HoodMan USA SxSxSDHC Express Card Adapter at DVinfo.net

Chris Hurd · April 9th, 2009, 07:25 AM

Their press release is attached below as a .jpg -- HoodMan USA's SxSxSDHC Express Card adapter is a perfect match for their own RAW SDHC card line, which are designed for professional use and claim a zero-failure rate. This is a mid- to upper-tier solution designed for professional use: for those who would rather have a reliable memory card recording option instead of a cheap one. HoodMan USA's RAW memory cards (Compact Flash and SDHC) are among the most expensive you can buy; if you're looking for "cheap" memory then they definitely are not for you. As always, you get what you pay for -- their memory cards are intended for professional applications where card failure is not an option. Within the realm of SDHC substitutes for SxS, the HoodMan RAW cards are at the very top of the spectrum. For those who were waiting for a reliable, professional-level SDHC substitute for SxS that can be used with confidence on paying gigs, this is it.

While the HoodMan USA adapter is designed specifically for their RAW SDHC card series, we're going to find out if it works well with third-party SDHC cards as well; expect field reports here on DV Info Net in a day our two. The SxSxSDHC adapter is available now via telephone order (at tel. 800-818-3946) and will appear on the HoodMan USA web site next week.

The SxSxSDHC Express Card adapter by itself is $49.99. HoodMan USA RAW Class 6 SHDC cards are $149, including a USB2 card reader. HoodMan USA is based in Torrance, California and will be exhibiting at NAB2009. Their web site is Hoodman USA Corporation.

Chris Hurd · April 9th, 2009, 07:30 AM

Just to note that DV Info Net will continue to support Ross Herewini of eFilms and the MxR adapter card (who will also be at NAB, by the way). How I would delineate the market is to say that MxR is an ideal solution for those folks outside of North America and / or are interested in less expensive third-party SDHC cards. Meanwhile HoodMan USA is based in the U.S. and their SxSxSDHC Express Card adapter is designed specifically for their own RAW SDHC memory card line, which is a higher-end product (it is perhaps the most expensive SDHC memory card you can buy).

The HoodMan adapter is more expensive than the MxR adapter and it's made that way on purpose; however either one is much more affordable than dedicated SxS of equivalent capacity.

Bill Ward · April 9th, 2009, 10:41 AM

ummm..."$198.98 spent with Hoodman replaces the $750 16GB SxS Card"

Given that it only overcranks to 48, instead of 60...isn't that a bit of potentially misleading hyperbole?

Ed Kukla · April 9th, 2009, 11:50 AM

Hoodman RAW SDHC cards are 4 times better than Transcend SDHC cards ($180 vs $40)?

Hoodman is manufacturing their own SD cards in the USA?

Kevin Cates · April 9th, 2009, 02:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris Hurd

This is a mid- to upper-tier solution designed for professional use: for those who would rather have a reliable memory card recording option instead of a cheap one.

I have been using the Kensington and MxR adapters, the Sandisk Ultra II and Transcend 16GB. With over 100 hours of recording/transferring I have not had one failure. I would call that reliable and inexpensive. I think if Hoodman lowers their SDHC prices, they will be in the game.

Chris Hurd · April 9th, 2009, 03:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ed Kukla

Hoodman RAW SDHC cards are 4 times better than Transcend SDHC cards ($180 vs $40)?

Hoodman is manufacturing their own SD cards in the USA?

Both of these are excellent questions. I forwarded them by email to Lou Schmidt at Hoodman USA and
am posting his reply here with his permission (Lou has not yet set up a membership on DV Info Net).

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yes, you can find a 16 GB SDHC speed class 6 Transcend card on PriceGrabber.com for $59.99. Hoodman’s RAW 16GB SDHC speed class 6 card is $149.99 and includes an SDHC to USB reader worth $20 for free. $70 is worth talking about. You are embarking on an option that will enable you to replace the $745 Sony 16GB SxS card (current price at B&H). Hoodman saves you $545 by giving you a equally reliable alternative for $200. You are leaving the High dollar High reliability Sony SxS land and quickly will be in a quagmire of (want to be good) Off Shore SDHC card players. You will not find Transcend cards in your professional camera shops… You might wonder why…. Pro dealers do not want to have to deal with the failure rates of Off Shore SDHC card makers. You will find many Off Shore SDHC cards for less money at Mass Merchants and on line merchants where they are consumed by people who are not professionals and will never risk losing valuable footage because they never shoot valuable footage. Hoodman has been making High End memory cards in the USA for four years now. The Hoodman RAW brand is used by many of the best still photographers in the world… you can read their testimonials here… Hoodman Corporation

