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EDIT: Literally one month after buying this, the black plastic fractured and broke badly, after VERY light use and carrying in my purse. The drive initially came loaded with some security software, but as I was not interested in it, I removed it from the drive, and have had no problems with the drive operation doing so. I originally gave this USB five stars for ease of use (as you can see above), but with quality this poor, there's no reason to spend money on this device. I wanted something small and unobtrusive, due to the many times that I had seen thumb drives damaged by brushing against the extruding drive in accident. ~ Ana Mardoll I couldn't be happier with my little thumb drive, in fact.
I would return it if I could at this point, but I no longer have the original packaging. Imation Atom 8G USB Thumb Drive / B001B1AIIQWhen my old USB thumb drive was broken beyond all repair, I really fretted over the replacement. I am really surprised that there does not yet exist a model that can lie flush against the side of the computer, but this Atom drive seemed the next best thing.The Atom is remarkably small - the shown image of it next to a small paperclip is accurate - and it communicates amiably so far with every machine I have used it with. Considering that the thumb drive I had before this lasted for 3+ years in my purse, and considering the sizable price for this drive, I am very disappointed.
So, I guess I'm going back to my Sandisk Cruzer Micro Skin. They should have made the USB connector out of metal, and not cheap plastic. About 4 weeks ago the same problem cropped up again. I bought it for both storing files and for playing mp3's using my car stereo that has a USB input on the front. That actually worked, and clearly lead me to believe that it was actually a problem with the Atom. I'm assuming it was from being in a PC where the port got really hot.
Now the top side of the USB connector has completely broken off. I had trouble with the other mini USB flash drives that are out there that don't have a full USB connector staying in the USB ports in my PCs, and especially in my car stereo where some keys are hanging off it. I finally ended up copying all the files off, reformatting it, and copying all the files back onto it. I don't have prblems with any other flash drives in the stereo. The Atom fits nice and snug in both. I've had my Imation Atom for about 5 months.
After I had the Atom for about 2 months, my car stereo started displaying read failed when I inserted the Atom, however it would read my other flash drives fine. About 2 weeks ago, I noticed that the plastic USB plug on my Atom had actually melted and deformed.
The big problem is it's not secure. The other half of the keychain attachment is still on my keys, a reminder that sometimes small can be too small. A week later, I discovered the drive had detached itself again and fallen out of my pocket, probably when I took out my keys. The plastic USB connector is a bit weird looking, but I prefer it to the super thin drives that get rid of the shielding and expose the contacts. If anyone found it, they weren't kind enough to contact me with the contact info file I left on it.
It was small to the point of drawing comments from many people, but still fast and very durable looking compared to many other tiny flash drives. It uses a tiny screw mechanism which takes a little dexterity to attach and detach. I took my keys out of my pocket one day to discover the drive was still in my pocket. I suspect the rain has carried it down a drain by now.Instead of replacing it with another tiny drive, I'll probably get the cheaper Kingston or SanDisk and spend the difference on a good USB hub. This flash drive was great while I had it.
It's also narrow enough that it won't interfere with other USB devices on my MacBook, unlike the much cheaper Kingston and SanDisk drives.I took off one star because the keychain attachment fails easily. I looked for it for a few days, but being tiny and black, it's not an easy thing to spot outdoors among the leaves and dirt.
I am an IT guy that uses a flash drive for small tasks throughout the day. This is the first product that has totally fit my needs.
If you need more than that, you should be looking for an external hard drive instead. The small size and thin design means no matter where the USB port is, you will have access.
The lanyard has a screw type connector that keeps the drive secure while still able to take off in a few seconds. 8GB is more than enough storage for my daily needs.
Pros: Lanyard keeps drive attached to keychain at all times.Small size.Slim design will fit in any USB port6 months of abuse with no issues whatsoever.Large capacity.Cons:Everyone asks me where they can get one.About me. I was looking for something small enough to fit cleanly on my keychain and durable enough to carry and use full-time.
People are shocked when I tell them how much storage this thing has.
If that's all you're doing, the speed isn't that frustrating. After 10 minutes, and asking for the error message, and having me look in Device Manager and Disk Management (it didn't appear in either), I was put on hold another 10 minutes, with updates as to what was going on every three minutes. I wanted to have my data with me without having to remember to take it with me. But I use it mainly for some small software (15MB or less), Excel and Word documents, some web site captures, and pictures. After waiting two weeks, I decided to call their tech support number. Note that this is not a toll-free call.
I'll update this review periodically, depending on how many times I need to return or not return the drive.[.].I'll have to get third part encryption software, but it looks very durable, and the picture of it actually looks like it was just dropped in water. I finally gave up on it and decided to go with a one that would fit unnoticeably on my key chain. This drive has a 5 year warranty. I will continue to use this warranty for the duration; if needed. I'm on vacation and will contact Imation when I get back. I also recommend making a periodic back of the contents, as with any flash drive. What was going on is he escalated the call, got approval to issue an RMA, and verified when a new drive would be shipped to me.I am supposed to receive my drive in 3 business days. I went to Imation's web site and submitted a ticket for support.
Over the last few years I've carried a couple of the pqi flash drives that fit in your wallet, but they would fail every 3-6 months. If you're going to be transferring 100-500MB or more each time you use it, this will have you tapping your fingers.I bought this drive in December of 2008. So, if your priorities are a tiny drive with security software, your options are limited. Or the Kingmax, which states it's washer/dryer safe [.].If it was reliable out of the box, I'd give it 4 stars for size and the security software (just that it had it). I use my drive several times a day, for work and home. So far each one has had about a three month lifespan. I also need a drive that has security software. All my computers suddenly stopped recognizing it in March 2009.
I docked for getting more banged up and dented then I expected in The software basically swaps the unsecured partition with a hidden encrypted partition; so if someone finds it, they don't know there's even any hidden data, unless they look closely at the stated capacity vs the actual. Update 7/14/09 - The replacement received in April 2009 has stopped working. Also, going with this small of a drive means you won't get a speed demon. Although tech support was good for a foreign contracted service, I can't forgive the lack of an 1-800 number.
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