some instances where the money was never sent at all - of course by that time i'd forgotton what it was, where it was sent to and the amount.

it's a sales gimmick that seems to work.

[Bruno Figueiredo]

Also, that way they have your address anc can send you all sorts of junk. In Europe we don't have coupons or that kind of rebates. Usually the prices are in promotion.

At Staples, what they use to do is on a given day, say tuesday the 23rd, you can get, say a printer at 20% off. They do this in supermarkets too. At Wednesdays all the meats are the same price (say $1.50 per pound).

[foldedspace]

I've stopped doing rebates, unless they are 'instant'. Who wants to wait 8 weeks for their money, hoping they don't reject it for no good reason?

[lapchinj]

... but I have the sneaking suspicion that the "Bargain Countdown" clock means absolutely nothing whatsoever...
Yeah, I don't think so either. I just received their catalog in the mail yesterday and they list all their "HOT" items and how much time is left before they turn "COLD" :roll: . I would say that to be able to figure that out while putting together a catalog is pretty neat (scary also). But it just goes to show you what companies can do with a crystal ball. I'm sure that other companies will want to tap into their talent pool :wink:.

Jeff-

[lapchinj]

I've stopped doing rebates, unless they are 'instant'. Who wants to wait 8 weeks for their money, hoping they don't reject it for no good reason?
Me too. After waiting all that time that's when they'll reject it for some stupid reason like an illegible zip code. I had even started typing in the information on the rebate forms but I still got them back for not being legible or complete. So really it was more like 3-4 months before I got anything :twisted: . It wasn't worth the hassle or the stamps.

Jeff-

[theone3]

Then in about 6-8 weeks or whenever they get it to you, you get a check in the mail from the manufacturer (usually, sometimes the actual retailer as well).


Doesn't it just make more work for the manufacturers or the retailers? In the UK they just make things cheaper!! The only reason I can see for mail-in rebates is that some stupid people will forget to "mail-in" their rebate and therefore the company won't loose money on that person. Can anyone expand?I've stopped doing rebates, unless they are 'instant'. Who wants to wait 8 weeks for their money, hoping they don't reject it for no good reason? There's your answer. ;)

I'm not sure they're stupid people. Perhaps their time is worth more than the rebate is. Can't imagine say, Bill Gates going back for a rebate.

Thank god we have honest businesses down-under :D

[tddisc]

P.S. Totally unrelated, I would really love to get a portable SD/MMC keychain reader akin to the original SanDisk Cruzer, updated with USB 2.0 and much smaller size. If not possible then I'd settle for supporting RS-MMC or Mini SD instead.

You need to look at SimpleTech's Bonzai - http://www.simpletech.com/usbflashdrives/Bonzai.php
It's smaller than the Cruzer and it's USB2. You can find just the reader for ~$20-$25 shipped on PriceGrabber or get different size SD cards with it.

TD

[lapchinj]

I'm not sure they're stupid people. Perhaps their time is worth more than the rebate is ...
I'm sure that the company is counting on people not getting around to or not being able to reclaim their rebates. The majority of people don't fall in the Bill Gates category (or even close). These people I would imagine do not mind paying another $20-30 if they need the stuff and don’t really shop around but rather buy from their regular retailer – UNLESS there is an instant rebate involved. NOBODY passes up a hassle free discount.

Besides an instant rebate gives back to the customer 100% of the money while an MIR doesn’t. And I'm sure that these companies have the actual statistics on how many don't or can't (just plain give up) reclaim their rebates. Besides the impact of a great MIR offer is tremendous and the fact that people can't take advantage of it makes it even better (for the company).

Jeff-

[Boxster S]

There's only one problem with the Kingston card...and it's a BIG one. It's slow as CRAP!!! Even slower than Sandisk and not nearly as fast as basic Lexar SD cards that I have used in the past.

I JUST bought this card from ZipZoomFly last week for my iPAQ 4150 to replace my Panasonic 512MB SD card that kept corrupting. I saw it for roughly $65 after rebate so I bit.

I got it on Thursday and it is slow as molasses. It took 3x as long to tranfer 300MB of data from my desktop to the card via my internal USB 2.0 reader on my desktop and over 2x as long to do an internal backup with iPaq Backup.

Not only that, everything about the card is just slow. It takes about 3-4x as long to sync with Avantgo (I store all of my Avangto content on my storage card) b/c the write speeds are atrocious.

