Evolution of Data Storage Device

I make this post as a schedule post, thinking that I am still behind on the number or articles to be posted here. I want it to appear on Sunday while we are taking the final exams. I don't know about others, but ain't it cool? yes right? :)

What I want to write is about how data storage device, especially for personal usage has evolve from being big to small in sizes, but ironically from small to bigger in the amount of data we can put into it. So now, lets do some History flashback ya.

I remember circa late 80's (this made me sounds ancient) when I had the opportunity to use computers for the first time, the computer class teacher gave each one of us an 8 inches Floppy Disk that was protected by a flexible plastic jacket for us to start. Its a square and flimsy black thingy that we must carried every time we got computer classes. Mind you, back then we have to carry few disks in order for us to use the computer.  As the disk could  store about a megabyte only, I had to have few disks for the computer class. There was one for making the computer ON, one for making the computer running, one for saving the programme that we learnt that day and the list goes on.

I continued using this type of floppy disk until I completed my secondary school years. I think I had more than 20 disks by then. 

(Source : Google Image)

A floppy disk, or diskette, is a disk storage medium composed of a disk of thin and flexible magnetic storage medium, sealed in a rectangular plastic carrier lined with fabric that removes dust particles. They are read and written by a floppy disk drive (FDD).Floppy disks, initially as 8-inch (200 mm) media and later in 5.25-inch (133 mm) and 3.5-inch (89 mm) sizes, were a ubiquitous form of data storage and exchange from the mid-1970s well into the first decade of the 21st century. 

(Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floppy_disk)

Then, I continued my study at Diploma level in ITM Melaka which to my horror, I still need to use this black flimsy thing. The assignments were type on the computer using Wordstar programme. Oh my, I had to remember the codings for font type, font styles, allignments etc.There were times when the floppy disk cannot take in (save) all pages. What we normally did was saving it by portions.

With the introduction of Microsoft Word, the size of floppy disk became smaller and its not flimsy anymore. It is 3 1/2 inch in size, in plastic casing, came with label and it is known as Microfloppy. It were produced with a capacity of 720 KB, followed by what became the most common format, 1.44 megabyte which is slightly more than the floppy disc. By 2010, computer motherboards were rarely manufactured with floppy drive support however, the 3¹⁄₂" floppies could be used as an external USB drive.

(Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Floppy_disc.jpg)

Then fast forward to the early to mid 21st century (around 2001 - 2004), we saw the introduction of USB flash drive, the device that we normally refers as "pen drives" or "thumb drives". It actually refers to a small external USB Storage medium that's both inexpensive and durable. Given that the typical flash drive is the size of an adult's thumb, its not uncommon to hear of these ubiquitous devices as "thumb drives".

USB flash drives are typically removable and rewritable, and physically much smaller than a floppy disk. Most weigh less than 30 g. As of September 2011 , thumb drives of up to 256 gigabytes (GB) are available.

(Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB_flash_drive)

(Source : Google Image)

It is a practical norm now for one person to have at least has one thumb drive. It is very handy and can be carried around effortlessly. I, myself has lost count how many thumb  drives I owned. 

A little bit later, came in the memory card (secure digital) which is used in digital cameras, camcorders, mobile phones, navigation system and many others. It comes in three forms of the original size, mini size and micro size with capacities ranging from 1MB to 2TB depending on its format - Standard Capacity Secure Card (SDSC), High Capacity Secure Card (SDHC) or Extended Capacity Secure Card (SDXC) 

(Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:SD_Cards.svg&page=1)

To end it, I would like to share a video about how storage and storage capacities have evolved over the years. 

Source : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFBAeKaL60I

Smartphones Battle

In one of the class, Prof Zaidi mentioned that we should invest on a good smartphone. I felt that it did hit me as i think my phone is not considered smart enough although it does has a lot more features other than making calls and sending 'sms'. Its an earlier version of Sony Xperia which is running on Android. It seems that my children are using it more than me as they explore the phone features and would update me about it later. 

So, what is a smartphone to you? Do you know its features well? Which phones would serve you better? How does it suits your needs and requirement?

In the smartphones scenes, BIG seems to be the new trend. Their screens are growing larger and larger. Phone makers clearly want to wow buyers with big images on high-definition screens. The drawback though those with small hands will find it difficult to hold it. Those who loves tight and skinny jeans will have to find other alternatives too.

Besides it design and shapes, there is also the battle of the operating systems. Apple and its iOS 5 is facing a vast raft of challengers running Google's Android software - from Samsung and other brands, while Nokia is the standard bearer for Microsoft's Windows Phone operating system. Research in Motion hopes to have fresh start with their new Blackberry 10 software. .

So how do some of these rivals square up? I'll share the articles sourced from Guardian and BBC websites, but limiting to the smartphones that are mainly being used in Malaysia.

Sony Xperia S

Sony's Xperia S promise to be an entertainment centre

Sony is one of several mobile phone makers trying to revive their fortunes. The company recently ended its joint venture with Ericsson and the Sony Xperia S is its first phone since.