Hoodman RAW memory cards are only sold through Professional Photo Dealers. Professionals cannot afford failures and know the value of reliable memory cards because they have experienced failures by other brands in the past. The Hoodman RAW line has a perfect record of Zero in Field failures world wide. Hoodman builds RAW cards in Silicon Valley. If you have a question about the RAW cards or adapters you can call Hoodman and someone live will get on the phone and help you out 8am to 5pm Monday through Friday. If you format your card by mistake and give Hoodman a call, we can recover the footage for you for free. Off shore memory card makers are not set up to help you after the sale. Hoodman began in Hollywood and broadcast. You have seen the Hoodman booth at the past 21 NAB shows. Have you ever seen another memory card maker at NAB?

Hoodman competes successfully amongst billion dollar memory card makers by making RAW memory cards better than others are willing to make their memory cards. Hoodman is also set up to give you the customer service you deserve. We believe that the extra $70 you spend with Hoodman will be the best $70 you may ever spend.

Hoodman will be pleased to sell you their RAW SxSxSDHC adapter and let you go your own way on memory cards. Please note that not all memory cards are compatible with the adapter.

The turnkey package of RAW adapter and RAW memory cards is backed 100% by Hoodman… if you need customer service and you are not using a RAW SDHC card, will you send Hoodman the $70 you saved on the off shore card to get help?

Lou Schmidt
VP Marketing
Hoodman Corporation

Chris Hurd · April 9th, 2009, 03:25 PM

Ed Kukla is right regarding the Transcend price; on NewEgg they're $40 for 16GB Class 6. However I think Lou's point isn't about the amount of money ($70 vs. $90) but rather the guaranteed zero failure rate and that they stand behind what they sell. The Hoodman adapter is one more available option along with the eFilms MxR card for substituting SDHC for SxS. There will be those who will buy MxR or Hoodman Express Card adapters to use with their own choice of SDHC cards, but there's another segment of the market that might prefer the Hoodman bundle. Affordability is always a relative term -- not everyone wants a "cheap" SDHC card. As previously stated, the Hoodman RAW cards are without a doubt the most expensive on the market, but there are reasons for that, and there's definitely a market for that. Despite their high cost, they're still much more affordable than SxS media.

Craig Seeman · April 9th, 2009, 03:40 PM

Is there are RAW SDHC 32GB card on the drawing board?

Of course this may beg the issue of handing clients cards or saving them vs reuse. In some respect that dilemma is nothing new since you can take that all the way to buying more expensive tape stock that went through good QC vs less expensive stocks.

Good QC does have value though when you're talking about masters.

Sean Seah · April 9th, 2009, 11:14 PM

the hoodman SxSxSDHC card really looks like the MxR..

Dean Sensui · April 10th, 2009, 02:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sean Seah

the hoodman SxSxSDHC card really looks like the MxR..

It has to. Otherwise it won't fit in the Express 34 slot.

Ed Kukla · April 10th, 2009, 04:58 AM

Elsewhere someone observed that the hoodman adapter IS the MxR adapter.
Notice the ad says the RAW SDHC card is made in the USA but that does not mention the adapter. My observation would be that aparently the adapter is made 'offshore', same place for both the MxR and the Hoodman.

I wonder how many failures of Transcend or Sandisc are actually counterfit Transcend or Sandisc cards?

Jon Braeley · April 10th, 2009, 06:03 AM

While I wish to buy American and pay a premium to do so, exactly how different is the technology in the various SDHC cards out there - probably none. To suggest that after sales service is worth paying twice as much as your competitors may be true on a vehicle or a space rocket ... but a memory card with no working parts?

I just took eight Transcend 16G cards and four Sandisk with the MxR and Kensington adapters on a two month location shoot - about four hours per day for nine weeks. I suffered only one glitch when a card gave "restore" error at 54 minutes and stopped working. I thought I had lost a one hour interview!! I switched to the second B card and then later hit the restore button on card A - no data was lost.
I would add that I also have three Sony SxS cards that I use for slo-mo.

I applaud more companies making the cards and adapters, but to suggest that foreign made cards are unreliable is nonsense. Is'nt that what American car companies once touted?

Bob Grant · April 10th, 2009, 06:47 AM

As far as I can see we can no longer buy MxR cards in Australia, they are now being handled by New Magic who will sell 10 for AUD 2090, with no retailer available for MxR.
Based on that Ross recently lost my business to the other local supplier who shows his US distributor as Hoodman.

