Eye-Fi launches Mobi SD card offering wireless image transfer from camera to phone or tablet

Wireless memory card maker Eye-Fi has just launched a new SD card for photography enthusiasts that lets you quickly and easily transfer images from your camera to your mobile device.

Of course, with mobile phone cameras becoming ever more sophisticated, there are plenty of snappers who consigned their compact camera to the back of the closet long ago, in which case Eye-Fi’s Mobi card will be of little use. However, for those of you who do still carry around a small shooter, or indeed a larger DSLR device, the Mobi card may be of interest.

To use the Eye-Fi’s new Mobi card, you simply pop it in your camera’s SD-card slot, download the free iOS or Android app, and enter the supplied 10-digit code into your mobile device. Job done.

After that, any photos you take on your camera will automatically transfer to your mobile device (provided they’re within range of each other), serving as a back-up for your pictures and allowing you to quickly share them with your social networking buddies.

Eye-Fi boss Matt DiMaria is evidently hoping many smartphone owners miss the more advanced features found on dedicated shooters.

“People like smartphones for taking pictures, mostly because of accessibility and instant sharing. Unfortunately, smartphones fall short for life’s many moments that require zooming, high-speed shooting, low light and other features that make digital cameras superior,” DiMaria said in a release. “Mobi is our simplest card yet, designed to provide photo lovers a no-compromises solution: the great quality pictures and videos of a digital camera and instant access on the smartphone to enjoy and share.”

While Eye-Fi has long offered camera-to-mobile functionality with its $100 16GB Pro X2 card, the Class-10 Mobi is clearly aimed at the more casual photographer, with its simple set-up and cheaper price tag – $50/8GB and $80/16GB. The Pro X2 also allows for transfer of not only JPEGs but also RAW files – a format most casual photographers rarely bother with – and allows for wireless transfer to a PC, too.

The Mountain View company started out in 2005 with a card that enabled users to transfer their images wirelessly from camera to PC. The subsequent smartphone boom has forced the business to shift its focus, with the new Mobi card its latest attempt to stay relevant.