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| Floppy drive as SD card reader? |
Posted by: iantm on 2026-09-05 09:59:39
I came across this:
A floppy drive modified to read an SD card directly.
I recognize how impractical this might next to a floppy emu but I personally can’t deny the appeal of the actually floppy mechanics.
The page doesn’t really get into how and if it works for any practical utility but this is the one of thing I wish I could make.
Anyone else have thought on this? |
Posted by: A24A on 2026-09-05 17:24:32
Sony's MSAC-FD2M, which allowed a Memory Stick to be used in a floppy drive, could perhaps also be of interest to you. Macintosh read only, minimum Mac OS 7.6.1:
www.sony.com/electronics/support/res/manuals/3067/30676041M.pdf
There was a similar device called FlashPath (from a SmartDisk company) for SmartMedia cards. |
Posted by: iantm on 2026-09-05 18:40:54
Neat, yes that's exactly the kind of thing I'd love to use. Not because it's totally practical, just because it retains the physicality of using a floppy. LOL it's nearly $200 on ePay, so it'll remain a curiosity for the time being. But good to know that it is possible at all! |
Posted by: olePigeon on 2026-09-09 11:39:27
You can find them for really cheap, brand new. I think Verbatim made a clone. Ignore that $200 one. The problem is that it's impractical for a Macintosh because the only way to wright to it is from a PC. |
Posted by: iantm on 2026-09-09 11:42:14
The problem is that it's impractical for a Macintosh because the only way to wright to it is from a PC. Ah, that's a non-starter then. The idea is mostly a technical curiosity, and because I really like the action of using the floppy per se. Maybe someday I'll pair up with an engineer to tinker with the idea for grins and giggles.
I see SanDisk, Olympus, SmartDisk made them. Only for SmartMedia, though, which I guess you can still get. I'm reading it might be read-only which would still be fun, but less useful. Then again, the whole idea wasn't about better utility. Just a fun use of the floppy drive. Also looks like they require batteries, not a huge deal but a bit of a pain.
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Posted by: Froggy814 on 2026-09-09 11:52:10
Heres a new low price according to stealbay. https://www.ebay.com/itm/1475271537...hFvxOUz+8qzmXkO7XAjOvkadrI8J|tkp:BFBMpuaV-JBo |
Posted by: olePigeon on 2026-09-09 12:00:17
@iantm I mean ... you could try decompiling the Extension and upload the Assembly code to an AI agent. Maybe it can figure out a way to enable writing to one and produce a working Extension. That's what I plan on doing for a different project. |
Posted by: iantm on 2026-09-09 14:15:54
I've never decompiled anything, but that sounds like a fun idea. Crazy! |
Posted by: adespoton on 2026-09-10 17:46:10
Personally, I'd like a way to insert a custom floppy casing into the floppy drive in a manner that lets you insert an SD card and connects to a floppy emu out the back side. Maybe a floppy with a little bit that portrudes out the back, that pushes a latch that disconnects the floppy drive and connects/attaches to a floppyemu instead? And then the SD card just slides in the front of the floppy case. So the computer can still read/write regular floppies, but stick the custom "disk" in, and it's magically an SD card reader/writer instead that can read disk images on the card. |
Posted by: gsteemso on 2026-09-10 18:14:06
So, if I’m following along correctly, this would be a specially modified floppy drive that can disconnect itself in favour of the special SD-reading “disk”, but otherwise reads floppies in the normal manner? |
Posted by: adespoton on 2026-09-11 11:58:51
So, if I’m following along correctly, this would be a specially modified floppy drive that can disconnect itself in favour of the special SD-reading “disk”, but otherwise reads floppies in the normal manner? That's the concept; I'm not sure if there's a realistic mechanism for doing that, however. I can think of two general ideas, one using a purely mechanical spring-loaded toggle, and the other using a solenoid that disconnects the floppy drive and connects the emulator once the pins make contact. The solenoid method would last better and have fewer potential alignment issues, but would also require extra wiring and hardware. |
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