USB 3.0 flash drives poor reliability?

[iCyborg]

I bought a Corsair CMFVY3S-16GB drive in July 2012. It died after less than a month. So after RMA-ing Corsair sent me another one. This one lasted just over a year before cra**ing out too, and with very light usage. While looking online if there's something I could do to salvage it, I found out a lot of other users also complaining of multiple drives failing in a matter of months. On the Corsair website they just tell you to RMA it without acknowledging that something is borked with this model.
Newegg reviews also show that something isn't sitting right here:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820233225
135 out od 282 (48%!) reviews are 1 star, most of them complaining the drive died. I know, I know, Newegg reviews aren't some gold standard, but almost 300 reviews is a pretty decent statistical sample size, and accounting for the fact that people tend to write more about bad experiences.

Since I paid $6 to send the drive back the first time, I'm not doing it any more, since it obviously can't be trusted. So I go to see some other USB 3.0 drives on newegg, and apparently, this ain't so uncommon. There are some with good reviews, and my Corsair model is about the worst, but many of them have lots of complaints of drives dying after a couple months:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820239293
10/23 (43%) have 1 star, much smaller number of reviews, but still makes me scratch my head
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820239626
7/32 (22%) another Kingston, not so bad, but still worrying
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820208599
7/25 (28%) after 2 Kingstons, I look at a Transcend one, in the first couple reviews "Drive dies after 4, 3, 2 and 2 months".

When the Corsair died, I plugged in some ancient 4GB Kingston drive that I use with my keyboard, and it still works with no hiccups, it's 4-5 years old. I also have some no-name branded 1GB that's really old, also works. Both are USB 2.0.

This brings me to my point: is there something fundamentally broken with USB3.0 flash drives? Maybe just a bad batch using a particular controller?
Are there more of you having more problems with them than USB 2.0?

Ironically, my main computer has no USB3.0 ports, I'm not sure I ever used one. I just thought since the price is similar, why not future-proof it a bit...


Cliffs:
- I have 2 USB2.0 flash drives that both work after more than 10 years between them.
- 2 USB3.0 drives (same model) failed with an average lifetime of around 7 months.
- A bunch of reviews on Newegg also seem to point towards more issues with USB3.0 drives.

Coincidence? Or is poorer reliability of USB3.0 something known?

 

[Engineer]

I'm at the opinion that the smaller, cheaper flash is the culprit, not USB 3.0 necessarily. The flash in flash drives is probably even going lower quality as the better stuff is now populating SSD's, leaving only the 'scrap' stuff for the USB sticks, IMO.

 

[redhotiron2004]

I'm at the opinion that the smaller, cheaper flash is the culprit, not USB 3.0 necessarily. The flash in flash drives is probably even going lower quality as the better stuff is now populating SSD's, leaving only the 'scrap' stuff for the USB sticks, IMO.

I don't think corsair could be termed as cheap or low quality. Certainly there is something fishy about it.

Apparently, there is a difference between the operating voltages in. Usb 2.0 and 3.0. For eg: a 3.0 drive would not run at full capability in 2.0 drive. Even though 3.0 is backward compatible. Still, operating difference is there.

Maybe the 3.0 sticks might be wearing off much faster.
I don't know for sure. But, it surely is alarming.

 

[Cerb]

I'm with Engineer. In general, I've gotten to the point where I only bother buying flash products from memory companies. Sandisk, Toshiba, Samsung, etc. devices tend to perform reasonably well for what they are, and last me either well into obsolescence, or long enough that the failure easily be my fault (mechanical failure or ESD, as examples).

Corsair doesn't make or bin the flash they buy. They trust whoever they buy it from.
Corsair doesn't make the flash controller.
Corsair doesn't make the firmware for the controllers on most of their devices.
Micron, Samsung, Hynix, Toshiba, and Sandisk are putting their best flash into their own products, as those products represent their names.

Corsair is a good company, IMO/IME, but they are sort of stuck, sometimes.

 

[John Connor]

This one or this one should suffice.

I have a 16 GB USB 3.0 version and haven't had any trouble. I even have an Adata SSD. Toshiba is good too!

 

[Engineer]

Just a FYI, but I've never had ANY USB flash drive fail, either USB 2.0 or USB 3.0. With that said, I carry a 16GB version of each (OCZ for the USB 2.0 and Super Talent for the USB 3.0). The OCZ version is about 8 years old and the Super Talent version is at least 3 to 4 years old. I've written terabytes to the OCZ one (literally) and have never had an issue. Hell, I dropped it out of my pocket at a customer's plant and it floated in the rain for 2 days before they found and returned it. Dried it out and works just fine. It does have an aluminum case though so maybe it pulls heat better (well, the Super Talent has plastic and has no issues).

