Lexar Media today has announced a fix for an incompability between its Write-Accelerated 24X Professional Series CompactFlash cards and the Microtech FireWire CameraMate card reader. The incompatibility prevents the reliable transfer of data from these cards to a computer when this reader is used. In my testing, the problem was intermittent: PC users may experience the problem only occasionally, while the problem occurs regularly on the Mac.

A new version of card firmware, says Lexar's Jim Gustke, corrects the problem in the company's 256MB and 512MB 24X WA cards. Other Lexar CompactFlash, including the 24X models that lack Write Acceleration, do not exhibit the problem.

The firmware update must be performed by Lexar, it's not user-installable. To arrange to have your 24X WA cards updated, contact Lexar tech support at +1 510-413-1233.