MicroSD or Internal Memory? - General Topics

Hello everyone I'm just wondering what is "better?" To install applications to the MicroSD or to the internal memory? I mean, for example, if it's an application that I rarely use, I'm sure everyone will say "MicroSD" but if it's an application that's constantly in use? What is better? Or does it not make a difference? Does it eat up a lot of memory constantly writing to the micro SD? or does it not make a difference in that sense either?
Do most people install to Micro or Internal Memory?

zkyevolved said:
Does it eat up a lot of memory constantly writing to the micro SD?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nope. However, older firmwares may consume a lot (about 5-6M, as opposed to better-optimzied ones with only 500k-1M) of additional RAM memory with the card in. I recommend my previous storage- and firmware updaterelated articles; I've answered all your questions in them.

Add the poll question "Equally Both" as I split mine between them. There are Apps I have found the run better on main and the ones that don't matter, I put on Memory card.

mchapman007 said:
Add the poll question "Equally Both" as I split mine between them. There are Apps I have found the run better on main and the ones that don't matter, I put on Memory card.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Likewise. In fact, there are some applications that tell you during installation that it would be better to install them on the device's main memory.

Sure! How do I change the poll ?

I have read that HTC Diamond isn't having Memory Card Slot...It's really very disappointing.

12ka4 said:
I have read that HTC Diamond isn't having Memory Card Slot...It's really very disappointing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
... and this is relevant to the thread how?
i like storing most of my apps on memory card as i don't like using system memory not unless a app doesn't work right from sd card.

Like most, I put everything on the memory card unless the developer specifically states that it should be installed in main memory.

If it's a program that runs all the time, such as a today plugin, then it would be prudent to install it on internal memory to avoid problems. Everything else can go on the storage card.

I'm going to disagree with the majority here (as usual...)
I think you should you use as much of the internal memory that is available as possible. Why? First, it is faster to read/write to flash ROM than to MicroSD (flash also). Second, I believe it uses less power. Third, IS THERE AND CAN"T BE USED FOR ANYTHING ELSE! (just like my 401K). I know in ancient times, when I loved my iPaq 2210, you only had RAM memory for both programs to run and storage of files. Then you could adjust a slider to assign or reserve more space either way. But, AFAIK, in my Hermes, they are two physically different memory locations, so why don't use the storage memory? Of course, there should be some free storage memory always available for temp files and other stuff that changes over time.
Anyway, just my opinion.

dgaud007 said:
Second, I believe it uses less power.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's exactly what I'd like to know. Is the power usage to R/W onto the SD disk that much higher? Or is it insignificantly low? Also, I agree, a program that CONSTATLY uses the memory card to read / write would MOST LIKELY use more power than installed on the main memory.

Related

SD as program memory

Is possible use a part of my micro-SD on wm6 as program memory?
In a word, no.
Have a look at an SD card. There are only 8 contacts on it. It behaves as a serial disk drive as far as your phone/PPC is concerned, even though it attached to the "\Storage Card" mount point. The storage can be used by the phone but it is not directly addressable by the 32 bits of the CPU. It can only be paged in and out similar to the swap file on your PC.
Ok...
thanks for the reply
Is there any programm that allows you to use it as swap?
(Do you mean something as the virtual panging that windows do on the hard disk?)
Sorry, I think it's still no.
There is a lot of chatter on this over at
http://blogs.msdn.com/windowsmobile/archive/2005/11/17/494177.aspx
But the prognosis does not look good.
the least you can do is install as many applications as you can on your storage card...
tho not all apps can be installed on it.
remember, that if you used any software to make a part of the SD card become program storage space you will be still experiencing the same need to move page files to the ram before it can be used by the device.. so there's actually no point in doing that.
the least you can do is install as many applications as you can on your storage card...
tho not all apps can be installed on it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes... in fact i usually try to install apps on the flash memory... but lots need to be situated on the main memory... and the hermes don't has much of it...
Thanks a lot for the reply
(ps... sorry I'm not english and i could have written same/lots of mistakes..)
unfortunately ram isn't expandable on pdas..
again, the best you can do is install as many apps as you can on your storage card.

With apps to sd, is it possible to install certain apps on the phones memory?

