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Posts: 65 | Thanked: 8 times | Joined on Oct 2010
#45
Originally Posted by sjgadsby View Post
With variance in the number of gigabytes and the name of the device, this is a FAQ for all Maemo devices. The answer is that it is not Maemo devices themselves that set the "maximum capacity" figures listed in their specs. It's the timing of their release dates in relation to the advancement of the flash card market.

What I mean is that prior to launch of each device, Nokia has tested and confirmed that, that device works properly with the largest appropriate-format flash card available on the market at that time. That tested capacity is then included in the device's official specs as the maximum supported.

However, Maemo is Linux, and Linux has supported 32 GB cards since 4 GB cards were top of the line. The N900 is no more limited to cards 16 GB and under than the N800 was limited to cards 8 GB and under. Regardless of what the official specs say, the N800, the N810, and the N900 will all happily work with 32 GB cards.

In fact, being Linux-based, Maemo devices will work with cards larger than 32 GB as well, at least, after a fashion. Maemo devices will not support the Microsoft-patented filesystem that ships on, and is built into the official standard for, those cards. There's a for-pay, closed source, binary blob needed for the filesystem, and we don't have it. But should you reformat such a card with a Maemo-friendly filesystem, you'll be able to use it just fine.

And if you're still looking for stories of personal experience, then I can assure you that my N900 happily accepted a 32 GB, Class 2 SanDisk card a few months ago and has worked flawlessly with it ever since.
Thanks for clarifying.. Though i am not sure what for-pay, closed source, binary blob is.... I think i understood the rest of it. If the memory card is formatted in a file system that maemo recognises, it will read it.. right? Just like a pc does? no size limitation...

But then i have another doubt.. Does that mean the memory card has to be formatted for usage? I mean... if i am to use a memory card used in another phone with a different file system, it wud read without formatting right? (i am talking abt smaller size cards... below 8gb?)

Pardon me if the question sounds stupid..