HCL NOTEBOOK PC User Manual page 47

User's Guide
PC Card (PCMCIA) Socket
The Notebook PC supports PC Cards (or sometimes referred to as PCMCIA cards) to allow expansion like PCI
cards on desktop computers. This allows you to customize your Notebook PC to meet wide range of application
needs. The PCMCIA socket can interface with type I or type II PC cards. PC cards are about the size of a few
stacked credit cards and have a 68-in connector at one end. The PC Card Standard accommodates a number
of function, communication, and data storage expansion options. PC cards come in memory/flash cards
fax/modem, networking adapters, SCSI adapters, MPEG/I/II decoder cards, Smart Cards, and even wireless
modem or LAN cards. The Notebook PC supports PCMCIA2.1 and 32-bit CardBus standards.
The three different PC Card standards actually have different thicknesses. Type I cards are 3.3mm. Type II
Cards are 5mm, and Type III Cards are 10.5mm thick. Type I and II Cards can be used in a single socket and
Type III Cards take up two sockets. Type III cards are only supported on Notebook PC's with two PC card
sockets.
32-bit CardBus Support
CardBus support allows PC Cards and their hosts to use 32-bit bus mastering and operate at speeds of up to
33MHz, transferring data in burst modes comparable with PCI's 132MB/sec. By comparison, the standard 16-
bit PC Card bus can handle only 20MB/sec. Since the Notebook PC is equipped with CardBus broader and
faster data pathway, it can handle bandwidth-hungry operations, such as 100Mbps Fast Ethernet, Fast SCSI
peripherals, and ISDN-based video conference. The CardBus peripherals supports plug and play.
The CardBus socket is backward-compatible with 16-bit PC Cards serving at 5 Volts operation while CardBus
operates at 3.3 volts to reduce power consumption.
Using the Notebook PC
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