The Bottom Line: The speed makes this a good model for people who want to run Power Point presentations directly from the drive, but only if they won’t be foiled by the switch.
glake's Full Review: Imation (0-51122-17054-6) (512 MB) USB Flash Drive
I previously wrote a review on the 128MB version of this item and the basics are the same. These things don't seem to have an official name, I've seen them called Flash Drives, Jump drives, USB drives and Thumb Drives. This causes a bit of a problem for someone like me who does a lot of on-line purchasing because if you search for any of those terms, you won't get all the drives available. And on most of them, you'll get items that are NOT what you're looking for. For example, searching for a USB drive, which is the term I hear most often, will usually return external hard drives and floppy drives that connect to your PC's USB port, but won't fit in your pocket. I like the term Thumb Drive though most searches for that name will show you only a small percentage of the ones out there. Nevertheless, that's what I'll call them for the rest of this review.
General Use:
Thumb Drives plug into any open USB port on your PC. They are fully plug and play for Windows 2000, ME and XP plus Mac and Linux. Once it's plugged in, your PC should recognize it and, after a few seconds, assign it the next available drive letter. The most common set-up has a CD or DVD player designated as drive D: and that's the highest letter assigned so the thumb drive becomes drive E:. IF you have 2 DVD players or some other device using E: the Thumb Drive could become F: or G:. Naturally a front USB port makes connecting easier, but if your USB port is in the back, Imation includes a short USB extension that you can leave plugged in to the back while you plug or unplug the Thumb drive from the more reachable cable end.
Shape:
You may not think this is an issue other than the aesthetics of it, but it can be. All Thumb Drives are, by design, small, but some are wider than others and some are longer than others and some have big clips for a key ring while others have a tiny hole for a lanyard. I've had Thumb Drives I couldn't use on some PC's because of their shape. For example, my Compaq EVO has recessed USB ports that many of the wider Thumb Drives cannot fit completely into, and some models of ThinkPad laptops have USB ports that are vertical to the machine, which makes any wide USB connection actually lift the laptop off the desk and puts strain on the connected device. This model of Imation Thumb Drive is reasonably narrow so these issues are non-existent. It’s also long enough to be comfortable in your hand and give you something to grip as you insert it into you PC, but not so long that it becomes cumbersome in your pocket. It has a small opening at the back suitable for connecting the included lanyard. But nowhere near big enough for any type of keychain.
Memory:
This model obviously holds 512 MB of data, or a little less if you install any security software. The real question is, how much do you need. I searched through my directories at all my documents files and found that only a tiny fraction of them would not fit on a 512mb Thumb Drive. This is a reasonable size for the majority of uses. However, memory can NOT be added on later so if you buy 512MB, you’re stuck with 512MB. I recommend you compare prices to memory before buying any Thumb Drive. If the next size up is only a few bucks more, it may be better to play it safe. On the other hand, I had to buy 20 of these to hand out to co-workers so I stayed with 512 to keep the cost down.
Speed:
Most Thumb Drives don’t list file transfer rates. The Imation claims 8MB/second to write and 6MB/seconds to read data. Cheaper ones could run half that speed but as long as they are USB2.0 compatible, the speed shouldn’t be much of an issue. Even very large files will copy much faster than putting them on a floppy or a CD. So far the only use I've found for speed is when trying to show a large presentation directly from the Thumb Drive. In that case, this model is one of the fastest I've found so far.
The Imation Swivel:
The feature that makes this model unique is their swivel cap. I'm always leaving caps behind so this sounded like a big plus to me. Though it's not really a cap. Photos never show this thing from the side but if you were to look at it on one edge you'd see that the cap is really a U-shaped cover, which will protect the USB connector from getting loose dirt in it. It is not tightly attached to the USB connector and would not keep excessive dust or dirt out, and it would do nothing to stop liquids, like spilled coffee from entering the electronics. And since I now have 2 of these with bent USB connectors, the swivel cap apparently doesn't protect from that either. Overall it's a simple protection for that worst of everyday abuse with the advantage of never getting lost.
Other Features:
Some Thumb Drives have lights to tell you that they are connected, or that data is moving in or out. This helps to let you know when it's safe to remove the drive from your USB port and the Imation does have such a light but it's very small and it’s on the side where most likely you won't be able to see it clearly anyway.
The Imation drive, like some others, also has a small ‘write protect’ switch on the side opposite the LED that prevents accidental erasing or overwriting data. So far this has been more of a negative feature to me. I can see how it might be useful to some, but the switch on Imation’s drive is easy to push accidentally while inserting the drive into you USB port, which can be very frustration next time you try to write to it, and it’s also a flimsy switch that breaks easily. I now have 3 that are unusable, two broke in the write protect position and I can no longer add anything to it, the other must have shorted something because the PC will no longer recognize it at all. If you buy this model, be very careful of this switch.
Another ‘feature’ that is often overlooked is how you’re going to keep from loosing this valuable, but tiny, tool. I’ve seen pocket clips on USB drives, and on their caps. Some have small key rings attached. Many just have a hole somewhere for you to attach a key ring. The Imation has a tiny hole at the back end. It won’t fit on a key ring but it’s made for the included lanyard. The lanyard threads securely through the hole and is about a foot and a half long. It easily can be worn around you neck. I sometimes loop it around my belt and then put the drive in my pocket. There is also a quick disconnect clip about 4 inches from the drive end so you can remove the drive to use it without having to take the lanyard off of you neck.
Price:
Some 512MB Thumb Drives can be had for as low as $10. The average for a decent one seems to be around $15. The Imation 512MB is currently $14 where I shop so you could do better but it's not bad. This brand continues to be faster than the lower priced ones and the extra speed is worth something. Plus you get the swivel cap, and a USB extension that don’t come with most other brands. Considering the overall package, it's a god value for p[eople who aren't rough on such things and don't need to worry about breaking the switch.
Conclusion:
I love Thumb Drives in general and the convenience they bring to data transfer but this model is no longer my first choice due to the write-protect switch problems. The speed makes this a good model for people who want to run Power Point presentations directly from the drive, but only if they are gentler people than I who won’t be foiled by the switch.
512 MB mini USB drive Swivel cap to protect USB connector Use with a lanyard and wear around your neck Ultra-fast USB 2.0 connectivityMore at Amazon Marketplace
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
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