Write - 715MB AVI file

Read - 715MB AVI file

The results aren't too shocking here as the Seagate has never been as fast as competing flash drives, but it does have the benefit of offering more storage for less money.

Physical Torture Testing and Final Words

Realistically, I don't think anyone would accidentally microwave a flash drive, or drop it into a fireplace, but common household accidents are a fact of life. We already know the Flash Voyager can survive a desktop drop, a swim in the kitchen sink and a clothing wash and dry cycle (we retested to be sure and all was well), Copying some drivers to the drive, I decided to recreate a few mishaps I've experienced in the past two years that we feel are realistic reproductions of what a person could potentially do to kill a drive.

One blunder that occurred with me was running over my cell phone with my car. Nevermind the ridiculous circumstances around that, but needless to say the phone was toast.

We replicated this with the Flash Voyager, "dropping it" in the snow and driving over it (reverse). Now, one thing to note, I drive a Honda Civic. Those of you with Hummer's or Ford Expeditions, well, your mileage may vary. At first glance, the Flash Voyager looked ok.

I didn't really think about it until I was actually driving over it, but the cap took the initial brunt of the weight. The USB connection was therefore a little banged up, so the questions are, "Will it work, and is the data intact?"

I did use a flathead screw driver and straighten the connection out before proceeding. We then plugged in the drive and behold, Windows detected it and all the data was present on the drive. The only way I could see Corsair doing to prevent, or at least reduce the chances of this (other than sending samples to reviewers to run over) is by using a more solid and less pliable material for the cap.

Another minor incident I had this year was dropping my keys into a puddle while shoveling. I didn't realize it until the next day, when I went to lock my door, but let's just say a hammer and chisel were needed to get my keys out. Now, keys won't get damaged by freezing, but how will the Flash Voyager fare?

Well, it happens that it's Winter now, and we've been suffering from both warm (meaning 5°C to -10°C) and cold (-20°C or lower) weather. I took the opportunity to toss Flash Voyager under a drain pipe and leave it there for the cold snap we suffered last week. After a few days, I chipped it out, defrosted it in the sink overnight and plugged it back in. Again, the drive was detected and all the data was there.

As we can see, the Flash Voyager can handle the rough stuff. Now, chances are we probably shortened the lifespan of the drive, so it's still important to exercise some common sense when handling any memory device as the abuse we subjected the drive to will not be covered by warranty (which is ten years).

Of course, a tough flash drive isn't worth it's grain in salt if it doesn't perform. Compared with the other USB 2.0 devices in this roundup, the Corsair Flash Voyager proved to be at least as fast as other high capacity Flash Voyagers and significantly quicker than non-Dual Channel devices.

The $235 USD price tag is high, but it falls in line with similar drives capacity-wise. The edge over the competition at this time is the durability under most normal and some unusual situations.

Pros: Fast, and durable as hell. Good warranty and support (forums, email and toll-free).

Cons: Attracts dust easily.

Bottom Line: Be it slipping on to a shampoo bottle while taking a bath (I didn't see it, honest!), or dropping something while stepping out of the car, let's face it, accidents happen. If you're accident prone, the Flash Voyager is for you. In the case of the Corsair Flash Voyager 4GB, it has plenty of capacity and speed for both the clumsy and cautious folks.

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