What does "Initialize" mean? I have just connected my micro-SD card to my Mac, this just shows up

Solution 1:

'Initialize' means 'Format'

The ellipsis … following it is standard 'computer speak' for "this won't happen before you see some more options."

So, for whatever reason, your computer cannot read the existing format on the card & wants to attempt to erase & start afresh. That would lose all data already on the card.

Re-test it in your dashcam, but be prepared to bin it & buy a new one. They're really fragile structures & easily fail. You could try data recovery software if the data is valuable.

It would also be worth removing & reinserting the card & rebooting the Mac, just in case it was a one-off glitch, dirty contacts, etc.

Solution 2:

If your Mac can't read an SD card it proposes to reformat/initialize it so it can be used. This will put new data structures onto the SD card, reducing your chance of recovering any data from it.

Disk Drill claims to be able to recover data from damaged SD cards. I don't have any experience with it but it might be worth a try.