SDHC versus Ultra?

Question

I want to buy a memory card for my new camera. It is a Canon PowerShot SD750 Digital Elph. I want to buy the best type of memory card possible. I know that SDHC cards are compatible with my camera. But what is this "ultra" shindig? Are SDHC and Ultra the same thing? Is this:

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0609/06092602_sandisk4gbultra.asp

different from this:

http://imaging-resource.pricegrabber.com/search_techspecs_full.php/masterid=32367202/st=product_tab

Is ultra worth it? What does it do? What does SDHC mean anyway, also?

Answer 1

No, SDHC and Ultra are not one and the same.

SDHC = Secure Digital High Capacity, it's same form factor as regular SD, but is wired differently inside to allow more data written to it (4gb, in your case). Some cameras can take them, some can't. If yours is compatible, you shouldn't be worrying about it, just look at capacity.

Ultra - that's just a trademark name of Sandisk. I believe they are faster and more expensive than regular SanDisk cards, but it does not mean that they would be faster than other brands who use different trademarks. Always look for data transfer rate information about the card, rather than flashy names. That will tell you tons more about how they compare to one another.

If you are planning to record a lot of video at highest resolution / framerate, you may need a fast card, though after a quick search on the web I couldn't determine just how fast. Otherwise, you should be ok with either of the above for photographing. I personally prefer Kingston brand over SanDisk, but that's just me. To be honest I prefer Lexar to both of them anyway...

LEM.