Needless to say, I'm getting rid of this piece of $%&#

[Boxster S]

Ohh, and as to rebates, it's not that hard folks :roll:

I buy a lot of stuff cheap and sell high on eBay and most of the items come with rebates. I've had success 99.9% of the time. I've only had a problem once or twice with TCA rebates, but a simple 5 minute phone call cleared up the problem. My keys to success:

(1) Use electronic rebate submission whenever available
(2) Making copies of the UPC and receipt/packing slip
(3) Keep a copy of the rebate form
(4) Keep all of this information in a seperate folder for each rebate
(5) Keep an eye on your rebates by using the rebate starus tracking link that the companies provide

People that are still afraid of rebates (if they do what I stated above), then you're just either too lazy or too paranoid to be bothered. It takes me less than 5 minutes to fill out a rebate form and scan in the UPC/Receipt to my computer. 5 mins is nothin' when you're talking about a $30-50 rebate. Heck, I was even slightly surprised when I got a rebate for $69.99 yesterday for a cordless phone I bought less than a month ago after I sent it off to the Parago rebate processing center.

http://pics.atofftopic.com/Images/NFS4/rebates_1.jpg
http://pics.atofftopic.com/Images/NFS4/rebates_2.jpg

[foldedspace]

If it's an insanely high rebate offer (like 200 dollars back), then I might bite. But chances are if I shop around or go to Ebay, I can get the same item for close to the 'after rebate' price. But I don't buy that many things and don't want to wait months to get back 10 bucks.

Now if I was doing it on Ebay, then sure. Volume makes it all worth it. :)

[Bruno Figueiredo]

Hey, Boxster, whats wrong with you OS? It doesn't look like the XP I know. Looks more polished. What are you using?

[absolutVenky]

There's only one problem with the Kingston card...and it's a BIG one. It's slow as CRAP!!! Even slower than Sandisk and not nearly as fast as basic Lexar SD cards that I have used in the past.


Thanks for the warning. I almost ordered one!

[Boxster S]

Hey, Boxster, whats wrong with you OS? It doesn't look like the XP I know. Looks more polished. What are you using?

It's XP Pro SP2 Build 2162. I'm just using the new Windows XP Royale Theme that will be shipped with the lastest version of XP Media Center:

http://www.flexbeta.net/main/comments.php?catid=1&shownews=8090

[CrashX]

P.S. Totally unrelated, I would really love to get a portable SD/MMC keychain reader akin to the original SanDisk Cruzer, updated with USB 2.0 and much smaller size. If not possible then I'd settle for supporting RS-MMC or Mini SD instead.
You need to look at SimpleTech's Bonzai - http://www.simpletech.com/usbflashdrives/Bonzai.php
It's smaller than the Cruzer and it's USB2. You can find just the reader for ~$20-$25 shipped on PriceGrabber or get different size SD cards with it.
I use the JumpDrive Trio from Lexar - http://www.lexarmedia.com/jumpdrive/index.html
It supports SD/MMC and MemoryStick (which is great for me since my home is plastered with Sony products) and is USB 2.0 compatible. It's not the smallest reader out there, but it easily and comfortablly fits in a pocket.

[radioflyer7]

There's only one problem with the Kingston card...and it's a BIG one. It's slow as CRAP!!! Even slower than Sandisk and not nearly as fast as basic Lexar SD cards that I have used in the past.


Thanks for the warning. I almost ordered one!


Dang! I just ordered one. Regretting already... But maybe the reading it not as slow? I hope? I mainly use it as Mp3 storage.

[Boxster S]

There's only one problem with the Kingston card...and it's a BIG one. It's slow as CRAP!!! Even slower than Sandisk and not nearly as fast as basic Lexar SD cards that I have used in the past.


Thanks for the warning. I almost ordered one!


Dang! I just ordered one. Regretting already... But maybe the reading it not as slow? I hope? I mainly use it as Mp3 storage.

Reading is bearable, but still slow as dirt. Let's just put it this way. I was used to having almost instaneous response with my Pansonic SD card, and now am having to wait with the Kingston.

(1) With my old card, I could pull up IE with Avantgo as my start page in roughly 1-2 seconds. It takes 6-8 seconds now. And it takes a lot longer to open up Avantgo content as well.
(2) My backups used to take 1:15. Now they take 2:35 and sometimes longer

[Kathy_Harris]

I have a Sandisk 512 (no on back is AX0210MU) and find it fine for storing MP3s, maps, and ebooks. What I can't get it to do at all is read ebooks. I have to copy the ebook that I am reading to main memory, then delete it when I'm done. If I try to read it from the SD card, I get all sorts of errors and lockups, especially in MS Reader.

[szamot]

Then in about 6-8 weeks or whenever they get it to you, you get a check in the mail from the manufacturer (usually, sometimes the actual retailer as well).


Doesn't it just make more work for the manufacturers or the retailers? In the UK they just make things cheaper!! The only reason I can see for mail-in rebates is that some stupid people will forget to "mail-in" their rebate and therefore the company won't loose money on that person. Can anyone expand?

It might be more work but....some 90% of all rebates are never send in so the manufacturer always wins, even if they have to do some work for it.

