Our Technology Blog
Latest USB Flash Drive Trends
Jan 8th
USB flash drives are the greatest product in the market along with external hard drives. Many of the USB flash drives on the market have storage capabilities that rival the conventional external hard drive. USB flash drives of today last longer and store more data than years ago. Flash drives are transferring data faster and the USB 3.0 seems to be primed to change the market for the future.
Hot on the USB Market
The USB 3.0 will make growth faster for the flash drive market; the new market segment will also most likely decrease the prices on many flash drives as the market levels out. The prices on flash drives can be quite steep depending on the flash drive needs and manufacturer you have in mind. The market is mature enough that there are many good deals to be found with major distributors or online.
On the Flash Drive Horizon
Terabytes and USB 3.0 seem to be on the menu for the future of the flash drive industry. Transferring more data at a faster rate will enable consumer and business owners to be more productive and discover new possibilities. The flash drive will most likely dominate the data storage industry for some time into the future. Tape cassettes, floppy disks, hard disks, along with CDs and DVDs will soon be a memory.
The Future
The USB 3.0 is most likely going to be the future hallmark way to transfer data for the next few years. The USB 3.0 transfer data ten times faster than the USB 2.0 we commonly use today. Flash drives will typically have TB at the end for size opposed to the GB we commonly see today. Flash drives will be able to hold all the data you can imagine in the near and present future; they will be a lifetime investment until technology makes them obsolete like the others.
USB Flash Drives are Getting Bigger
Jan 6th
Flash drives are storing more space as time goes on; the implications are quite exciting. The limits of the flash drive market seem to have no end. Right now, there are manufactures producing USB Flash drives that hold up to 256 GB; that is significantly more storage than is available on your typical out-dated working PC. The capabilities of the flash drives are giving business owners and consumer more options.
Desktop Sized USB
The USB flash drive has made nearly all other forms of data storage obsolete. The flash drives come in many sizes from the unimpressive 2 GB to the massive 256 GB; you can store a lifetime of music on a flash drive. Most of the larger flash drives in today’s market are capable of storing all of the data on the computer. This ability makes it very convenient for consumers and business owners to access their data from anywhere.
Future of Terabytes
The future of flash drives is USB 3.0 with terabyte capabilities; many companies have flash drives with up to two TB soon available. It is very interesting to see just how far data storage can go; the idea of a lifetime of data and information fit into your pocket is staggering. The ability to carry years of music, movies, business information, books and applications all in your pocket is the present and the future.
More Durable
The structure and housing of flash drives is constantly changing to favor durability. Many flash drives are nearly indestructible with lifespans and warranties of up to 5 years. The flash drive is the easiest way to transfer data and the potential seems limitless. Whether the purposes are personal, academic or business orientated, there is a flash drive out on the market built for everyone’s storage needs. The USB flash drive will change how we store and transfer data forever into the future.
Flash Drives Replace the Briefcase
Jan 4th
The briefcase is very stylish but these days it has become obsolete. The USB flash drive is the modern briefcase with more capabilities. The assertive entrepreneur or busy executive only needs a small flash drive to carry out the day’s large number of errands and transactions. All USB flash drives contain the capabilities of security, applications and storage functions.
Put your Office in your Pocket
The USB flash drive can be the office in your pocket. As long as you have a computer to plug the flash drive into, you are in business. Flash drives can hold all the applications and data used on a daily basis to run the business. The age of programs and software is ending; applications and clouds are becoming more popular. All you need is access and the functions and information can be in a small password secured USB flash drive in your pocket.
Keeping a Neat Briefcase
Flash drives can store a vast amount of data; there are flash drives that hold more data than the average desktop computer. USB flash drives can store all the information to operate your business; the true task is keeping this information organized and secure. Keeping folders and files organized in the USB is essential to every day success; finding information is quite easy either way, easier than with that messy briefcase. A messy briefcase is a hassle and hampers success; a messy flash drive is a similar scenario.
Efficient Storage
Replace the briefcase with a flash drive today; save yourself some time and space. Flash drive will hold more documents than the briefcase in a more efficient manner. Flash drives hold more types of data, applications and they can be more secure. The size can be a double-edge sword, but some flash drives come do as a key chain with password capabilities.
Flash Drives are the Key to Storage
Jan 2nd
USB flash drives have changed the storage industry forever. Technology has gone from tapes to Floppy disks to hard disks to CD’s to DVD’s and Blue Ray to USB flash drives. USB flash drives are the most convenient way to transport, transfer and store data. Flash drives save space in your pocket and on your hard drive as well. Almost any type of data can be stored on a USB flash drive, the drives re-write up to 500 more times than the typical rewritable disc.
