The removal tool, is a reference to how Apple includes the "SIM removal" tool with iPhones, which is just a paperclip. To me, it's obvious that you can just use a normal paperclip to remove this as well. This is also demonstrated in the video on kickstarter, which admittedly you need to search for. It's made as a semi-permanent piece, so the fact it's hard to remove doesn't matter here.
It's not "just an SD card adapter". It's something that fits flush with the design, so you can leave it in and it doesn't impact the visual appearance. If you don't care about this, that's fine, it's not for you. I could easily see myself buying this, however.
I will probably get one to expand my SSD storage.
As an owner of a 128 GB Macbook Air, space is at a serious premium. An extra 32 GB or 64 GB would go a long way. I'm also on the go a lot, taking my laptop to and from work, using it on my commute, etc. Now, existing USB memory sticks, however little they protrude from the port, are always going to be a concern: they may fall out, or get snapped off in my bag, not to mention they use up a valuable USB port (I only have 2 after all). A miniSD-to-SD adaptor also isn't suitable: like an SD card, the adaptor would also stick out, making it likely to snap off or come out in my bag if I leave it in all the time, or for me to just lose something that small if I take it out all the time. This is especially an issue when, for example, I reach my stop while I'm in the middle of work and just have to close my laptop and put it in my bag without having to wait to eject a disk.
This product is clearly not for people with integrated miniSD card readers in their laptops (which is great for those who have them), and it's also not for people who leave their laptops at their desk all the time and can just use an external drive, but for someone like me this is perfect. I get the extra space, it doesn't use up any valuable ports (I rarely use the SD card slot), and it's not going to get lost or broken.
Possible uses for this extra space: (for me personally) I'm going to redirect my Downloads folder to the drive, and also use it to as a temporary backup when I'm on the go.
Just my two cents. £20 is a steal. Some people may think this is too expensive, but the laptop cost me £1000 when I bought it, and this £20 allows me to permanently add an extra 50% hard drive space without having to do something like void my warranty and swap out the flash memory. What's my alternative? Buy a new laptop? No thanks.
Best part, is as the price of SDXC cards continue to drop, I can simply purchase a naked 128/256/etc... SDXC card, and use it with this adapter.
All in all - may allow me to delay a full year on my Laptop Upgrade. Definitely worth $35 to me.
I find it weird that so many people on HN don't seem able to understand that. We all know it's just a small kludgier SD-microSD adapater that fits flush with Mac cases, and is meant as a semi-permanent addition to storage. We all know that the materials and assembly cost is at most a few dollars.
This kickstarter should be praised and studied as an example of added value or finding a niche or whatever the hell it's called.
Ridiculous apple fanboys and total ignorance
There are also usb drives that fit inside the usb port and does not need a special tool to remove, though I cant find it on amazon anymore.
[1]http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lexar-32GB-Echo-Backup-Drive/dp/B004...
So it's ugly I'm going to lose the thingy. Oh and it's $35.
A tilting removal handle could break off, making it IMPOSSIBLE to remove.
In any event, I could.
Also I disagree that it is a design fail. What (i think) you are describing is poor industrial design; it would be more prone to break, as well as costing more to produce (bearing in mind this is being done by a startup).
The real design failure is Apple's. My laptop (like nearly every digital camera ever?) has a spring loaded sd-slot, that allows the SD card to sit flush with the edge.
The more I think about it the more I agree the real design flaw is from Apple.
Also, prongs break.
That said, I don't have a macbook with an SD card. Nor am I running low on internal storage, so this thing isn't for me anyway.
Requiring a tool for removing removable storage media is a different order of inconvenience.
From a design standpoint, I would have been far more impressed had they taken the time to engineer a removal approach that does not require a special tool. The first thing it's going to happen is that you'll be on a trip or out of the office without the "key". There are tons of ways to make tool-less removal possible. This device is very simple as it has no real circuitry inside. It's an exercise in mechanical design, and they chose to not go the extra step and give it tool-less removal.
The same is the case for a number of other options.
I have a MicroSDCard inside a SDCard adpater sitting flush in my smaller-than-iPad netbook. I got it for "free" with purchase of a cell phone, before the iPhone existed. I guess I need to get a MacBook to reproduce this unsightly protruding SDCard problem so I can then get a "niftyminidrive" to solve it? According to the title, it's a"hack". Would that make me a "hacker"?
This is almost as good as Microsoft's "ReadyBoost". Otherwise known as a USB slot.
It's a $5 USB stick used as a swap file. No, it's a "Windows Memory Expander". And the price is $49.95. Oh.
unless you buy the very high-end cards
BTW, the idea was discussed in this thread a while ago: http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=1206894
Edit: Ok found out that RS-MMC are limited to 2Gb
Even at that size, it could be worth trying to set one up with TimeMachine to give a second copy of critical files in case of hard drive failure in your laptop. Not quite off-site back-up though.
Blow in it like an old Atari or Sega.
Trust me.