With apps to sd, is it possible to install certain apps on the phones memory?
A) Wrong forum
B) Why would you want to?
But I suppose if you REALLY wanted to, it'd be as simple as ejecting your SD card (as long as phone doesn't freak out) and installing whatever you need, and then reinserting. I do believe that should work, or at least it has worked in the past.
rockdevourer said:
A) Wrong forum
B) Why would you want to?
But I suppose if you REALLY wanted to, it'd be as simple as ejecting your SD card (as long as phone doesn't freak out) and installing whatever you need, and then reinserting. I do believe that should work, or at least it has worked in the past.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Pulling your SD card while your phone is still on is very stupid especially if your using Swap or Apps 2 SD and besides even if it did install on your phone's memory Apps 2 SD will automatically move it from the phones memory to your SD card.
just thought that some programs that run all the time may run more reliably from the internal memory vs external sd card.
sorry misread the question. if you have apps to sd... currently they are built into the roms to install on startup....so anytime you restart on one of these roms you will move the app you moved to internal to the sd. there maybe some command to protect it from the move but i'm not aware.
the answer to your question is : yes it possible with tmpfs
but
it won't change nothing
we are talking about what ? 1mb max app size ?
Pull then push to /system/app. Wrong forum.
What im.l0ltn said will work fine, but like others asked, why? You won't see much improvement unless you are using a low class sd. I have tried installing a few apps to internal memory but didn't see enough of a noticable performance boost. And if you are using a class 6 sd you will actually slow things down by putting them on internal mem. So you're better off leaving them on SD and saving the trouble of reinstalling every time you install a new rom. It gets to be more trouble than it's worth.

[Q] Nexus S Apps to SD, move or not to move?

Nexus S have a lot of storage for the apps plus it shares internal memory any way, so is there point to move apps to SD?
Does it make apps to run slower if they moved to SD?
Some of the apps installs to SD by default, should I move them back to phone?
Thanks.
as a general rule, it's more beneficial to install apps that can run properly from SD to SD during installation
this saves internal memory space
it doesn't really affect performance
the original concept of App 2 SD was for the older phones that had very little internal storage memory
AllGamer said:
as a general rule, it's more beneficial to install apps that can run properly from SD to SD during installation
this saves internal memory space
it doesn't really affect performance
the original concept of App 2 SD was for the older phones that had very little internal storage memory
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I totally disagree with the general rule part.
I think it's pointless to bother moving something to the /sdcard on a Nexus S (Galaxy S, Vibrant, Captivate, etc) unless you're running out of internal ROM space for apps. Even with 130+ apps (many of them larger ones like co-pilot, 3D games, etc), I never have gone above 500mb used for apps on either my Galaxy S or Nexus S.
I won't say I can't imagine ever needing more than a gig, but it doesn't seem likely in the near future.
There's also a downside to using apps2sd when you're not out of space on the internal memory: you're giving up limited sdcard space for media storage like music and movies. Granted not much, but without an external sdcard, our Nexus S is even more limited in that regard. On my Galaxy S I had almost 28 gigs of stuff on the two cards (int and ext sdcard)...YMMV.
Everyone's usage patterns are different, so there's no right/wrong answer here.

