Sd Card Speed

[mikefr24]

I finally ordered a GP2X Monday. I completely forgot about this system back in 05 when I first heard it was coming out. I see that it has quite a developer following and some great emulation now. I can't wait to try it out.

Anyway....back to the topic at hand. I have some older 1GB SD cards laying around. Is SD card read/write speed a huge issue with the GP2X? I realize that Emulation and general file storage is not big deal, but movie streaming might be choppy if the speed is too slow. Testing speeds seem to indicate 1.5MB write 3.0MB read with my cards. Is that fast enough?

Thanks,

Mike

 

[Squidge]

I would say so, but the best thing to do is try it.

 

[imhotep]

That sounds fine. Not many people have issues with SD card speed on these forums.

Just make sure you get >2500mAh batteries and a good charger. Not a 'fast' charger, e.g. 15-30 mins.

 

[Zeladin]

You could always try playing back a movie from the sd card on your computer to get some idea as to whether they're fast enough or not. Of course there are differences between how the Gp2x reads the sd card and your pc might.

I was just reading in a thread this morning about picodrive how there are some issues with reading the Sd in the Gp2x... It might not affect and already slow Sd card adversely though, I'm not sure.

Good luck with your GP2x...

 

[gaterooze]

It only matters with streaming stuff, like big Neo Geo games, Sega CD, and large video files.

 

[mikefr24]

Thanks.

I did not want to buy new SD cards. I have some 2100's and 2300's. Those are cheap enough I will pick up some higher capacity batteries tomorrow. I have a nice computerized charger for my batteries that I use for all my RC equipment. I have used it for years and it works very well. You can fast charge NiMh as long as you watch their temperature and peak voltage. I also do not recommend those Walmart 15 Minute chargers. They are not "smart" enough and can damage your batteries.

 

[Squidge]

If your going to fast charge, you should watch the coulometric charging efficiency of the battery. The faster you charge, it changes the amount of amps you have to put into the battery to get a percentage of it back out when you place the battery in the gp2x. Also, as soon as the battery is "cooked", oxygen starts to form at the electrode, and creates a chemical reaction at the catalyst, creating heat. The battery should stop being charged at this point, otherwise it will become damaged. Ambient temperature also plays a role here and the voltage presented to the battery should be changed accordingly. I've not seen a fast charger that goes with all these rules (they normally just check the temperature and stop after it gets too high).

The best way to ensure a full charge and get the battery to last the longest possible time is to get the battery charger to discharge the cell, and then apply approximately 10% of the battery capacity over a period of 14 - 15 hours (as the battery coulometric charging efficiency in this case is approximately 66.66% recurring, so putting in 1.5amps to provide 1 amps of energy). By charging at this low rate, the battery can also protect itself if it is _slightly_ overcharged (ie, an hour or so)

 

[mikefr24]

Thanks for all the info. Is there anything else I should know about the GP2X? I have read all the FAQ's on this site and all the issues with the system seem to be fixed with the MK2 version from what I can tell. I can't wait to get it.

 

[___]

hmm I can't think of anything else right now... just make sure that you will have fun with it ;-)

Also, welcome to the community!