After a year of steady use and thousands of photos, I finally decided to add another CompactFlash card to my well used and reliable Lexar Platinum 1GB. While not the cheapest option, I couldn't help but have faith in Lexar's products. My old card has held thousands of pictures without even one glitch. The same can rarely be said of most storage devices.
I am exceptionally pleased with my newer Lexar Platinum II 2GB CompactFlash. Not only does it have twice the capacity of my other card, but it is also twice as fast and cost just over half. There is nothing bad I can say about the Lexar. It works beautifully in my Canon Digital Rebel and is worth every penny. The thing about digital cameras is that they aren't much use if you don't have enough space. I purchased my 2GB card because I am going on a week vacation in Canada. I won't have a computer to download my photos to therefore I needed to have more storage space.
As with all products, consumers do have options. You can buy Lexar in addition to SanDisk, PNY, Sony, Kingston, and many others. Reviews of all the brands are pretty mixed. Some people swear by Kingston (which are pretty inexpensive) while others would have nothing but SanDisk touch their precious images. I honestly go for a product with a proven track record which is how I landed with Lexar. I've been pleased with their cards in the past. Also, it is important to note that all brands have various "levels" of products. The Platinum II features 80x write speed (about 12MB per second). Lexar also makes a Professional series in which the 2GB card is about twice as much and has a 133x write speed (20MB per second). My camera's photos at their highest quality are about 3-4MB each so they write in a split second. I am incredibly happy with the Platinum II and see no reason to spend more to upgrade. If my camera were a higher megapixel model it might make a difference, but as it stands right now that is not an issue.
This product is perfect for digital photography and the high capacity and high speed also make it a reasonable solution for digital video. It writes quickly and with a little help from the Rebel does so with little or no pause between photos. There is no lag which makes me a happy hobbyist photographer. As I've said, the 2GB also is plenty of space for pictures. Lexar promises about 800 photos for a 5 megapixel camera and 582 for a 8 megapixel camera. If you like the idea of the Platinum II but are looking for a different capacity Lexar also makes 512MB, 1GB and 4GB models. As it stands I'm very pleased with 2GB.
CompactFlash isn't just for digital photography either (though that's the only way I've used it). It may be used for storing and sharing any kind of file with the proper reader/writer. It is a durable, useful, and flexible technology. This Platinum II card also includes a few "extras" I probably won't ever use and thus can't attest to their value. With your purchase you will also get Corel Snapfire Plus SE software, Lexar Backup n Sync, and Lexar Image Rescue 3.
If you're a digital photographer and are looking to get a new CompactFlash card, then this Lexar Platinum II 2GB model is my suggestion. I have had zero problems with the card. There are cheaper and pricier options out there, but this one is reliable with high speed and a massive capacity.
Oh yeah, and it costs around $40. What more could you want?
SanDisk 1GB SD Media
http://www.epinions.com/content_192926486148
Lexar Platinum 1GB CompactFlash
http://www.epinions.com/content_292393160324 
Nu-Image Corporation
