FAQ for CFMulti CompactFlash Type II to Eye-Fi™ + Multi-Card Adapter

Contents

• Questions & Answers from Fall 2010
• Does the CFMulti Reduce an Eye-Fi™ Card's Range?
• Does the CFMulti Change an Eye-Fi™ Card's File Formats?
• Does the CFMulti Allow an Eye-Fi™ Card to Work with All CompactFlash Based Cameras?
• How to troubleshoot the CFMulti and Eye-Fi™ Combination With Cameras
• Other Troubleshooting Help and FAQ
• Do Adapters Other Than the CFMulti Work With Eye-Fi™?
• Is SD Card, MMC, etc. in the CFMulti as fast as CompactFlash?

Questions & Answers from Fall 2010

Q: No plans for it to work with the x2?

Designing the original version required a huge capital outlay for us, which was never recouped. Redesigning to work with the x2 isn't financially feasible for us.

Q: Would the Eye-Fi™ Pro 4GB Wireless SDHC Card work ok?

Honestly, we designed the unit to work with the original Eye-Fi™ card. End users have had mixed results with the other Eye-Fi™ models. Many people have gotten it to work with the non-x2 model you mention, while others have not. Our official stance is that the CFMulti is only supported with the original Eye-Fi™ card.

Q: And have you had any issues with the CFMulti and the Canon 350D/Digital Rebel XT at all?

Earlier Cannon models (20D, 30D, 40D, XTi) often worked with the earlier Eye-Fi™ cards in conjunction with the CFMulti. However, this doesn't seem to be the case any newer models or recent firmware updates.

When we first released the CFMulti, it was with the cooperation of Eye-Fi™. While they never officially supported the product, they provided us with technical assistance designing it, and even featured it on this section of their site:

http://support.eye.fi/product-info/camera-compatability/compatibility/known-issues-with-compact-flash-card-adapters/

This is no longer the case. We've always wondered why they never designed a "pro" model based on the CompactFlash CF+ platform to cater to the DSLR market. Or, at the very least, partner with a company that would help bring such a product to market. Unfortunately, this never happened.

While the DLSR market is large, it doesn't seem to be large enough for companies to do this. We took that risk several years ago when we created the CFMulti, and it didn't pan out for us.

Does the CFMulti Reduce an Eye-Fi™ Card's Range?

Yes, the CFMulti reduces an Eye-Fi™ card's range. Typically an Eye-Fi™ used in a CFMulti has a range reduced to approximately 15 to 20 feet, considerably less than an Eye-Fi™ used alone. Keep in mind that transfer speeds are reduced as the distance from a WiFi hotspot is increased. One solution mentioned by end users is to use a Wireless Pocket Router close to the camera to relay the signal to a main WiFi hotspot.

Does the CFMulti Change an Eye-Fi™ Card's File Formats?

No, a camera still must be set to save photos as JPEG just as an Eye-Fi™ standalone. RAW, NEF, TIFF, and other formats are not supported.

Does the CFMulti Allow an Eye-Fi™ Card to Work with All CompactFlash Based Cameras?

No, there is no guarantee any specific camera with work with the CFMulti and Eye-Fi™ combination. CompactFlash based cameras are unsupported by Eye-Fi™, but many people have success using CFMulti and Eye-Fi™. Synchrotech's 15 money back guarantee makes the CFMulti purchase a safe way to try it. If it doesn't work, you can return it for a refund of your purchase price within 15 days of receipt. The following list is cameras known to work with the CFMulti and Eye-Fi™ combination, it is not all inclusive or comprehensive.

• Canon EOS 20D early models [with the Original 2GB Eye-Fi™ card only - AKA Eye-Fi™ Share, pre-SDHC]
• Canon EOS 30D early models [with the Original 2GB Eye-Fi™ card only - AKA Eye-Fi™ Share, pre-SDHC]
• Canon EOS 40D early models [with the Original 2GB Eye-Fi™ card only - AKA Eye-Fi™ Share, pre-SDHC]
• Canon EOS 7D [with the Original 2GB Eye-Fi™ card only - AKA Eye-Fi™ Share, pre-SDHC]
• Canon Rebel XTi early models [with the Original 2GB Eye-Fi™ card only - AKA Eye-Fi™ Share, pre-SDHC]
• Nikon D100

Synchrotech will post of list of cameras known not to work as soon as we have more information.

How to troubleshoot the CFMulti and Eye-Fi™ Combination With Cameras

If the Eye-Fi™ card has been set up using the Eye-Fi™ Manager Software while using the Eye-Fi™ Card reader, and still doesn't work try the following:

1. Make sure your camera is set to save files as JPEG (.jpg, .jpeg). If this works, no other steps should be needed. Otherwise, try the following:
2. Try formating the CFMulti and Eye-Fi™ combination in the camera. If this works, no other steps should be needed. Otherwise, try the following:

1. Try formating the CFMulti and Eye-Fi™ combination in the camera again. If this doesn't work, chances are your camera won't work with the CFMulti and Eye-Fi™ combination. If this works and the camera can save images, plug the Eye-Fi™ in the Eye-Fi™ Card reader, connect to the computer and run the Eye-Fi™ Manager Software to re-initialize the card again and restore the wireless settings.
2. Check to see if your camera features the latest firmware. Download and install the most current firmware from your camera's manufacturer. Synchrotech is not responsible for any issues arising out of camera firmware updates, please use caution and follow your manufacturers instructions exactly. In some cases newer firmware can prevent the CFMulti from working at all, we don't recommend this step unless all other attempts have been exhausted.

Other Troubleshooting Help and FAQ

• Troubleshooting Information (Eye-Fi™)
• Frequently Asked Questions (Eye-Fi™)

Do Adapters Other Than the CFMulti Work With Eye-Fi™?

Synchrotech is unaware of any other device besides the CFMulti that works with Eye-Fi™ cards. See Known Issues with Compact Flash Card Adapters on Eye-Fi™'s site for more information.

Is SD Card, MMC, etc. in the CFMulti as fast as CompactFlash?

This question depends on the situation, but there are no consumer memory cards as fast as UDMA based CompactFlash. When performance is the most important factor, choose high performance UDMA CompactFlash cards over other memory types. For other situations, it depends on the cards being compared. Will a Class 6 SDHC card in the CFMulti perform better than a 6 year old 12x CompactFlash card? Probably. Since SDHC and similar memory types tend to be cheap, many people want to use it as a replacement device. However, the CFMulti is not intended to replace CompactFlash when performance is a key factor. Again, if you want the highest performance there is no substitute for UDMA based CompactFlash cards.