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femaleNYS
User level: Level 1 (4 points)

Connecting SD card reader to MacBook Air M5 without USB-C or SD card slot

Hi, I'm about to purchase a simple slide scanner (looking at Kodak Slide & Scan) to try to digitize some of the 20,000+ slides of my parents. (I know there are far better quality scanners, but I'm after speed & quantity with this project, not perfect quality). It saves them onto an SD card, but now that my new MacBook Air M5 has no USB-C or SD card slot, I have no idea what connectors to buy (or if they'll even work) to try to download off the SD card. Can anyone give some recommendations? Many thanks


Posted on Sep 24, 2026 7:16 AM

6 replies

Servant of Cats
User level: Level 9 (55,707 points)

Sep 24, 2026 8:48 AM in response to femaleNYS

There are lots of USB card readers that plug into USB-A or USB-C ports. Many standalone ones for $10 – $20, and you can also find them built into hubs, docks, and even all-in-one printers.


Look for one that

  • Has a USB 3.0 interface. (Some have slower USB 2.0 interfaces.)
  • Supports SD, SDHC, and SDXC cards. (If a reader's description says it can read SDXC cards, that implies that it can read the other two types as well.)


One that plugs directly into USB-C would be most convenient, but it is not hard to go between USB-C and USB-A with the aid of an adapter.

woodmeister50
User level: Level 7 (21,895 points)

Sep 27, 2026 4:25 AM in response to femaleNYS

The one I use is this:

UNI card reader


It has both USB-A and USB-C connectors and works well with the MacBook Air and is cheap.

Kilgore-Trout
User level: Level 8 (43,363 points)

Sep 24, 2026 7:27 AM in response to femaleNYS

That laptop does in fact have 2 thunderbolt USB-c ports.

kaz-k
User level: Level 9 (53,902 points)

Sep 24, 2026 8:42 AM in response to femaleNYS

And Scanner has USB-C port as well.


femaleNYS Author
User level: Level 1 (4 points)

Sep 24, 2026 9:13 AM in response to femaleNYS

Thank you so much for your quick and thorough replies. I realized that I was using the wrong USB term. This is very helpful

femaleNYS Author
User level: Level 1 (4 points)

Sep 27, 2026 8:48 AM in response to woodmeister50

Thank you

Originally posted at discussions.apple.com/thread/256364150