Save Disk Space
Currently there are companies producing flash drives that store up to 256 GB; the 2 GB flash drives will soon become a product of the past. Flash drives offer the same or more disk storage space than the average hard drive on an out-dated desktop. The USB flash drive offers a superb opportunity to save on hard drive space but storing all of the non-essential items on the USB flash drive.
Store great Ideas and Data
Flash drives are ideal for storing the most valuable data or information you will need for another time or place. Many people use flash drives to store the music purchased and downloaded from online. Music collections often consist of thousands of songs that can take up space and cause the computer to function slowly. Flash drives allow users to have their music collections at any place, at any time right in their pocket.
Investing in a flash drive or two is a very wise decision in the current information age. It is essential to have data, music, or other files large or small you may need available at all times. Most flash drives are moderately priced, some offer security options, while other are built to be indestructible. There are many options to upgrading your storage capabilities to USB flash drives.
Get Organized in a USB Flash
Dec 31st
USB Flash Drives are a great way to improve organization if you are starting a business. Perhaps you just need to reorganize the office or collect some data. Using USB Flash drives is a very easy way to separate your tasks and manage them from a practical standpoint. Over time the computer files and folders sometimes culminate into a jumbled mess; the papers on the desk begin to pile up along with the events in the planner.
Separate the USB Drives
Separate your business and your personal life first, next use flash drives to separate the files on your computer. Get rid of any paper you can by getting the information on the computer by scanning or typing; you can also file it away and make a record of it in excel. A flash drive can store your entire business operation, accounting information and music collection all in one; but that may not be the most practical approach.
Organize the Drives
Eliminate the clutter using the flash drives to decide what information and documents need to be stored, and which are for the trash. Organize the separate business functions in one flash drive and decide what information is more appropriate in other flash drives. Flash Drives can hold up to 256 GB these days; ration the space you use wisely for different aspects of your life. Limit the space you use accordingly so you do not find your office in a disorganized frenzy again.
Develop a Digital Filing System
Having a set of USB Flash drives is a great way to establish a working organization foundation to build on. Save the most pertinent files and data on the drives and begin to organize the office. Make folders and designate different flash drives for specific programs or apps, data and information or other music and other uses. Organizing the USB Flash drives will eliminate the clutter and create more space and time to be productive.
Is That a Rocket In Your Pocket Or a USB Flash Drive?
Dec 29th
Actually it’s both. There’s a new kid in USB flash drive town called the HyperX 3.0. This little dandy is put out by Kingston. 3.0 USB flash drives or external drives are all the rage, and manufacturers are doing everything they can in order to take advantage of the popular bandwidth.
The Rocket
The whole rocket idea comes in because USB drives are capable of speeds as high as 625 MB’s most disk drives are capable of far less. So to improve the performance, USB 3.0 controllers have been paired with SSD’s; but this product ended up being too cumbersome, it looked more like a laptop then a storage unit. Kingston tried solving this problem with the latest Corsair 32 GB Voyager GT; and before that the Data Traveler G2 32 GB Ultimate. But even those couldn’t fully utilize the speeds possible. This is why Kingston has now introduced the HyperX Data Traveler 3.0. This new and improved product combines the new high performance HyperX brand with the former Data Traveler. The user of this new pocket rocket will enjoy nearly double any other previous model with 135 MB/write and 225 MB/read ranges. Increased speed saves time; and time is money in most cases.
And Speaking of Money
The technology of this level of advancement does not, however, come cheaply. These new flash drives will come in several levels: for 64 GB expect to pay somewhere in the vicinity of $190 plus; 128 GB will run approximately $125 plus; and an impressive 256 GB (though the price is reportedly still to be determined) is expected to run between $800 or as low as $700. Inferior SSD’s of that size are similar in price; so consider that before fainting at the price of the new HyperX.
There is even a possibility that we can expect to see, somewhere in the far off future, speeds of up to 500 GB from a USB flash drive.
Introducing: The Locking USB Flash Drive
Dec 27th
Remember the old bicycle locks where there were maybe four or more dials that had to be lined up with just the right numbers in a row before you could remove one end of the cable from the locking mechanism to open the locking bike cable? Well someone’s put out a USB flash drive that looks much like the same thing; only instead of locking up your bike it locks up the information on your flash drive, should it fall into the wrong hands; and uses letters instead of numbers. (Oh, and no cable.)
Ladies and Gentlemen I Give You—The Crypteks
Now, for the discriminating transporter of important data is a new USB flash drive modeled after something fresh out of the Da Vinci Code. Rather than unlocking the secrets of the universe for Tom Hanks however, this locking USB flash drive securely stores your personal tapes, photos and other secretive or private data. Five rings lined up in the correct order allow access your private records held within this aluminum drive case. There are a possible 14,348,907 possible combinations. The National Security Agency has approved this device approved the extra security measures that were added to this device on top of the already impossible to figure out 14,348,907 possible combinations. (We should be so safe.) Encryption utilizing 256 bits will deter anyone interested in your data that is not entitled to it.
