Frequently Asked Questions

What is a USB flash drive?

Imagine if you could pop out your computer’s hard drive and put it in your pocket, so you could bring it to any computer anywhere else in the world and access all your pertinent files. Well imagine no longer, because that technology is here, in the form of USB flash drives.

Compact, lightweight, and portable, the USB flash drive is the easiest way to transfer large amounts of information – be it spreadsheets, databases, software programs, audio/video, photos, email, and more – from one computer to another. About the size of a pack of gum, and about as light too, a USB flash drive is a miniaturized computer hard drive that fits right in your pocket, and can be hung from a lanyard, a wrist band, or a keychain. And since it’s rewritable, the USB flash drive can be used endlessly to transfer an ever-changing flow of data.

In its barest components, a USB flash drive is simply a non-volatile memory chip (meaning that it retains its data, even when cut off from a power source), a controller, and a USB connector. When you look at it that way, it’s no wonder it’s so small. But its size betrays its power – for the USB flash drive is the smartest pocket pal of modern invention. It’s also one of the most durable, as it contains no movable parts, and is therefore, much less prone to damage from dropping or rough-handling.  A USB drive is also bootable – meaning that it can be used to diagnose a damaged system and perform system recovery.

A favorite aspect of the flash drive for many is its aid in personal security. By transferring all your work to a USB drive when you’re done using a shared computer (be it at home, the workplace, the library, an internet café, etc.), you leave none of your personal information behind on computers that other people onsite and off (hackers, anyone?) could potentially access. You could store all your login info and passwords, your cookies, bookmarks, and internet history on a USB drive and forever thwart the efforts of spyware and malware purveyors. Talk about multi-fold benefits!

Get this item to your target market as a promotional gift and spread all the sundry benefits of this awesome technology on them; they will be endlessly grateful.

Currently available with capacities of 64 MB to 8 GB (comparable to a digital camera, camera phone, iPod mini or other small MP3 player, and even some smaller PC or Mac hard drives), the technology has already advanced to the point where you can easily transport nearly any files you need – even entire directories or operating systems – for pennies on the gigabyte.

One of USB technology’s greatest features is that you can “hot-swap” - or exchange data between your flash drive and your computer immediately upon plug-in - with no need to boot up the drive or restart your system.

Another user-friendly benefit of the USB drive which makes it so attractive is that it requires no cables or independent power supply – that means no plugs, no power cords, and no batteries. Instead, it fits directly into your computer’s USB jack and draws from your computer what power it needs.

Requiring absolutely no set-up or configuration (how often do you get to hear that?), using a USB drive is as easy as easy can be. Simply plug it into your USB port and drag whatever files you choose from your PC or Mac to the USB flash drive folder that appears on your desktop or in your “My Computer” window (or vice versa) – and that’s that! Is it any wonder that this is the new technology for which everyone is clamoring?  You would be hard-pressed to find a computer user who can’t make use of a USB flash drive.

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