Barry J. Weckesser · April 10th, 2009, 07:13 AM

If you look at the cost of the "MxR" card from the "other local supplier" - if you buy several cards, even with shipping, the cost is less than the Hoodman cost - and it must be the same adaptor since they list Hoodman and have a link to their website.

With regard to the SDHC cards - I have bought several Transcend cards from a large company (not third party - from the company direct) as low as $ 26.99 for 16 GB - current price is around $ 34 - I just cant see paying $ 150 for essentially the same thing even if you have money to burn.

Alister Chapman · April 10th, 2009, 10:16 AM

You could have the best, most reliable memory cards in the world, but that's worthless if the quality of the adapter lets the system down. The quality of the components and construction of the adapter is just as important as the quality of the SD cards. The reliability of any system will always be limited by the weakest link in the chain. While I have used MxR, Kensington and SD cards I just don't trust them since loosing a card full of clips following changing the card in the adjacent slot. My guess is I bumped the other card disturbing the connection between the adapter and card (kensington Adapter). SxS cards have error correction built into the cards and the file system is stored on the card. Sony also offer a data recovery service in case you accidentally delete footage you need or if the card fails.

You pay your money, you make your choice.

April 9th, 2009, 07:25 AM	#1
Chris Hurd Obstreperous Rex Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: San Marcos, TX Posts: 27,366 Images: 513	HoodMan USA SxSxSDHC Express Card Adapter Their press release is attached below as a .jpg -- HoodMan USA's SxSxSDHC Express Card adapter is a perfect match for their own RAW SDHC card line, which are designed for professional use and claim a zero-failure rate. This is a mid- to upper-tier solution designed for professional use: for those who would rather have a reliable memory card recording option instead of a cheap one. HoodMan USA's RAW memory cards (Compact Flash and SDHC) are among the most expensive you can buy; if you're looking for "cheap" memory then they definitely are not for you. As always, you get what you pay for -- their memory cards are intended for professional applications where card failure is not an option. Within the realm of SDHC substitutes for SxS, the HoodMan RAW cards are at the very top of the spectrum. For those who were waiting for a reliable, professional-level SDHC substitute for SxS that can be used with confidence on paying gigs, this is it. While the HoodMan USA adapter is designed specifically for their RAW SDHC card series, we're going to find out if it works well with third-party SDHC cards as well; expect field reports here on DV Info Net in a day our two. The SxSxSDHC adapter is available now via telephone order (at tel. 800-818-3946) and will appear on the HoodMan USA web site next week. The SxSxSDHC Express Card adapter by itself is $49.99. HoodMan USA RAW Class 6 SHDC cards are $149, including a USB2 card reader. HoodMan USA is based in Torrance, California and will be exhibiting at NAB2009. Their web site is Hoodman USA Corporation. Attached Thumbnails __________________ CH Search DV Info Net \| 20 years of DVi \| ...Tuesday is Soylent Green Day!

April 9th, 2009, 07:30 AM	#2
Chris Hurd Obstreperous Rex Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: San Marcos, TX Posts: 27,366 Images: 513	Just to note that DV Info Net will continue to support Ross Herewini of eFilms and the MxR adapter card (who will also be at NAB, by the way). How I would delineate the market is to say that MxR is an ideal solution for those folks outside of North America and / or are interested in less expensive third-party SDHC cards. Meanwhile HoodMan USA is based in the U.S. and their SxSxSDHC Express Card adapter is designed specifically for their own RAW SDHC memory card line, which is a higher-end product (it is perhaps the most expensive SDHC memory card you can buy). The HoodMan adapter is more expensive than the MxR adapter and it's made that way on purpose; however either one is much more affordable than dedicated SxS of equivalent capacity. __________________ CH Search DV Info Net \| 20 years of DVi \| ...Tuesday is Soylent Green Day!

April 9th, 2009, 11:50 AM	#4
Ed Kukla Major Player Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: All over, USA Posts: 512	hoodman raw Hoodman RAW SDHC cards are 4 times better than Transcend SDHC cards ($180 vs $40)? Hoodman is manufacturing their own SD cards in the USA?

April 9th, 2009, 03:25 PM	#7
Chris Hurd Obstreperous Rex Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: San Marcos, TX Posts: 27,366 Images: 513	Ed Kukla is right regarding the Transcend price; on NewEgg they're $40 for 16GB Class 6. However I think Lou's point isn't about the amount of money ($70 vs. $90) but rather the guaranteed zero failure rate and that they stand behind what they sell. The Hoodman adapter is one more available option along with the eFilms MxR card for substituting SDHC for SxS. There will be those who will buy MxR or Hoodman Express Card adapters to use with their own choice of SDHC cards, but there's another segment of the market that might prefer the Hoodman bundle. Affordability is always a relative term -- not everyone wants a "cheap" SDHC card. As previously stated, the Hoodman RAW cards are without a doubt the most expensive on the market, but there are reasons for that, and there's definitely a market for that. Despite their high cost, they're still much more affordable than SxS media. __________________ CH Search DV Info Net \| 20 years of DVi \| ...Tuesday is Soylent Green Day!

