MMC

Multimedia card Overview

Multimedia Card (MMC) is a memory card based on FLASH technology. It is joint venture of SanDisk and SiemensAG and launched in 1997. It is one of the FLASH memory standards. Multimedia card uses NAND based flash memory offering smaller form factor (24 mm X 32 mm X 1.5 mm) compared to some other FLASH standards such as CompactFLASH. Multimedia card serves as a 1-bit serial interface as well as 4 and 8-bit parallel interface.

MMC form factors

The technology used in MMC is an open standard. So any company can enhance the product. Multimedia cards are available in a variety of form factors. These include RS-MMC (reduced size MMC), MMCmini, MMCmicro, MMC4x, MMCmobile, and secureMMC.

RS-MMC (Reduced-Sized Multimedia Card)

RS-MMC (Reduced-sized Multimedia Card) is half of the standard multimedia card. It comes in the form factor 24 mm X 16 mm X 1.5 mm. It was launched in 2004. Through an adapter it can be used in standard Multimedia card slot or even in Secure Digital (SD) slots. Nokia and Siemens are its dominant licensees. RS-MMC comes in 2 GB of maximum storage.

MMCmini

MMCmini is smaller form factor than standard MMC. It is 20 mm X 21.5 mm X 1.4 mm. Contrary to standard MMC it has 11-pin configuration. Maximum storage capacity of an MMCmini is 2 GB. MMCmini cards are used in reduced size memory slots.

MMCmicro

MMCmicro is smaller form factor (14 mm X 12 mm X 1.1 mm) than MMCmini. MMCmicro offers dual voltage support and backward MMC compatibility. IT can also be used in MMC and SD card slots through an adapter.

MMC 4.x and SecureMMC

MMC4 series is almost the same form factors but offers more pins. MMC4 were launched in 2005. They are higher in performance and known as MMCmobile, MMCplus, and RS-MMC4. SecureMMC standards are not common. These are based on encryption hardware similar to memory stick magic gate or (SD) secure digital) cards.

Multimedia Card Applications

Multimedia cards like other memory cards such as Secure Digital (SD) cards and Smart Media cards are used in portable devices. Multimedia cards offer more storing capacity than Smart Media. MMCs are commonly used in digital cameras and video recorders. Modern PCs contain slots for these cards. MMC cards can be used with most SD card slots as well. Older PCs especially laptops and devices that do not contain such slots require a card reader. Other MMC uses include Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), Cell Phones, and digital audio players. Maximum storage capacity of multimedia card is 4 GB. On the whole MMC cards can be used in all the applications where memory cards are used.