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Testing
I've tested the DiskOnKey with SiSoft Sandra's FileSystem benchmark under both USB 1.1 and 2.0. I've used it on 2 different systems, a Win98SE and a WinXP system with the actual benchmarking being done under WinXP. The test system is as follows:-
1.4 Athlon Thunderbird
Abit AT7 Max
256meg Kingmax PC2700
Windows XP
Comparing the performance of this drive to a floppy there is no contest. A ZIP drive which holds 100mb is also slower. The JAZZ drive stomps all over it but this is to be expected. As you can see there's barely any difference between USB 1.1 and 2.0. Looking past the numbers the units speed was very good, with MP3's taking just a few seconds to transfer; anything smaller than 5 meg was there pretty much instantly, not even giving windows a chance to display the "transfer dialog box". The DiskOnKey worked perfectly well under WinXP and Win98 SE, being able to transfer files with ease under both OS'es.
Conclusion
The DiskOnKey is an interesting little device that can transfer files with ease and speed. It's tiny and very lightweight making it an exceptionally good portable medium. For home users, a few MP3's could be transferred quickly and easily, gamers could store config files for there games before going to LAN's. Maybe you want to share your latest holiday photos? Business users could transfer that 100mb database to work on from home. Once you have finished it, just save it to the DiskOnKey and it's ready to be taken back to work. When plugged into a USB Port the DiskOnKey is recognized by the system just like any other portable media, in that you can read and write, create and delete files and folders etc.
It works very well, is extremely easy to use and it take seconds to transfer data to and from it. But there has to be a downside right? Well yes, there is. It's expensive. The unit we have here is the 128mb version which has a suggested retail price of $149.99 (though I have seen it for sale at $129.99 USA and £121.06 UK). That's quite a lot for home users to fork out for a 128mb of storage, especially with CDR's being so cheap nowadays. This device would find more use and justification of its price in the business sector, with those who regularly transfer files from home and work via mail, FTP or CD/Floppy. The majority of business users will most likely mail small things such as documents or remotely connect to transfer files VIA FTP. Larger files would be burnt to CD-RW or again slowly transferred via some form of internet use. This would be a perfect device for them in that it would in the long run save money and time. Mail can go down, as can internet connections. Buying CD's to burn your work to can be expensive in the long run. CD-RW's are not renowned for there reliability and they do have a maximum usage limit. Not to mention the time it takes to burn a disk. ZIP or JAZZ drive? Great, lot of room on those, but you would need the actual drive unit on more than one machine. The DiskOnKey has none of these drawbacks and all in a very tiny package.
At the end of the day, it does the job it was designed for extremely well and is worthy of a Viperlair recommended award on its own merits. I can't give it this award however as it is simply too expensive for what you get. If you can justify the price and are looking for some portable storage medium then this is something you should take a look at. Once again, many thanks to for supplying the review sample.
Pro's
It's tiny and extremely lightweight
Can it get any easier to use?
Keyring and belt clip for transportation.
Fast data transfers
Did I mention how small and easy to use it is?
Con's
Only one, and that's the price.
Bottom Line
The DiskOnKey is fast, easy to use, and very easy to transport. It's expensive for the storage capacity however so make sure you can justify the cost against regular use.
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