Xyz’s SD2Vita adapter that works with motoharu’s software patches is setting the scene on fire but one shouldn’t be too hasty when they get the media to use with it. It’s very important to be careful not to be scammed when buying a microSD card for your PSVita!

What are fake microSD cards?

The prospect of getting a decent capacity microSD for a little more than a cup of coffee may seem great but in reality, it really isn’t. Unfortunately, one can find a great deal of fake microSD cards on eBay and some other online websites which, not surprisingly, mostly come from China.

Fake, you say? By fake, I mean that the microSD cards don’t have their proper capacity because they’re in reality smaller micro SD cards with a messed up firmware to give the illusion of more space. It’s like getting a 32GB microSD card which shows up as a normal 32GB card even with the amount of space lost when you format it. Then, after you fill it up to a certain point, say 8GB, the files after that point get corrupted or worse yet, everything gets corrupted.

Some fake micro SD cards are simply binned chips that didn’t pass quality control so you’re getting a product that was originally meant to be thrown away…

How can I avoid getting scammed?

These are some steps you can do to avoid getting scammed:

• Use common sense and make sure the price isn’t too low for the capacity.
• Try opting for cards with good brand names and good sellers to make sure that the brand name isn’t forged!
• Avoid buying cards with no name at all.
• Look at the seller’s feedback and filter negative responses as someone may have already discovered the seller’s malicious practice.
• If you buy a suspicious microSD from a store, make sure that you’re eligibile for a refund preferably without a reason.

If you suspect you have a fake card, you can do the following to put an end to your suspicion:

• Put your microSD card in a computer with a microSD reader
• Run FakeFlashTest and check out it’s results
• You can either dump the card or limit it to its actual capacity
• You may use RMPrepUSB to fix the size to the real amount BUT it may not last long

I can confirm the procedure works since I tested it on a microSD that I was 99% sure was fake but I got 8GB of useable space from a 32GB card and it still works to this day but your mileage may vary. It’s also recommended you test the card’s speed to see if it’s viable to be used in your PSVita for games.

FakeFlashTest. You can also test pen drives

Conclusion

If you’re getting a microSD for your Vita, make sure to follow the precautions listed above. The software listed below is from RMPrepUSB.com and nor I nor Wololo has any rights on it.

This article is specifically meant to inform you not to get a fake microSD card and if you already have, to test it with the free software linked below. Obviously, you should avoid getting fake microSD cards so as not to support online scammers!

More information + download links: http://www.rmprepusb.com/tutorials/-fake-usb-flash-memory-drives

Article image retrieved from via Google Images from ePHOTOzine