Other by stefan @ 2015-12-25
The TransMemory U201 Mini USB 2.0 USB Flash Drives were not made to break any records, but are built in a miniature size in order to be fit easily on our keychain for transferring small files. While the product is able to offer good read speeds for an USB 2.0 drive, the write speeds are a bit lacking so it will take quite some time to load larger files onto it.
At first we would like to thank Toshiba Corporation for offering a sample of their 16GB TransMemory U201 Mini USB 2.0 Flash Drive for testing and reviewing.
“Toshiba is a world leader and innovator in pioneering high technology, a diversified manufacturer and marketer of advanced electronic and electrical products spanning information & communications systems; digital consumer products; electronic devices and components; power systems, including nuclear energy; industrial and social infrastructure systems; and home appliances. Toshiba was founded in 1875, and today operates a global network of more than 740 companies, with 204,000 employees worldwide and annual sales surpassing 6.3 trillion yen (US$68 billion).”
Storage capacities: 8GB, 16GB and 32GB
High-capacity storage to store and share more photos and videos
USB 2.0 technology for fast data transfers
Simple Plug & Play operation. Works with any devices that has a host USB
USB bus powered. No external power is required.
Super-compact size for lightweight data transport
Cap-less design means fewer parts to keep track of—and more all-in-one simplicity
Three stylish colors for easy organization and identification
PC and Mac compatibility means you can store, access and transfer files without reformatting
Backed by a 2-year limited warranty, this drive is built to Toshiba's high-quality standards.
Capacities: 8GB, 16GB, 32GB
Interface: USB 2.0
Read Speed2: up to 10 MB/s
Write Speed2: up to 3 MB/s
Color: Yellow (8GB), Blue (16GB), Gray (32GB)
The latest USB 2.0 Flash Drive series from Toshiba also includes the U201 model which comes in three different capacities (8GB, 16GB and 32GB), each with a different color code. Our sample is the blue 16GB model and it features a very simple packaging model, allowing us to have a peek at the product without the need of unsealing it:
On the back side of the cardboard layer we will learn that the product comes with a 5-year warranty and details regarding the total storage space are written in multiple languages:
After removing the product from the packaging we will be able to see that it has quite a small footprint and it is entirely made of plastic; on one of its sides we will get to see the total storage capacity along with the manufacturer logo; since it is this little, Toshiba has also provided a small hole for installing it to our keychain:
The supported standards and the product serial number are listed on the opposite side:
Here is a closer look at the frontal USB 2.0 port:
The testbench was composed from the following hardware:
CPU: Intel I5 4690K Retail @ stock
Motherboard: BIOSTAR GAMING Z97X
RAM: GeIL Black Dragon 4x4GB DDR2133 (@1600)
Video: Sparkle GTX 470 with stock and OMNI A.L.C.
Power Supply: Nexus RX-8500 850W modular
HDD: OCZ Vertex 4 240GB SSD
Case: Thermaltake Armor+ LCS, stock cooling
OS: Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 x64
The Toshiba 16GB TransMemory U201 Mini USB 2.0 Flash Drive has arrived formatted FAT32:
To determine the flash drive read speeds, the HD Tune v5 utility was used:
To measure the real life performance, we have used the Total Commander application to copy to the flash drive and from the flash drive the same file and recorded the transfer speeds, after they have stabilized.
File Copy
File Read
We have also performed some extra tests with this drive and the results can be checked out right here:
The TransMemory U201 Mini USB 2.0 USB Flash Drives were not made to break any records, but are built in a miniature size in order to be fit easily on our keychain for transferring small files. While the product is able to offer good read speeds for an USB 2.0 drive, the write speeds are a bit lacking so it will take quite some time to load larger files onto it.
The price of the product is fair considering the offered capacities and speeds and besides that we will also get a 5-year warranty. To be more precise, the 8GB model can be found for about 3 Euros, the 16GB version is available for about 7 Euros, while the larger 32GB version can be snatched for about 13 Euros.
We would like to thank again to Toshiba Corporation for making this review possible!