April 10th, 2009, 10:16 AM	#15
Alister Chapman Inner Circle Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Bracknell, Berkshire, UK Posts: 4,957	You could have the best, most reliable memory cards in the world, but that's worthless if the quality of the adapter lets the system down. The quality of the components and construction of the adapter is just as important as the quality of the SD cards. The reliability of any system will always be limited by the weakest link in the chain. While I have used MxR, Kensington and SD cards I just don't trust them since loosing a card full of clips following changing the card in the adjacent slot. My guess is I bumped the other card disturbing the connection between the adapter and card (kensington Adapter). SxS cards have error correction built into the cards and the file system is stored on the card. Sony also offer a data recovery service in case you accidentally delete footage you need or if the card fails. You pay your money, you make your choice. __________________ Alister Chapman, Film-Maker/Stormchaser http://www.xdcam-user.com/alisters-blog/ My XDCAM site and blog. http://www.hurricane-rig.com

April 9th, 2009, 10:41 AM	#3
Bill Ward Major Player Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 580	ummm..."$198.98 spent with Hoodman replaces the $750 16GB SxS Card" Given that it only overcranks to 48, instead of 60...isn't that a bit of potentially misleading hyperbole?

April 9th, 2009, 03:40 PM	#8
Craig Seeman Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Brooklyn, NY, USA Posts: 3,841	Is there are RAW SDHC 32GB card on the drawing board? Of course this may beg the issue of handing clients cards or saving them vs reuse. In some respect that dilemma is nothing new since you can take that all the way to buying more expensive tape stock that went through good QC vs less expensive stocks. Good QC does have value though when you're talking about masters.

April 9th, 2009, 11:14 PM	#9
Sean Seah Trustee Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Singapore Posts: 1,498	the hoodman SxSxSDHC card really looks like the MxR..

April 10th, 2009, 04:58 AM	#11
Ed Kukla Major Player Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: All over, USA Posts: 512	Elsewhere someone observed that the hoodman adapter IS the MxR adapter. Notice the ad says the RAW SDHC card is made in the USA but that does not mention the adapter. My observation would be that aparently the adapter is made 'offshore', same place for both the MxR and the Hoodman. I wonder how many failures of Transcend or Sandisc are actually counterfit Transcend or Sandisc cards?

April 10th, 2009, 06:03 AM	#12
Jon Braeley Major Player Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Miami, FL Posts: 528	While I wish to buy American and pay a premium to do so, exactly how different is the technology in the various SDHC cards out there - probably none. To suggest that after sales service is worth paying twice as much as your competitors may be true on a vehicle or a space rocket ... but a memory card with no working parts? I just took eight Transcend 16G cards and four Sandisk with the MxR and Kensington adapters on a two month location shoot - about four hours per day for nine weeks. I suffered only one glitch when a card gave "restore" error at 54 minutes and stopped working. I thought I had lost a one hour interview!! I switched to the second B card and then later hit the restore button on card A - no data was lost. I would add that I also have three Sony SxS cards that I use for slo-mo. I applaud more companies making the cards and adapters, but to suggest that foreign made cards are unreliable is nonsense. Is'nt that what American car companies once touted?

April 10th, 2009, 06:47 AM	#13
Bob Grant Trustee Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Sydney Australia Posts: 1,570	As far as I can see we can no longer buy MxR cards in Australia, they are now being handled by New Magic who will sell 10 for AUD 2090, with no retailer available for MxR. Based on that Ross recently lost my business to the other local supplier who shows his US distributor as Hoodman.

April 10th, 2009, 07:13 AM	#14
Barry J. Weckesser Major Player Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Sarasota, Florida Posts: 427	If you look at the cost of the "MxR" card from the "other local supplier" - if you buy several cards, even with shipping, the cost is less than the Hoodman cost - and it must be the same adaptor since they list Hoodman and have a link to their website. With regard to the SDHC cards - I have bought several Transcend cards from a large company (not third party - from the company direct) as low as $ 26.99 for 16 GB - current price is around $ 34 - I just cant see paying $ 150 for essentially the same thing even if you have money to burn.