Kickstart Your Data Saving
The whole thing has been designed with a ‘more is less’ outlook, with an emphasis on durability, simplicity and reliability. The company responsible for this new super secure USB flash drive is ‘Kickstarter’. A pledge of $130 to their new project gets you one of these amazing new creations with 8 GB. Need more than one Crypteks with 8 GB? Pledge more to the cause.
In case you are interested in this offer you need but to visit the Kickstarter Crypteks USB web page.
USB Flash Drives vs. Based Storage Services
Dec 25th
USB flash drives used to be all the rage when we’re talking about a portable place to store your information and take it with you everywhere you go. Along comes Based Storage Services and now people can access their data from any computer’s web browser.
What’s the Story with Based Storage Services?
Storage Services that are based refer to systems like the Cloud. Before you can use other computers to access the information from the cloud you have to take the files you want to save and upload them from your computer. The catch comes when after using the first few free gigabytes (GB’s), you have to pay for the rest. It usually comes in the form of an annual subscription. And please keep in mind that the only thing protecting those files is your password. (You can also password your files on a USB flash drive just in case it ever falls into the wrong hands, which is one of the downfalls of using USB flash drives. These are easily lost and tend to store old versions of something that you may already have updated into a new version.)
iPhones, iPads and Now; iTwin
It looks like a pair of USB flash drives that actually fit one on top of the other. After loading information that you want to save into the pair, one drive stays in your Home Computer whereas the other one can be connected to any other computer. By inserting this second flash drive into a computer you will be to access everything on the flash drive that is still connected to your Home Computer. No information is actually carried on the flash drive itself, so that if it falls into the wrong hands, those hands don’t exactly have access to your data.
These twin devices sell for approximately $99.00 for the pair.
What is Meant by ‘Ejecting’ a USB Drive/Is It Necessary?
Dec 23rd
Now I’ve heard of ejecting a CD but I always thought that all you had to do with a USB flash drive was simply yank it out of the side of your laptop. Apparently that is a mistake. Ejecting it first avoids losing precious data.
Windows vs. Other Computers
Windows doesn’t have a problem with this but various other laptops advise you to ‘eject’ your USB flash drives before actually disconnecting it. You may not even notice an ejection option if you run with windows. There are actually two ways to look at this. Technically, the object has been saved in the data that has been placed on the USB drive; it’s sort of an insurance policy. In the system tray there should be an icon that says ‘safely remove hardware’; by choosing your drive from that list you should be able to ‘eject’ your USB flash drive before removing it. However, there’s more to the entire equation than just that.
The Rest of the Story
Apparently in some mysterious way that only Windows understands, it somehow knows that we humans tend to disconnect things without actually properly ejecting them on the computer first. It takes this into consideration and therefore does not make you officially eject the USB drive before actually removing it. Linux and Mac on the other hand, fully expect you to eject the USB flash drive before actually removing it. By yanking out the USB flash drive while it is actively being written will corrupt the data; which can also be corrupted even if it is not being written the time of removal. By requesting to eject the USB flash drive you are telling the computer that it must finish whatever it is doing in order for you to keep your data safe.
The bottom line is that formally ejecting your USB drive before removing it simply assures you that your data will be kept safe.
Donations of USB Flash Drives Being Accepted by Jacob’s Ladder
Dec 21st
‘Tis the season ladies and gentlemen… Time to donate to your favorite cause. But a certain charity is not asking for money this time, oh no; this year they are asking for USB flash drives.
Who is ‘Jacob’s Ladder Job Center’?
A nonprofit organization, Jacob’s Ladder, assists underemployed and unemployed people to locate paying jobs in Charlotte. And they need USB flash drives. Urban communities in Charlotte suffering chronic unemployment but created the need for a movement called the Welfare to Work program. Jacob’s Ladder is associated with this program, and is a compassionate response to the unemployment situation, that was founded back in 1998. If you are interested in donating the USB drives to Jacob’s Ladder information can be obtained by calling 704-332-58224 or can be found on their website.
Why USB Flash Drives?
The reason? These flash drives will be utilized by the unemployed to make access to portfolios and resumes more easily accessible when preparing and filing for interviews and jobs. Storage capacity should be at or greater than 256 MB. This is all part of a holiday program promoting job readiness. These flash drives used to be provided to students searching for employment but the cost became too great. People looking for work rely on these flash drives for utilization in accessing Computer Labs in order to apply for jobs, complete applications and update resumes. In order to utilize the education that these people gain from Jacob’s Ladder they must be able to access standard technology in order to make use of certain documents.
Jacobs Ladder also has a face book page, because who doesn’t after all these days, at which you can follow their progress, post opinions or sentiments, and find out how the drive for USB drives for the holidays is going.