The Memory Stick Reader/Writer for Mac will allow the Memory Stick cards to be used as portable storage for your Mac as well as for uploading or downloading of pictures, music, and other data without requiring the host device such as a digital camera and also without any additional drain on its batteries. Mac Memory Stick card reader/writers can enable the uploading and downloading of data at higher speeds than a host device is capable of supporting; for example, a USB Memory Stick Reader/Writer will be much faster than a device using a serial interface. Faster reader/writers reduce the duration of load and unload operations and save battery power. Memory Card Readers for Mac: Just like a CD-R or floppy disc, you need a device to read what is on the flash memory; this is where a card reader comes in. You can connect the card reader to your notebook or PC through a USB port. Notebooks can also use a PCMCIA reader. Card Readers may handle one to two types of different media, or even up to eight types of flash memory (Compact Flash/CF, SD, Mini SD, Micro SD, Memory Stick, XD, MMC, and Smart Media Cards). Once set up, all you have to do is remove the card from your camera, put it in the reader, and the images will download automatically. After you've copied your pictures onto your hard drive you can then erase your memory card for Mac and start over with.