It is a chunky looking phone but feels light (144g), and has both enough processing power and inbuilt memory (32GB) to be an entertainment hub. Its stand-out feature is the 4.3" HD screen, which displays movies and pictures in startling quality. An HDMI cable can connect the phone to HD flatscreen television sets, bringing the phone's HD quality video to the big screen. Once connected, any TV remote control can be used to navigate around the phone's content and applications, from email to music to Twitter - although it's unlikely that many owners will make use of that.

The Xperia S is an Android phone, and Sony is showing restraint in customising the experience. Many manufacturers subject their Android phones to an interface makeover; few succeed in improving the experience.

As with most Sony (and Sony Ericsson) phones, the inbuilt 12 Megapixel camera is a treat, and Sony has copied the Windows Phone experience - adding a shutter button on the side of the phone that quickly launches the camera.

Sony ships the phone with NFC radio tags - put the tags in your car, your place of work, your living room, and when your phone gets near the tag it changes its behaviour; in your car, for example, it may launch the blue-tooth connection for hands-free talking and get the car navigation ready. Cute, but in all likelihood a rarely used gimmick.

Nokia Lumia 900

Nokia is betting on Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 software

If you are bored with Android phones and don't want to join the iPhone herd, you are quickly going to run out of smartphone alternatives - unless you opt for Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 operating system.

There was a raft of new Windows phones when Phone 7 was launched nearly two years ago, but it's been rather quiet since. The big exception, of course, is Finnish phone giant Nokia, which has bet its smartphone house on the Microsoft software.

This year, Nokia is going both premium with its large Lumia 900 phone, and budget with a promise of a range of cheaper and simpler phones (now that the "Tango" update of Windows Phone is becoming available).

Lumia 900 is one of the phones that feels the most solid and hard wearing (having a big glass screen always helps). But its 4.3" display is not HD quality, the 16GB internal storage is good but not overwhelming, it's not quite slim (11.5mm) and it weighs a rather hefty 160g. The word "chunky" springs to mind.

Still, it is very speedy, has great battery life, all buttons are placed just right and of all the phones I've played with it's arguably the one that feels nicest to the touch.

The deciding factor when buying this phone (or the smaller Lumia 800) may well be how happy you are with Windows Phone 7. As operating systems go, it's probably the nicest around, with a well-thought-through user interface. Its Achilles heel, however, is the still mediocre quality of available apps. The system software holds a lot of promise, but even now most app developers are still lacking the inspiration to take its user interface principles and make their apps fly.

Samsung Galaxy S3

Samsung hopes the S3 will be at least as successful as the S2

The Korean phone maker is building on the success of its best-selling S2, and clearly is trying to push well beyond its biggest rival (and key customer) Apple.

A new quad-core processor promises both double the speed and 20% less energy consumption compared to dual-core processors of old.

The phone is in the same "whopper" category as the HTC One X, with its 4.8" HD screen, but just like its rival it is very slim (8.6mm) and weighs just 133g. The 8MP camera is standard, but again software helps to improve the user experience.

With smartphones looking more and more the same, Samsung tries to stand out with functionality and clever software. For example, the phone can be set so that it does not go to sleep as long as the user looks at it.

Voice command programme S Voice promises an Apple Siri-like experience (although this has yet to be put to the test). After taking a picture, the phone will try to recognise the faces of your friends and family, and offer to email the image to them with just one click.

So if your hands are not too tiny, and you happily live in Google's Android universe, then there is probably not much to choose from between the HTC One X and the Galaxy S3.

Samsung now sells about half of all "official" Android phones, and the signs are that is going to increase. In theory, it should be telling Google how to run it, and even dictating terms. But it's probably content with the profits.

iPhone 4s and soon iPhone 5

Apple may dub its screen a "retina display", but it's relatively small (3.5") and not quite HD, and the glass screen is not particularly shatter proof. Short battery life is the constant moan of iPhone owners, and the user interface may look dated compared to Android's active widgets and Microsoft's live tiles.

However, Apple's iPhone 4S is not the benchmark to beat. Rumours abound that the launch of the iPhone 5 is imminent. If true, and provided Apple can raise (or make consumers believe it raised) its game once more, then Samsung Galaxy S3 and its gaggle of rivals will find it hard to prise consumers from the confines of the iTunes universe.

Don't forget: it's not just about technical spec. Once you have invested heavily in apps that work only on iPhones, you'll find it awfully difficult to leave the world that Steve Jobs built.

Apple making the iPhone a completely touchscreen- based device, with a really good web browser, that could also run apps has been a good decision. Each has been key to the iPhone's growing success: despite being expensive (relatively) it has attracted a growing market in the US and China. European buyers tend to prefer less expensive Android phones.

Apples's focus on design and quality, allied to a huge cash pile for hiring factories and marketing and continually loyal buyers had been their strengths. However, their weakness is relying heavily only one a single product / model per year has not served them badly but they could makes more profit with more models.

Articles were sourced from website of :

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2012/jan/24/battle-of-the-smartphones
http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-17958274