Canon PowerShot A540 Digital Camera Logo
Anonymous Posted on Jan 03, 2013

When putting a Lexar Multi-Use 16 GB SDHC memory card in my Canon Powershot A540 I get Memory Card Error message as well Card Locked message. Have tried unlocking it by the slide on side of card, is t

I have a Canon Powershot A540 digital camera and recently got a Lexar 16GB Multi-Use SDHC memory card as a gift. When putting it into my camera I get the error message 'Memory Card Error' followed by a 'Card is Locked' message. The card has a slider on it so I slid it the opposite way, inserted into my camera and still getting the 'Memory Card Error' message and the 'Card is Locked' message but the 'Card is Locked' message goes away after a few seconds. Is there any way to format this memory card so it will wotk with my camera or is it a lost cause?

1 Answer

kakima

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  • Canon Master 102,366 Answers
  • Posted on Jan 04, 2013
kakima
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It's a lost cause. The A540 works with SD cards. While SDHC cards will fit into the slot, they are electronically incompatible and will not work in devices not designed for them. You need to stay with SD cards, 2GB and smaller.

  • Anonymous Jan 04, 2013

    thanks K_akima, I was afraid that would be the answer, I guess I was just HOPING there was a way to use it because being limited to 1 and 2 GB's really blows!!! Thank you again :)

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4 Related Answers

Anonymous

  • 3 Answers
  • Posted on Jan 28, 2009

SOURCE: memory card error after inserting SDHC card on powershot A620

the a 620 only goes up to 2 gb no higher

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Anonymous

  • 105 Answers
  • Posted on May 28, 2010

SOURCE: Cannon Powershot A540

Hi,

A 4 gb memory card is beyond the capacity of your Cannon A540. It is too large. I would stick with a 1 gb card in that camera.

Anonymous

  • 30 Answers
  • Posted on May 29, 2010

SOURCE: Memory card error message

Cards are coming in different formats and it might be possible that you brought a card which is not suitable or functional with your camera. The other reason could be that we are having options to lock our memory card in digital camera and you might have taken out your earlier card without unlocking it. The system might be broken from inside and this could be a reason that you are still getting a message that memory card is locked. It seems possible based on problem you are sharing.

t00nz

CameraR

  • 4738 Answers
  • Posted on Oct 01, 2011

SOURCE: I have a Canon PowerShot A540 Digital Camera I got

There are several possible causes for "memory card locked", "memory card error", or "no memory card". The most common cause is having the tiny slide switch on the side of the card in the wrong position. The second most common is trying to use a 4GB or higher SDHC card with an older camera made before SDHC format came out. Please note that your particular model camera can only use up to 2GB standard SD cards. These are relatively inexpensive these days, and may be purchased on Amazon if your local store no longer carries them. There are also other common causes if the above didn't help, with troubleshooting steps for this problemlisted here.

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There are several possible causes for "memory card locked", "memory card error", or "no memory card". The most common is trying to use a 4GB or higher SDHC card with an older camera made before SDHC format came out. Other causes include problems with the tiny slide switch on the side of the card, or the electrical contact switch internal to the camera. The problem may also arise from simple formatting problems if the card has never been formatted in the camera (note that this will also erase the card). Troubleshooting tips for this problem may be found at this link.
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http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw?url=search-alias%3Delectronics&field-keywords=2gb+sd+card
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