Panasonic unveils MicroP2 flash storage card

When it comes to flash memory, there are various options available in the market. The most common of these are the USB thumb drives and the SD card form of flash storage. Building up on this form of portable storage, Panasonic has recently announced a new series of memory cards called microP2 card, which have an SD card form. The simultaneous introduction of a microP2 Card Adaptor assures that the new series of 64GB and 32GB microP2 cards will operate in current P2 hardware.

Panasonic claims the microP2 card will ensure high-speed transfer, high reliability and the writing assurance of all P2 frame rates, formats and codecs, as well as Panasonic’s newest compression platform, up to the AVC-Intra200 mode of AVC-ULTRA, which will be available within 2013. Furthering the versatility of the microP2 card adaptor, its design allows Class 10 or high-quality SD cards (at bit rates only up to 50Mbps) to be used in P2 products in emergency situations.

A new form of flash storage by Panasonic

At the announcement, John Baisley, Executive Vice President, Panasonic System Communications Company of North America, said, “Since introducing this Emmy Award-winning, solid-state recording format nearly a decade ago, Panasonic has continued to make improvements to P2. The development of the microP2 card brings additional innovation to the owners of the more than 250,000 P2 products in use worldwide.”

Panasonic go on to claim that their P2 solid-state memory cards ensure highly reliable video, audio, and metadata recording, especially in challenging conditions of extreme temperature range, shock, and vibration. P2 cards allow professional users to benefit from a fast, easy, file-based workflow and exceptional reliability.

Though the new form of flash storage has been announced, Panasonic states that it will be officially launched by the second quarter of 2013 which is still quite a long time from now. The announcement by Panasonic states that the microP2 card and microP2 card adaptor will not support all P2 products. To use the microP2 card adaptor, a firmware upgrade of current P2 hardware is required and a fee will be charged. Let us know your thoughts on Panasonic announcing a new format of storage and do you think that this will be the standard format used when it will finally be available.