USB Flash Drives:
Abusive Lab Test

http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/reviews/4215802.html


When it comes to transporting big files, USB flash drives are leaving clunky, scratch-prone DVD-Rs on the shelf.

Thanks to these lipstick-size data sticks, hundreds of vacation photos and MP3s can live in your back pocket. But whoever said your pocket was a safe place?

We put three supposedly durable drives to the test, simulating a drop in the toilet (60 seconds underwater), a roast on the dashboard (60 minutes in a toaster oven at 200 F, which is as hot as a sun-drenched dash can get) and a full washer-dryer cycle in a pair of jeans.

After each round, we copied 1GB of data and measured the transfer speeds. These drives were tough, but not all of them survived this trial by fire ... and washer.

Dropped in the bowl: Slim as two credit cards, the Walletex
showed up looking a little underdressed for bad weather. But to
our surprise, the water had no effect.

Left in the car: Impressively, the wafer-thin drive didn’t curl up
like a potato chip, and it functioned normally, with no loss of
capacity or transfer speed.

Washed and dried: Despite its exposed connector, nothing
came out in the wash — in fact, the Walletex came out of the whole
ordeal looking freshly scrubbed.

Bottom Line

...the surprise winner was the fragile-looking Walletex, which doesn’t bother with fancy connector covers, and turned out to be as durable and practical as it is sleek.