Linux/Android OS newbie question

I'd like to search this forum for help, but am uneducated enough on the internals of the android OS that I'm not sure what to search for.
i'll ask my question expecting an answer on either (1) how to search for such information in the future, or (2) how to solve the issue.
I installed a 16GB class 10 SD card in my transformer keyboard and would like to edit the appropriate config files so that all future software installs and downloads are on that storage card rather than the internal 16GB memory. So my question is what files do i edit to accomplish this?
thanks...
marvin
You want Apps2SD. Unfortunately, unless something has changed recently, you can't use it on your TF.
www.transformerforums.com/forum/asus-transformer-help/3514-tf-not-letting-me-move-apps-sd-save-things-sd.html#post27629
mncessna said:
I'd like to search this forum for help, but am uneducated enough on the internals of the android OS that I'm not sure what to search for.
i'll ask my question expecting an answer on either (1) how to search for such information in the future, or (2) how to solve the issue.
I installed a 16GB class 10 SD card in my transformer keyboard and would like to edit the appropriate config files so that all future software installs and downloads are on that storage card rather than the internal 16GB memory. So my question is what files do i edit to accomplish this?
thanks...
marvin
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd probably try searching for "Move apps to SD" if I was searching for that topic(I know it's hard to figure out the right search terms sometimes, but by posting in Q&A, you've at least posted a fair question in the right place), here's my answer in two parts:
1. I don't think Apps2SD would work with the Dock SD slot.
2. You have the entire 16/32GB internal storage shared between apps and the /sdcard mount. Is that really not enough space?
Also, the internal storage is faster than a Class 10 card, so there will be a performance hit running from SD.
thanks...you've given me food for thought
2. You have the entire 16/32GB internal storage shared between apps and the /sdcard mount. Is that really not enough space?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
there's never enough space!! I've always attempted to offload temp files, downloads, and various other files from the same partition as the OS. prevents excessive fragmentation etc. i'm assuming this would still be an issue even with non-spinning storage, maybe it isn't?
Also, the internal storage is faster than a Class 10 card, so there will be a performance hit running from SD.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
now that's an interesting comment. i thought Class 10 was the fastest AND that internal storage on the transformer was the same technology. Hmmm.....more research for me.[/QUOTE]
thanks for the information and advice.
marvin
mncessna said:
there's never enough space!! I've always attempted to offload temp files, downloads, and various other files from the same partition as the OS. prevents excessive fragmentation etc. i'm assuming this would still be an issue even with non-spinning storage, maybe it isn't?
now that's an interesting comment. i thought Class 10 was the fastest AND that internal storage on the transformer was the same technology. Hmmm.....more research for me.
thanks for the information and advice.
marvin
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Theoretically, fragmentation can slow a flash drive down, but I've never known anybody to notice the difference or to bother with defragmenting regularly on a flash device. Maybe somebody here is into that, but it's just not practical IMHO. Apps2SD is for people who run out of internal space and need MORE room for apps. If you are pushing 12gb (the ballpark usable space on the internal memory of the TF) of apps, you need to get back into the work force. You're better off trying to keep large data files on the removable drive first, even if it means just relocating them every once in a while.
The bottom line is, the way the Transformer treats the built-in memory as an SD card is going to be an issue when trying to use an external card for Apps2SD (which I still haven't heard of anybody succeeding at), but you may be able to set your default download folder to the removable card. If you're dealing with a browser, it would depend on which one. If you're doing your own file transfers, just get a file manager that allows you to set your "home" directory and point it to the /Removable/MicroSD directory.
SilverZero said:
Theoretically, fragmentation can slow a flash drive down, but I've never known anybody to notice the difference or to bother with defragmenting regularly on a flash device. Maybe somebody here is into that, but it's just not practical IMHO.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Even on hard drive it's most of the time not worth the effort. On SSD just forget about fragmentation.
i thought the reason fragmentation is a performance hit for HDDs is due to the fact it has to spin to get to the rest of the file.
SSD does not need anything like that.
fragmentation causes delays
finalhit said:
i thought the reason fragmentation is a performance hit for HDDs is due to the fact it has to spin to get to the rest of the file.
SSD does not need anything like that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
a disk read consists of a seek op to place the read head over the correct cylinder, then rotational delay while the correct sector rotates under the head, then a data read, and then a transfer to core memory. when a file is fragmented, this operation is repeated multiple times in order to read the entire file into memory. disk drives are pretty fast these days, but they are still the slowest part of most modern computers. cpus and memory are very fast, but disk drives slow things up, therefore, adding to io delays with fragmented files is a real performance hit.
however, i have no data on how fragmentation affects flash memory...perhaps not at all?!.
thanks to all for inputs.
Here's one perspective on flash fragmentation:
www.wizcode.com/articles/comments/flash_memory_fragmentation_myths_and_facts/

SD card as internal memory - will all apps use this including system?

The Moto E 2 seems like a good phone but with a somewhat small internal memory of 8 GB. But as it has Android 6 I thought it could work by just adding an SD card as internal memory.
But I can't find a definite answer whether this additional memory will really be undistinguishable from the "real" one. Some people wrote you still have to move apps to the new memory, some even said it only works with apps where the devs allowed it (i. e. hardly any at all). Also it seems system apps cannot use the additional memory which would be another major drawback on an 8 GB phone.
Can someone who already done it please tell me how the additional memory will be used? Can system apps be moved, can all user apps be moved, will data such as whatsapp videos be moved? Thanks.
Sorry for bumping... has nobody an idea?
The phone will see the storage as one instead of two. So will the PC if you connect the phone to it.
bur2000 said:
The Moto E 2 seems like a good phone but with a somewhat small internal memory of 8 GB. But as it has Android 6 I thought it could work by just adding an SD card as internal memory.
Yes, you can add a SD card but android OS doesn't really like SD card, your media, app won't run smoothly.
But I can't find a definite answer whether this additional memory will really be undistinguishable from the "real" one. Some people wrote you still have to move apps to the new memory, some even said it only works with apps where the devs allowed it (i. e. hardly any at all). Also it seems system apps cannot use the additional memory which would be another major drawback on an 8 GB phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can move your app, game data, media (img, music, video,...) to SD card very hard but forr app/game data, it won't run 100% as it used to be on internal storage.
My recommendation is to find other phone with more storage if you want to enjoy some apps/games with big size or move all media to Sd card but app/game data.
Have fun!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is a phone for my mother. She needs more than 8 GB but wants a phone the size of Moto G or E. Apparently there are none that fit that criterion other than some Samsung phones and those are pricey. I like Motorola but their new 16 GB phones are all 5" or more. And the older smaller Moto X or G aren't available anymore.
As much as I disliked Steve Jobs, I 100% agree with him on his opinion towards screen size...

Categories

Resources