PCMCIA

Short for Personal Computer Memory Card International Association, PCMCIA is a trade association founded in 1989 that is responsible for the ongoing development of the PCMCIA standard. PCMCIA cards are hardware interfaces that are slightly bigger than a standard credit card that enable additional functionality for laptop computers and other portable devices. If you're familiar with expansion cards in desktop computers you can think of a PCMCIA card as an expansion card for a laptop. The image to the right is an example of a PCMCIA SMC EZ Card 10/100 wireless network card, which enables a laptop computer or other portable device to connect to a wireless network.

The term PC Card is being used as a replacement to PCMCIA Card because of the ongoing changes in the technology and because it is much easier to remember. However, PC Card should not be confused with a PCI Card. This technology is quickly becoming replaced by the new ExpressCard standard.

• See our PCMCIA page for additional information and help
• The official PCMCIA page can be found at http://www.pcmcia.org/ 

Also see: ExpressCard, NEWCARD, PC Card