I still think that the SSD surge over the last few years is taking quality stuff away from the USB stick market.

 

[bononos]

.....
Apparently, there is a difference between the operating voltages in. Usb 2.0 and 3.0. For eg: a 3.0 drive would not run at full capability in 2.0 drive. Even though 3.0 is backward compatible. Still, operating difference is there.
....

No there isn't. Where did you get that from?

 

[redhotiron2004]

Sandisk and samsung on the second number are good.

I always buy sandisk. And never look at any other brand. They are the pioneers in sd card. And no company even come close to that.

 

[Ichinisan]

I've had poor reliability and compatibility with ALL flash drives. I rarely use them for this reason.

 

[Ichinisan]

Sandisk and samsung on the second number are good.

I always buy sandisk. And never look at any other brand. They are the pioneers in sd card. And no company even come close to that.

In my experience, they've failed as often as any other brand I've used.

 

[redhotiron2004]

In my experience, they've failed as often as any other brand I've used.

Then something is definately wrong with the usb port that you are using. They are the best brand.

You might be the unluckiest person in the world whose every drive fails. As you seem to have tried all these brands with the same result. There is something wrong with your computer or external voltages. Because that kind of failure rate cannot be attributed solely to bad pendrives.

 

[redhotiron2004]

No there isn't. Where did you get that from?

It's a well known fact. Do you even know any difference between usb2.0 vs usb3.0? Google or here is a small intro:
http://m.techspot.com/guides/235-everything-about-usb-30/

Usb 3.0 have much lower pooling rates(which reduces were are tear)and will support newer devices that would need higher voltages compared to usb 2.0.

 

[sze5003]

All I've used is usb 2.0 devices. I went out bought 3 sandisk usb 2.0 devices to use as install disks for live images and OS installs. None of them could be bootable even though my bios would see them. Then I updated my bios and my verbatim usb with windows install image is only bootable if I turn my pc off, plug it in and then turn on the pc and go to the boot menu.

Not sure why this happened, but my pny drives have had no issues.

 

[Doomer]

I've washed several of mine in the washer and they came out squeaky clean with data intact. My oldest is a 512mb and it still works fine.

 

[Ichinisan]

Then something is definately wrong with the usb port that you are using. They are the best brand.

...on various systems.

You might be the unluckiest person in the world

This is probably true.

 

[iCyborg]

This one or this one should suffice.

I have a 16 GB USB 3.0 version and haven't had any trouble. I even have an Adata SSD. Toshiba is good too!

That's the one I plan to buy as well, they have them in local stores (shipping at newegg.ca is ridiculous for USB drives...). I'll probably buy an extra one from another manufacturer, maybe smaller like 8G/16G, and use both for anything important, just in case.
I have a Corsair SDD at work, and I've had problems with it: 2 times I had a BSOD waiting for me in the morning and I had to reboot a couple times before the drive would be recognized in BIOS. I back it up regularly now, it seems it's a matter of near future when it dies. But I've chalked it up to its size: only 60GB, and it's been 70-80% full for most of its lifetime (~2.5 years), so it's not bad. I've requested for a larger one, but approvals go slow in my company...

 

[Brahmzy]

Just ordered a Sandisk Extreme today... Hopefully it serves me well. Never had an issue with my USB3 Adata thumb drives, they're just average in performance.

 

[bononos]

It's a well known fact. Do you even know any difference between usb2.0 vs usb3.0? Google or here is a small intro:
http://m.techspot.com/guides/235-everything-about-usb-30/

Usb 3.0 have much lower pooling rates(which reduces were are tear)and will support newer devices that would need higher voltages compared to usb 2.0.

Again there isn't a difference btwn voltages in usb2/3 that would cause problems with flash drives.
You clearly do not understand what you are reading from that link you posted.

 

[CZroe]

Then something is definately wrong with the usb port that you are using. They are the best brand.

You might be the unluckiest person in the world whose every drive fails. As you seem to have tried all these brands with the same result. There is something wrong with your computer or external voltages. Because that kind of failure rate cannot be attributed solely to bad pendrives.

Over the years and across/between multiple systems (that's kind of the point), I've also had USB flash drives from all major manufacturers eventually fail on me. That includes everything from a 512MB SanDisk Cruzer to a "Star Trek" themed 4GB Kingston Data Traveler.

It's absurd to expect one brand to stand above the rest when they are almost all just rebranded from the same factories. It's all in how much you use them and what you put them through. In particular, the connection usually starts getting flaky and eventually it gets corrupted and fails to mount/format. Use it enough an it's bound to happen to nearly every drive, especially sticking out from laptops begging to get bumped while inserted. Super-tiny ones that fit almost completely inside the USB ports probably have better luck.

