SanDisk Corporation has introduced its new SanDisk Connect product line, which includes the first wireless WiFi (802.11b) cards to also integrate flash memory.

The Connect product line features four products, dual-function 128MB CompactFlash(CF) and 256MB Secure Digital (SD) cards that combine WiFi and flash memory as well as single-function CF and SD cards with WiFi connectivity. SanDisk said it plans to add 256MB cards to the CF Connect product line by the middle of this year.

Nelson Chan, a SanDisk senior vice president, said the ability to combine wireless and memory in one device "is becoming quite important to consumers and business users because many handheld and notebook computers have only one card slot and users are forced to decide between using the slot for connectivity or for storage. These SanDisk Connect cards solve that problem."

SanDisk said its SD WiFi cards will support Palm OS devices with with Palm OS 4x or higher. The WiFi (802.11b) CF and SD Connect cards cost $99.95. The dual-function CF cards with 128MB of capacity are slated to be priced at $129.95, while the dual-function 256MB SD cards should go for $149.95. The CF WiFi card is available now, the CF dual-function card and the SD WiFi card is slated to be available in March and the SD dual-function card is expected to be available by the middle of the year.