Compact Flash as Retro Cartridge

date: 2023-01-12

Physical Media

Just got to thinking about what type of nastaligic, yet still practical computing device I would build if I could. A dream computer of sorts.

Part of the retro aesthetic is certianly physical media or cartridges. Gameboy game cartridges quickly come to mind.

In thinking about building a retro inspired computer, some kind of cartridge design is appealing.

SD cards

SD cards could work, but are a bit small.

Though, SD card readers are built into a lot of devices that could be reporposed. The #corebootbook laptop I am typing on now has an SD card reader. So SD cards could be an option for this concept.

SATA drives

SATA 2.5 inch drives could also work as a hotswap cartridge... but don't have that much of a retro feel (though maybe will soon) and are probably too large.

Compact Flash

Compact Flash cards might just be the right size and have a legitamately retro interface while still being quick.

Stickers just the right size could be designed and made for different types of programs or data collections.

Maybe someday

Eventually, I would like to build some kind of cyberdeck or even mini computer that incorporated using Compact Flash cards as cartridges.

For now, I'm just writing down the idea and doing some research. Feel free to contact me if you've built any projects like this or know of any.

tags: #compactflash #storage #cyberdeck