USB Flash Drive Roundup - 10/2005
by Anand Lal Shimpi on October 4, 2005 11:28 AM EST- Posted in
- Memory
256KB File Read Performance
Read performance continues to go up as we look at 256KB files; all drives get faster, but some simply get faster than others.
The second tier of performance is once again led by Kingston's DataTraveler II+ and PQI's I-Stick Pro170, with SanDisk's Cruzer Titanium bringing up the rear.
The third and fourth performance tiers once again populate the 10MB/s and below area.
2MB File Read Performance
64MB File Read Performance
By the time that we've reached the 64MB test, these drives have all pretty much achieved their transfer peaks. While they all were horrendously slow at small file reads, by the time we made it to 64MB files, their performance truly peaked.
PQI's I-Stick Pro170 leads the second performance tier, averaging 19.7MB/s.
But, despite how consistent the standings were as we tested varying file sizes, the show is far from over. At this point, we're only looking at one half of the spectrum. In order to have data to read from these drives, you have to first write to them. And this is where things get complicated...
Read performance continues to go up as we look at 256KB files; all drives get faster, but some simply get faster than others.
The top four are quickly shaping up to be the Memina Rocket, OCZ Rally, Lexar JumpDrive Lightning and Kingston DataTraveler Elite.
The second tier of performance is once again led by Kingston's DataTraveler II+ and PQI's I-Stick Pro170, with SanDisk's Cruzer Titanium bringing up the rear.
The third and fourth performance tiers once again populate the 10MB/s and below area.
2MB File Read Performance
Performance really starts to hit its maximum with the 2MB file read test. The Memina Rocket drive lives up to its name and manages an incredible 30.5MB/s transfer rate in this test. The OCZ and Lexar drives follow Memina, while Kingston falls short at 22.8MB/s. But even the Kingston Elite drive is still 20% faster than the next closest competitor, the PQI I-Stick Pro170.
64MB File Read Performance
By the time that we've reached the 64MB test, these drives have all pretty much achieved their transfer peaks. While they all were horrendously slow at small file reads, by the time we made it to 64MB files, their performance truly peaked.
The Memina Rocket holds a 12% performance advantage over the OCZ, a 17% advantage over the Lightning and a 34% performance advantage over the Kingston DataTraveler Elite, but all three of those drives were able to deliver transfer rates greater than 22MB/s.
PQI's I-Stick Pro170 leads the second performance tier, averaging 19.7MB/s.
But, despite how consistent the standings were as we tested varying file sizes, the show is far from over. At this point, we're only looking at one half of the spectrum. In order to have data to read from these drives, you have to first write to them. And this is where things get complicated...
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sxr7171 - Tuesday, October 4, 2005 - link
Time to get a Lexar JumpDrive lightning. This may not be important to a lot of people, but a USB drive IMHO needs to have a loop for a keyring. It is the most convenient way to carry the thing and always have it with you no matter what. I guess this applies more to people living in the city and not needing a car and the big bulky car keys/remote that come with that.TheInvincibleMustard - Tuesday, October 4, 2005 - link
Speaking of, is there some reason the Lexar isn't on the RTPE? I mean, it did just win an Editor's Choice and all, so you'd hope it would be one of the drives listed in the newly-announced Flash Storage section ... :(-TIM
Pete84 - Tuesday, October 4, 2005 - link
Bummer, OCZ's dual channel USB stick didn't get in.jkostans - Tuesday, October 4, 2005 - link
Someone didn't read the article......SpaceRanger - Tuesday, October 4, 2005 - link
Are USB drives able to be made Bootable?? I know that systems can recognize USB Floppy Drives, and boot from those, but I was wondering if you could take a USB Flash Drive and make it a bootable device.Phantronius - Tuesday, October 4, 2005 - link
depending on the flash drive and the motherboard BIOS, yes you can do it.Phantronius - Tuesday, October 4, 2005 - link
1st!!!I love my OEM made from some pretty lady in china USB 2.0 stick, its saved my ass so many times for my work, especially in data reterival and spyware removal.
Souka - Tuesday, October 4, 2005 - link
I've had the Memina Rocket for a couple months now....before they even announced it (thanks to NewEgg)....write spead defintly kinda bite with small files especially, but usually I put drivers and stuff there once, then read mutliple times....so its a good match for me.PQI's I got over a year ago, and completely made everyone jealous.... for once, mem were bragging theirs is smaller than someone else's. :D
I still use a SanDisk Titanium.....only a 512mb module, but still works well.
Souka - Wednesday, October 5, 2005 - link
oopsss...typomeant to say...
PQI's I got over a year ago for my office, and completely made everyone jealous.... for once, men were bragging theirs was smaller!! :D