flash drive recommendations ...

[joecool]

here's my requirements, in order of importance:

0) (almost doesn't need mentioning, most drives support this now) at least 1gb, hopefully 2gb option.
1) decent performance. used to (until i lost it!) have a sandisk micro, loved the form factor but it was slooooow ... i'd prefer i drive i didn't have to sit and wait to read/write a single file from/to!
2) well-designed cap. something where the cap won't be falling off all the time, and eventually getting lost. this was a big plus of the micro - the rubberized skin clung nicely to the body and made sure the cap didn't get lost. prior to that i had the sandisc mini and it didn't take long at all to lose the cap for that sucker. talk about bad design!
3) durable. again, the skin on the micro made it durable - didn't break if i dropped it - even made it through the wash a few times!
4) looks good.

my take on a couple of options:
1) corsair flash voyager - seems to meet all but 2, many reviews say the cap doesn't stay on, which also makes it less durable. strike it off the list (pity, i like the look!).
2) verbatim store n' go pro - this is looking good, just like to hear from someone how durable it is and if the cap stays put.
3) lexar jump-drive - doesn't look like the cap will stay put, and the hard, shiney case looks easy to break.
4) kingston data traveller elite - again, cap looks like it will fall off and whole body looks flimsy.

any input much appreciated!

joe

 

[GeekDrew]

I've had a 1GB Kingston Data Traveler Elite for a couple of months. I'm always playing with the cap, and if you pull on it, it comes right of. You could shake it, throw it, step on it, and drop it, and the cap wouldn't fall off. It's probably not as sturdy as something made of stainless steel, but it's not bad.

The speed on it is *awesome*. I've yet to personally see any other USB Thumbdrive match its speed for reading + writing (and I've read reviews that say the same).

I highly recommend it.

 

[czech09]

Sandisk Cruzer? Memorex Travel? Both these are solid...

 

[joecool]

actually i just shipped a sandisk cruzer "titanium" back to buy.com. the thing is supposed to withstand 2000lbs of pressure ... i dropped it when putting it in my pocket and it broke - it's about 3ft. from my pocket to the floor - i don't think that's 2000lbs of pressure! no more sandisk for me.

perhaps i'll give the traveler a try.

 

[GeekDrew]

I've dropped my data traveler several times, but I've never washed it, and I guarantee it won't withstand anything remotely close to 2000 lbs of pressure. It's not built *that* well, but I don't really know why most people would need something that could handle that pressure.

 

[dug777]

My mate has the cruzer Ti, he's had no problems with it, and it's dual channel so it's bloody fast...

 

[everman]

I use one that's basically an SD card -> usb adapter (SD card inside what looks like a flash drive). Since my Axim (pda) doesn't have usb host capability, this works great. It's too fat for some front mounted usb ports though.(solved with a short usb cable) There's no way the SD card will break if you drop it, worst thing that happens is that the enclosure cracks, which is around $10.

 

[sniperruff]

Originally posted by: dug777
My mate has the cruzer Ti, he's had no problems with it, and it's dual channel so it's bloody fast...

i had one for work. thing is sexy but expensive. it's like a freaking jaguar of flash drives.

 

[SpunkyJones]

I love my flash voyager. My wife has the same one and lost her cap.

 

[joecool]

Originally posted by: GeekDrew
I've dropped my data traveler several times, but I've never washed it, and I guarantee it won't withstand anything remotely close to 2000 lbs of pressure. It's not built *that* well, but I don't really know why most people would need something that could handle that pressure.

well, considering how easily my titanium broke, i'm seriously questioning the 2000 lbs clain!

 

[drinkmorejava]

I have the centon w/e brand that compusa had on sale during black fri--the 512mb version, but I know there's a 1 gig. I've never had the cap fall off (they give you two anyway), because it's essentially no bigger than a USB socket, it fits everywhere, and the speed is decent, about 20mb/s. The only complaint I have is they don?t give you a string to attach it to anything, but it does have a little recessed metal loop thingy. I ended up using some black 50lb fishing line (the real woven stuff) to put it on my keychain.

 

[daveshel]

Avoid bleach when you put them in the washer.

 

[joecool]

ok, try this again ... since nothing seems to really meet all my requirements, and since durability is the most important (if it doesn't work at all, it's not very fast, is it?!), what would you recommend for durable, cap doesn't get lost, reasonable priced, small form factor (ie, won't block other port on stacked ports) drive?

joe

 

[ed21x]

I use a PNY Single Slot adapter and a 1 gb kingston SD card. It seems sturdy in the sense that it hasn't broken after all these years of being in my backpack.

 

[ed21x]

oh btw, the one posted above, it doesn't havea cap, but rather, the card fits securely into the reader, and only the part where it curves in does it show.

 

[oddyager]

Iomega flash drives. I've had mine gone through the washer at least half dozen times and its still good as new. Looks pretty sleek with its silver design, too.

 

[mercanucaribe]

Dude a thumbdrive isn't going to break if you drop it. They weigh next to nothing. You could drop it out of a plane and nothing would happen.

 

[GeekDrew]

Originally posted by: joecool
ok, try this again ... since nothing seems to really meet all my requirements, and since durability is the most important (if it doesn't work at all, it's not very fast, is it?!), what would you recommend for durable, cap doesn't get lost, reasonable priced, small form factor (ie, won't block other port on stacked ports) drive?

joe

What kind of abuse are you planning on subjecting these things to, that you don't think a DataTraveler could handle it?

 

[joecool]

Originally posted by: mercanucaribe
Dude a thumbdrive isn't going to break if you drop it. They weigh next to nothing. You could drop it out of a plane and nothing would happen.

cruzer titanium ... dropped ~3 feet ... broke. pos.

 

[jupiter57]

Well, Mr. Cheapskate here bought the 1 GB Geek Squad thumb drive some time back, (on sale, after MIR).
It works quite well, as fast as any other thumb drive I've used, and it has NO CAP to lose, swings out from it's own little self storing "pocket".
It is actually the lightest thumb drive I've ever had.
The only drawback is that it came with a "U3 Utility", I never used it but it always loaded when you plugged it in, taking up time. I found a "U3 Uninstaller" at Geeksquad.com, used it and now it's just a bare drive.
I'm quite happy with it.