 

[redhotiron2004]

Again there isn't a difference btwn voltages in usb2/3 that would cause problems with flash drives.
You clearly do not understand what you are reading from that link you posted.

From the link:
"the signaling method, while still host-directed, abandons device polling in favor of a new interrupt-driven protocol. This ensures that the USB host controller doesn't continually access a connected device in anticipation of a data transfer. Instead, USB 3.0 devices will send the host a signal to begin a data transfer.

The signaling method mentioned directly above also means that non-active or idle devices won't have their power drained by the host controller as it looks for active data traffic. Minimum device operating voltage is dropped from 4.4 V to 4 V. On the other hand, the USB-IF has upped the maximum bus power output from about 500 mA to 900 mA, which will enable power-hungrier devices to be bus-powered and USB hubs to support more peripherals. There's also the bonus that battery-powered devices should charge faster."

Do you understand anything from these lines?
It seems you have not read anything from the link before posting. It was supposed to be an introductory link. Google for in depth knowledge.

Lesser pooling means less wear and tear, different voltage capability for both lower and higher devices!

 

[Tsavo]

I've had poor reliability and compatibility with ALL flash drives. I rarely use them for this reason.

Same here. I've never gotten one that lasted.

Tried many brands.

 

[redhotiron2004]

It seems that the usb3.0 pendrive material is not as good as 2.0. For a greater speed the usb 3.0 devices have also become succisable to faster wear and tear especially when used in 2.0 ports. As 2.0 ports can't adjust voltage and power the way 3.0 ports can.

So, It would be best to use a 3.0 usb port for a 3.0 usb device. The 2.0 port will definately not only wear down your pendrive much faster but have the potential to malfunction your 3.0 drives over long periods of time.

I have seen usb 2.0 ports on old desktops that simply outputs irregular power that makes some equipments like mobiles etc connected through usb cable work erratically or don't work at all.

It's a problem with 2.0 ports as they are not good enough at controlling there voltages and power the way 3.0 can.

 

[Cerb]

From the link:
"the signaling method, while still host-directed, abandons device polling in favor of a new interrupt-driven protocol. This ensures that the USB host controller doesn't continually access a connected device in anticipation of a data transfer. Instead, USB 3.0 devices will send the host a signal to begin a data transfer.

The signaling method mentioned directly above also means that non-active or idle devices won't have their power drained by the host controller as it looks for active data traffic. Minimum device operating voltage is dropped from 4.4 V to 4 V. On the other hand, the USB-IF has upped the maximum bus power output from about 500 mA to 900 mA, which will enable power-hungrier devices to be bus-powered and USB hubs to support more peripherals. There's also the bonus that battery-powered devices should charge faster."

Do you understand anything from these lines?
It seems you have not read anything from the link before posting. It was supposed to be an introductory link. Google for in depth knowledge.

Lesser pooling means less wear and tear, different voltage capability for both lower and higher devices!

It is not Bononos lacking understanding. That means less power used. But, the flash can be completely off when not being written to or read from, and the changes in signaling don't change IO patterns, nor over-provisioning, nor voltage cleanliness. If any of those USB 3 changes had an effect on the flash, then the flash storage device in question was faulty by design, as it would need to have been running its parts well out of spec.

 

[redhotiron2004]

It is not Bononos lacking understanding. That means less power used. But, the flash can be completely off when not being written to or read from, and the changes in signaling don't change IO patterns, nor over-provisioning, nor voltage cleanliness. If any of those USB 3 changes had an effect on the flash, then the flash storage device in question was faulty by design, as it would need to have been running its parts well out of spec.

I never said that change in signaling would change the IO patterns. Nor have I talked about voltage cleanliness. I said that 3.0 ports have the capability to change voltage and power according to device which the 2.0 ports don't have. And thus a 3.0 device would wear off faster on a 2.0 port because it continuously check for data interaction between the drive and the port. While in case of 3.0 ports it would wait for the drive to issue the command.

Also, a 2.0 port power and voltage is nearly static. Which is bad for 3.0 drives over long term usage(being compatible doesn't necessarily mean being long lasting).

I did mentioned before that 3.0 drives don't seem to be of as good quality as 2.0 drives. But, the biggest culprit seems to be the legacy port 2.0 to me right now.

And using low power and voltage by 3.0 ports on certain devices also result in lower power usage. Which 2.0 port cannot do.

 

[Cerb]

None of that matters. The difference in ear that will have will take many years to show any signs, possibly a century or more. The saved battery is will be orders of magnitude more present.