Recommendations For a New USB Flash Drive?

I currently am seeking a new USB flash drive, to replace an existing drive of mine, which uses the USB 2.0 interface and has a storage capacity of 16 gigabytes. Although my current drive still has 80% free space, I shall seek a drive with a larger capacity, and also one that uses the newer USB 3.0 interface for greater transfer speeds. Capacity is actually a secondary concern to transfer speed, but I have noticed that the larger-capacity devices often have better transfer rates, so I shall seek such a device.

I currently cannot afford the price of a 128-gigabyte or a 256-gigabyte unit, but a 32 gigabyte of 64 gigabyte unit shall be most excellent for me, and I shall list the units that appeal to me, here: unit #1, unit #2, unit #3, unit #4, unit #5, unit #6, unit #7, unit #8. Are any of those units excellent devices, or would any users here recommend a completely different device?

Not going to lie I am partial to patriot USBs and love my 64GB Patriot Supersonic Magnum. Of all the drives you listed I would probably only avoid the ADATA flash drives.

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Originally Posted by Stonerboy779

Not going to lie I am partial to patriot USBs and love my 64GB Patriot Supersonic Magnum. Of all the drives you listed I would probably only avoid the ADATA flash drives.

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Are you saying that you have had negative experiences with ADATA-brand flash drives?

I have to agree with the Patriot brand, they are all I use for the custom drives I build any more.

This is currently my drive of choice.

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Originally Posted by DemonDragonJ

Are you saying that you have had negative experiences with ADATA-brand flash drives?

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No I haven't but in terms of quality I don't put them far above generic brands. Mushkin, Patriot, Sandisk, Kingston a several others I trust for quality a speed and when I am buying a 3.0 drive I am buying for speed and quality of course :)

So, based upon the responses from StonerBoy and BlueOnBlack, I have narrowed my selection to only three drives, and I shall now provide a detailed analysis of each device, below.

1: Kingston HyperX DataTraveler 64 GB ($89.99 at the time of this post); I have heard that Kingston is an excellent name for flash drives, so I definitely am considering this drive. Its price is greater than $1 per gigabyte, but it also has incredibly fast transfer rates, so I believe that it may be worth that price (or I can wait to see if that price decreases in the near future).

2: Patriot Supersonic Magnum 64 GB ($79.99); Patriot is another highly-respected name in flash memory, and this drive also features exceptional data transfer rates, as well. It also is a full ten dollars less expensive than the Kingston drive, which may possibly influence my decision when I am ready to purchase a drive.

3: Mushkin Enhanced Ventura Plus 64 GB ($54.99); this drive is slower in terms of transfer speed than are the other two drives, but it is also less expensive then are they, being less than $1 per gigabyte, which is often considered to be the threshold/crucial point of the price-to-capacity ratio for most consumers when considering data storage devices.

What does everyone say about my revised selections? Are any of these drives worthwhile choices for a user who desires both speed and capacity?

One thing you need to know is that the patriot supersonic magnum is exceptionally large and you likely won't fit it side by side with another USB.

Also you can get the drive for $69.79 with free shipping from Platinum Micro on Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listi...&condition=new

As such it is my rec unless you really want under the dollar per GB

If durability is an issue you should also know the Patriot comes in an extruded aluminum housing, very strong stuff.

I know, I had to cut it off of one. :)

I'm a bad boy, I buy my USB flash drives and take 'em apart right away. If I don't like the memory controller part or the performance of the memory itself then I exchange for another type.

I've noticed that brand/model doesn't really mean a lot - they just use pretty much whatever parts they've got laying around, even when the packaging is completely identical.

Is anyone interested in doing a bulk order, low FOB price (like maybe 5 or 10 bucks per unit) and completely custom specs straight from Shenzhen haha. I've done it before, was thinking of doing it again ... but I'd want to get people involved, rather than sit on, say, 100 USB flash drives I'll never use.

I've seen some nice controller chips capable of sustaining about 70-80MB/s transfer speeds, capable of addressing up to about 32/64GB (or 64/128GB with dual-banks), and fully loaded with all the latest in cool USB wear-levelling and bootloading and whatnot. If enough people are interested then I'll put together a real price-per-unit on full USB drives (chassis/case/connector, PCB, LED, flash controller, flash RAM) ... whatever the specifics might be, I'm confident they'll price cheaper per piece than they would in a branded Wal-Mart blister package.

StonerBoy, I originally was planning to dismiss the fact that the Patriot drive is very large in physical size as a negligible trait, but I do occasionally have multiple devices attached to my computer simultaneously, so it would be wise to not have such a large device.

Additionally, I currently own a Kingston drive (only 8 gigabytes with a USB 2.0 interface), and it has functioned flawlessly, thus far, so I would certainly purchase another drive from the same manufacturer. And finally, the fact that the cap of the Kingston drive is certainly appealing, as the caps of USB drives are often in danger of being lost.

Does anyone here know if any of these drives have LED's to display their activity? Although such a feature is not an absolute necessity, it certainly is very appealing to me, as it allows me to know when the drive is active.

Well there is this USB
http://www.amazon.com/SanDisk-Extrem.../dp/B008AF383S

Blue LED and a more compact size that should allow it to sit side by side with another drive.

Edit: Oh and it has some of the best write speeds going for a USB 3.0 drive especially one that is very competitively priced for performance.

I'll just throw this one in the ring. I have one and love it. 32Gb and it's always on me since I always have my keys.

http://www.amazon.com/LaCie-PetiteKe...ords=petitekey

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Originally Posted by Stonerboy779

Well there is this USB
http://www.amazon.com/SanDisk-Extrem.../dp/B008AF383S

Blue LED and a more compact size that should allow it to sit side by side with another drive.

Edit: Oh and it has some of the best write speeds going for a USB 3.0 drive especially one that is very competitively priced for performance.

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That is an impressive drive, but it still is not as impressive as the Kingston or Patriot drives, in terms of transfer speeds, so it does not appeal to me, but I do thank you for your suggestion, however.

Have you seen an actual review of its transfer speeds?

Marginally less read speed but faster writes.

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Originally Posted by Stonerboy779

Have you seen an actual review of its transfer speeds?

Marginally less read speed but faster writes.

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Are you saying that that is a significant factor in deciding which drive to purchase?

Well you pointed out that "in terms of transfer speed" it wasn't as impressive. I am just saying that there isn't anything wrong with the speed and that the writes are very good.

It appeared that to you it was a signifigant factor along with the size and activity light *shrug*

To revive this thread, what about the Kingston Ultimate drives? They may not be quite as fast as are the Kingston HyperX drives, but they are still extremely fast, are far less expensive per gigabyte, and have other features that appeal to me, such as a durable aluminum casing, an LED to indicate activity, and a sliding mechanism, rather than a cap, which can be lost. Overall, they seem to be the ideal for me at this point in time. What feedback can anyone else here offer me in regards those drives?

So, I finally purchased a new USB flash drive, and I chose the Kingston Datatravel Ultimate 32GB model, but I purchased it from Amazon.com, as it was a full $10 less expensive there than it was at Newegg.com, meaning that it was slightly less than $1.00 per gigabyte, which is an excellent bargain, in my mind. When I receive it, I shall post my thoughts about it.