It works, but it could be better
Written: Jul 03 '03
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Product Rating:
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Pros: small, easy to install
Cons: keychain ring is attached to plastic cover and drive could be lost; pricey
The Bottom Line: A decent choice if you need or want a very compact USB drive, with included extension cable. Stay away if you are worried about losing the drive from keychain.
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| legalman's Full Review: Memorex 128MB Thumbdrive |
I decided that I needed one of these small drives to carry a file of Word docs and powerpoint files from work. Drive is small and thin enough to fit directly into USB port without blocking other USB cord plug-in. It weighs less than half an ounce. My work documents file is about 100MB, and this drive holds 128MB.
I have Win 98SE on my home computer, which required installation of drivers from included mini-CD, which went smoothly. Unit came with USB extension cable, and disc with Win 98 and 98SE drivers (drivers not needed for later Windows versions or Mac OS 8.6 or higher). Installation was easy, and download of over 1000 files, totaling 100MB, took about six minutes for first write, and about eight minutes to be overwritten when updated. This is not far off from the claimed write speed of 350kb per second. Read speed is claimed to be 700kb per second.
Green LED comes on to show that the drive is connected, and the LED flashes to show drive in read or write operation. Small hardware switch at base of unit allows the drive to be write-protected.
The drive when connected to the USB port, appears as another drive on a computer, and is simply assigned the next drive letter available. Drive is designed for USB 1.1 operation. Since this is flash memory, it is not affected by magnetic interference or being bumped.
On the negative side, drive does not seem very sturdy, and was designed with the key ring on the flimsy plastic cover, so that if the cover separates from the drive, you lose the drive itself, not the cover. The cover hooks on to the drive by plastic sleeve with a couple of indentations -- not very secure. I do not believe there is any way to password protect access to the drive.
This unit - 128MB version - retails for about $100, and was available at Staples and Circuit City for $69.95. Other than storage capacity and different price point, 256 MB and 64MB version are the same form factor.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID: legalman
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Location: Philadelphia, PA, USA
Reviews written: 1
Trusted by: 0 members
About Me: tech lawyer
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