[lapchinj]

...People that are still afraid of rebates (if they do what I stated above)...
At least for me I guess it's mostly being Paranoid or gun shy. But it's worth another few tries since I tend to pass up some nice stuff only because there is a MIR attached

Jeff-

[Jason Lee]

I use the JumpDrive Trio from Lexar - http://www.lexarmedia.com/jumpdrive/index.html
It supports SD/MMC and MemoryStick (which is great for me since my home is plastered with Sony products) and is USB 2.0 compatible. It's not the smallest reader out there, but it easily and comfortablly fits in a pocket.

Me too. Love the thing. I don't have any sony stuff but friends of mine do.. It's very nice to have around.

[jeasher]

If you want to spend less money, there's an offer there for a 256mb card for $44 + $20 rebate. With their S&H charge, the total came to $48 shipped. If I actually get the $20 rebate, that card is a steal for $28 no matter how fast it is.

[beq]

P.S. Totally unrelated, I would really love to get a portable SD/MMC keychain reader akin to the original SanDisk Cruzer, updated with USB 2.0 and much smaller size. If not possible then I'd settle for supporting RS-MMC or Mini SD instead.
You need to look at SimpleTech's Bonzai - http://www.simpletech.com/usbflashdrives/Bonzai.php
It's smaller than the Cruzer and it's USB2. You can find just the reader for ~$20-$25 shipped on PriceGrabber or get different size SD cards with it.
I use the JumpDrive Trio from Lexar - http://www.lexarmedia.com/jumpdrive/index.html
It supports SD/MMC and MemoryStick (which is great for me since my home is plastered with Sony products) and is USB 2.0 compatible. It's not the smallest reader out there, but it easily and comfortablly fits in a pocket.
Thanks for the mention of these other products. I was looking for something that can be as small & narrow as the ultra-mini USB memory keys (the ones with built-in flash memory), which might require using RS-MMC / Mini SD (the half-size card formats) to get down to that size? I don't know...

In regards to speed, I was also hoping for a reader supporting the highest 8-bit bus width and highest clock frequencies (ex. 52MHz) as per the latest MMC 4.0 and SD specs. Something that can really take advantage of a USB 2.0 interface (when using a high-speed card capable of that speed of course). For example MMC 4.0 highest specs claim 52Mbyte/sec transfer rate?

So basically all of the benefits of a fixed USB memory key but with the advantage of using removable memory cards...


If it's an insanely high rebate offer (like 200 dollars back), then I might bite.
I personally agree with this. I just know myself and I tend to always forget to do these things or put it off until too late...

[Mark Johnson]

I've stopped doing rebates, unless they are 'instant'. Who wants to wait 8 weeks for their money, hoping they don't reject it for no good reason?
Me too. After waiting all that time that's when they'll reject it for some stupid reason like an illegible zip code.

Reminds me of the Dilbert where Consultant Dogbert tells Pointy-Haired Boss not to charge $1 for the widget, but to make it $1,000,000 with a $999,999 rebate. "If only one person forgets to send in the card, we're set!"

[Mark Johnson]

There's only one problem with the Kingston card...and it's a BIG one. It's slow as CRAP!!! Even slower than Sandisk and not nearly as fast as basic Lexar SD cards that I have used in the past.


Has anyone seen a throughput chart comparing the major brands? I'd love to see some current data...

[Paula]

After recently being burnt by a qaulity SD card malfunction :( , which caused the loss of data greater to me than the cost of said card, I am sticking with CF for important data from now on. I will keep my Lexar SD 256 (identified as TOSHIBA when using a card reader and my PC) )for minor data I could care less about. Maybe a price tag of 1.00 would enduce me to purchase another SD card so soon after my devistating loss. :D

Paula

[Jonathon Watkins]

Has anyone seen a throughput chart comparing the major brands? I'd love to see some current data...

Only for CF cards (http://www.dpreview.com/articles/mediacompare/).

[Jonathon Watkins]

After recently being burnt by a qaulity SD card malfunction :( , which caused the loss of data greater to me than the cost of said card, I am sticking with CF for important data from now on.

I don't think SD cards are really less reliable than CF cards. I have had two Sandisk CF cards and one Sandisk SD card die on me so far.............

[ricksfiona]

Can't wait for 1GB SD cards to hit $100. Got a 512MB SD card and it rocks!

[Boxster S]

More on the speed of the Kingston card. I just backed up my iPAQ. 12.3MB backed up in 2:48 at an average speed of 71 KB/sec.

:?

[Boxster S]

HOLY CRAP!! I just got my Transcend 45x 512MB SD card in from NewEgg today. It kicks the living PISS out of the Kingston card AND my Panasonic 512MB SD card. It would take my Pansonic card over a minute to backup the same amount of data. The Trascend simply smoked through my backup test:

Kingston 512MB SD backing up 12.3MB of data: 2:42 @ 71 KB/sec
Trascend 45x 512MB SD backing up 12.9MB of data: 0:50 @ 253 KB/sec

Paid $99 for the Transcend card