Do We Still Need microSD Card Slots on Android Phones?

One user’s experience

The author of the original post noticed that the SD card icon had vanished on a tablet that had recently received the Ice Cream Sandwich update. The card did not register in an old phone, a Galaxy Note, a reader or a camera. It was another failed card.

It was not the first. Cards used in cameras never gave trouble, but cards in phones failed more than once, starting with an HTC Magic and continuing with a Samsung Captivate. A spouse’s phone also showed frequent card errors. Losing photos pushed the author toward cloud storage.

Living without a slot

When the Galaxy Nexus launched with 16 GB and no card slot, many people objected. The author hesitated, then bought it anyway and rarely ran short of space. Their habits helped:

• Clear photos and unneeded files off the phone once a month.
• Keep little music on the device, using Google Music and a few playlists saved for offline use.
• Rely on cloud storage and available Wi-Fi.

Weighing it up

The author also had a 500 GB external drive that began clicking after six months, which reinforced the wish to avoid depending on removable storage. Others suggested the brand of card might be the cause. The author had tried more than one brand and could not identify the variable. Their view was that microSD might be the new floppy disk.