Every device needs some form of storage. But while most new storage is now sold state, that wasn’t always the case and, of course, the most iconic storage formats are physical media. And we’ll be showcasing some more memorable of them here - as well as some lost in history.
One of the earliest formats of data storage was punched tape, which was first used in 1725 by Basile Bouchon to control looms at his textile factory in Lyon, France.
The earliest medium for recording and reproducing sound? Wax cylinders, were invented by Thomas Edison in 1877. The cylinders eventually became what we now know as records, which were originally played on a phonograph system before moving to the turntable.
Skip forward to the modern day, and we have multiple forms of analogue and digital storage, 35mm film to flash memory and solid-state storage as we mentioned.
While we’re focusing on a small selection of unsuccessful formats here, you’re able to find a list of nearly 500 atObsolete Media.
So join us on a journey looking back at all the formats we’ve lost. How many do you remember?
Punch cards
Way before modern digital storage formats were even a twinkle in inventor’s eyes human beings were recording digital data on paper in the form of punch cards.
These cards were able to hold data that was represented by the presence or absence of holes that had been punched in the card.
This logic dates back to 1725 when Basile Bouchon developed the concept. But it wasn’t until the late 1880s when Herman Hollerith invented the machine for using this technique to record the US Census.
Initially, these systems were fairly simple in their logic but later they were even used atBletchley Parkduring World War 2 while the allies attempted to decrypt enemy communications. It wasn’t until the 1960s that the punch card started to become obsolete as it was replaced by magnetic tape.
Memory Stick
The Memory Stick was a proprietary storage format released by Sony in 1998.
The Memory Stick family comprised the Memory Stick Pro, Memory Stick Duo, and Memory Stick Micro (M2).
The Memory Stick family could only be used in Sony products, such as Cyber-shot cameras, thePlayStation Portableand VAIO PCs. Sony jumped aboard the SD card bandwagon in 2010, which signalled the end of the road for the Memory Stick.
Psion Datakpak Organiser
The Psion Organiser was launched in 1984 and was known as the “the world’s first practical pocket computer”.
While it boasted a 0.9MHz 8-bt Hitachi processor, 4kB of ROM and 2kB of static RAM, it didn’t have built-in storage. It had to use removable Datapaks, which used EPROM (erasable programmable read-only memory), which could continue to store data even after its power supply is switched off.
Deleting files wasn’t as simple as highlighting and pressing delete. Instead, you would have to expose it to a strong UV light.
The Organiser II could use new and improved Datapaks, which had between 8kB - 256kB of storage capacity. The Psion Organiser was discontinued in 1992
MultiMediaCard
The MultiMedia Card was released by SanDisk and Siemens in 1997.
They were available in sizes up to 512GB and were used in the majority of electronic devices, including cameras, mobile phones and PDAs.
The MMC was superseded by SD card around 2005, most MMC cards can still be used in SD card slots because of their similar size and compatible PIN connection.
xD Picture Card
The xD Picture Card was a flash memory card used specifically in FujiFilm and Olympus cameras from 2002 - 2010.
Standing for eXtreme Digital, xD cards were available in storage sizes from 16MB - 2GB and for a time, competed against SD cards,
Sony’s Memory Stick and Compact Flash (CF) cards. SD cards eventually won the war, because xD cards were expensive and had limited use. They finally met their maker in 2010.
Miniature Card
Miniature Cards were developed by Intel and released in 1995, and saw backing from Sharp, Fujistu and Advanced Micro Devices.
They were used primarily in PDAs, digital cameras and digital audio recorders, and had storage capacities up to 64MB.
Unfortunately for Miniature Cards, they competed directly with CompactFlash and SmartMedia cards, which were more successful. The Miniature Card was put out of production by the end of the 1990s.
The PC Card, originally known as the PCMCIA card, was a peripheral interface standard, as opposed to an actual storage medium. It was developed and introduced by the Personal Computer Memory Card International Association in 1990.
PC Cards could take on many forms, with the very first being memory expansion cards for laptops and notebooks, but eventually modems, network cards and hard disks were released.
The original Type I cards were 3.3mm thick and were used for such things as RAM, flash memory and SRAM cards.
Type II cards introduced I/O support, which meant a wider range of peripherals, including those for which the host computer had no built-in support, could be attached. Type III cards were thicker than Type II, and so could support larger components such as hard disk drives.
PC Cards were eventually superseded by ExpressCards in 2003, although PC Cards could still be used in ExpressCard slots by way of an adapter.
Microdrive
Microdrives were a range of 1-inch hard disks, developed and launched by IBM and Hitachi in 1999. Microdrives could fit in CompactFlash Type II slots, and storage range from an initial 170MB up to an eventual 8GB.
Similar drives were launched by Seagate in 2004, but they had to be called CompactFlash drives due to trademark issues. Microdrives were phased out in 2011 due to the rise of solid-state flash media, which could have a higher storage capacity, was more durable, smaller and cheaper.
PocketZip (Clik!)
Iomega launched yet another floppy disk storage system in 1999, this time, the PocketZip. The system used proprietary 40MB disks that were incredibly thin. The format was originally called Clik!, but following the ‘click of death’ class action lawsuit against Iomega itself, the name was changed to PocketZip.
PocketZip disks could be used with PC Cards, digital audio players and digital cameras. PocketZip cards were considered a failure and couldn’t compete against solid-state flash memory cards. They were eventually discontinued in 2000.
Iomega released another floppy disk storage system in 1994 in the form of the Zip drive. Zip drives launched with a 100MB storage capacity, but this increased to 250MB and eventually 750MB.
While it proved popular in the late 1990s, 3.5-inch floppy disks eventually won out and Zip drives were even pushed out by rewritable CDs and DVDs that could offer higher storage capacities.
After, sales began to fall in 1999, the entire Zip range was discontinued in 2003.
