Zen and the SD Card/Slot

[thetawaves]

When ever I go to the sd card on my player by selecting "browse" and I turn on a video... or if I am just accessing a menu that uses information from the SD card at all, I find that when I push on the back or just hold the Zen too tightly the video closes or menu closes and it brings me back to the Zen menu...

It's on mostly the right side of the player that it happens.. maybe I should upload a video but it's really strange. It's like the sd card is being moved or something and it can't be read when I push on the zen.

Anyone else have this? Very odd.

[Valdr]

I have no such issue, try another SD to check if it's card or slot problem.

[Buzzkill]

On my Zen when I insert a SD card from my Canon camera, I can see the folders and the picture name, but when I click on a name to view a picture I get 'file format not supported' for 1/10th of a second then the screen goes black. I have to reset the player to get it to work. I have tried 2 different SD cards, same results. Anyone know what I can do?


SanDisk 256mb (AR0402RF)

SanDisk Ultra II 1gig (BB0533402569B)

[Buzzkill]

Well I guess I can add those cards to the DOES NOT WORK list. I tried a friends AData 2GB card and it works fine. The part number is G02GNM26C0059.

[BobbyRS]

They are in the suppoted picture format .jpg correct? What resolution are the photos?

[BobbyRS]

Mine doesn't do this either. It sounds like maybe a button isn't sitting or connected correctly with the front cover.

[Buzzkill]

Originally Posted by BobbyRS

They are in the suppoted picture format .jpg correct? What resolution are the photos?

Yep, .jpg. All resolutions. 640x480, etc. Put the same pix on the AData card, worked fine. Hard to believe that this player can handle all SD cards. Why is it so picky?

[BobbyRS]

Is the card FAT, FAT32, or NTFS?

Have you tried reformating the card that has problems and trying it again?

[Buzzkill]

Originally Posted by BobbyRS

Is the card FAT, FAT32, or NTFS?

Have you tried reformating the card that has problems and trying it again?

Fat32. Reformatted the two cards that don't work twice. I even formated the AData card to see if that was messing them up, nope, AData worked like a champ. Strange.

[Valdr]

I wonder if they won't work on another Zen too.

[Buzzkill]

Originally Posted by Valdr

I wonder if they won't work on another Zen too.

Yeah, not sure. I do know the cards are a few years old. The 1gig Ultra II is about 3 years old and the 256mb is about 5 years old.

I mean I don't get it. I can pop any SD card into my camera, computer, etc. and they work fine. Why would this player be any different?

[AdwiL]

No one knows... Maybe it's based on firmware? I'm using 2gb card in Fat and it works perfect, what differences are between fat and fat32 in zen?

[AdwiL]

Try to clean connectors on your card.
Only time when happened sth with my card was when player felt of the desk, it just jumped ot of slot xD

[Buzzkill]

Originally Posted by AdwiL

No one knows... Maybe it's based on firmware? I'm using 2gb card in Fat and it works perfect, what differences are between fat and fat32 in zen?

Tried FAT no luck. Still doesn't work.

[Buzzkill]

They replied quickly and threw in a sales pitch to boot!

Thank you for contacting Creative Technical Support. We appreciate the opportunity to assist you.

I understand that your Zen freezes when you access the SD card inserted in the player.

I can imagine how frustrating it is for you to have this issue in your player. Also, I would like to apologize for the inconvenience caused. I will try my best to help assist you in resolving this issue.

I am afraid that both the SD cards are not supported by the player. You can refer to the following link for all the SD cards supported by the Zen Player.

http://www.creative.com/products/mp3/zen/?nav=sdcard

I once again would like to apologize for the inconvenience caused. Hope the above information helped resolve your query. In the meantime, why not get the Zen Skin with Wire Management?

Not only does it protect your player from scratches, it also manages your ear phone wires, eliminating the tangled and messy wires. For more information, please proceed to the following link.

"Zen Skin with Wire Management"
http://us.creative.com/products/prod...&product=16982

Thank you and have a good day!

[BobbyRS]

Originally Posted by Buzzkill

Yeah, not sure. I do know the cards are a few years old. The 1gig Ultra II is about 3 years old and the 256mb is about 5 years old.

I mean I don't get it. I can pop any SD card into my camera, computer, etc. and they work fine. Why would this player be any different?

If you think about it an SD card/reader working on a PC has drivers to allow it to work within the operating system installed. On the Zen or any kind of media player, the firmware needs to be able to handle this same process and allow the devices to work in its environment as well. The issue with not supporting all SD cards most likely is due to firmware limitations or lack of compatibiltiy support developed within it.

[Nickel II]

Originally Posted by Buzzkill

[I][B] In the meantime, why not get the Zen Skin with Wire Management?

Not only does it protect your player from scratches, it also manages your ear phone wires, eliminating the tangled and messy wires. For more information, please proceed to the following link.

"Zen Skin with Wire Management"
http://us.creative.com/products/prod...&product=16982

Thank you and have a good day!

Wow, and a horrible sales pitch at that!!!

[Buzzkill]

Originally Posted by BobbyRS

If you think about it an SD card/reader working on a PC has drivers to allow it to work within the operating system installed. On the Zen or any kind of media player, the firmware needs to be able to handle this same process and allow the devices to work in its environment as well. The issue with not supporting all SD cards most likely is due to firmware limitations or lack of compatibiltiy support developed within it.

Ok, that makes sense kinda. But I have not updated my computers card reader(built in) drivers since new and my camera which is 2 years old has never had a firmware update.

Is there something physically different other than amount and speed of memory between two different SD cards?

[BobbyRS]

Originally Posted by Buzzkill

Ok, that makes sense kinda. But I have not updated my computers card reader(built in) drivers since new and my camera which is 2 years old has never had a firmware update.

Is there something physically different other than amount and speed of memory between two different SD cards?

Yes because the those two devices were made to read just about any SD card (Maybe not SDHC or SDIO cards). Keep in mind you are thinking of a PC using drivers to allow the devices to work in a operating system not developed by the manufacture of the same device. We are not talking about just another PC (even though you still have the hardware/firmware/and software). The Zen is not a "normal" PC in the terms that it uses the SD slot as a basic card reader working under a Windows operating system. The firmware and the Zen's operating system is completely different in that regard. You may want to check these sites out to learn more about SD cards and their technology. They are very helpful:

http://www.sdcard.org/about/memory_c...Layer_Spec.pdf
http://www.sdcard.com/

[Buzzkill]

Originally Posted by BobbyRS

Yes because the those two devices were made to read just about any SD card (Maybe not SDHC or SDIO cards). Keep in mind you are thinking of a PC using drivers to allow the devices to work in a operating system not developed by the manufacture of the same device. We are not talking about just another PC (even though you still have the hardware/firmware/and software). The Zen is not a "normal" PC in the terms that it uses the SD slot as a basic card reader working under a Windows operating system. The firmware and the Zen's operating system is completely different in that regard. You may want to check these sites out to learn more about SD cards and their technology. They are very helpful:

http://www.sdcard.org/about/memory_c...Layer_Spec.pdf
http://www.sdcard.com/

Thanks for the info.