Test Setup

MSI X48 Platinum: Intel E6750, 2 x 1024MB Crucial Ballistix PC3, MSI 8800GT, 500GB Barracuda 7200.9, Windows XP SP1.

Comparison hardware will be the 4GB Corsair Flash Voyager and a Sandisk 1GB Micro.

Testing will be broken down into several parts:

1) Read/Write a 438MB zip file. We will copy a large zip file containing various patches, and drivers from the removable media to the Barracuda (read test). We will then reverse the process and copy to the media from the Barracuda (write test).

2) Write small files. Same procedure as above (focussed on writes only), except there will be a lone 25MB file (zipped).

3) Read/Write a 715MB AVI.

All times shown in the charts will be in minutes and seconds, and lower times are better.

Write - 438MB zip file

Read - 438MB zip file

Write - 25MB File

In the large file tests, the Rally2 comes out with the wins. It ties Corsair in the 25MB test, but the file is so small, the difference between the Rally2 and the Sandisk isn't big.

Write - 715MB AVI file

Read - 715MB AVI file

Again, the Rally2 finishes in front.

Final Words

The OCZ Technology 4GB Rally2 USB Flash Drive is the fastest flash drive I've had the opportunity to work with. The drive itself has a tough, durable feel to it given the chassis is made primarily out of aluminum. Thankfully, OCZ has one of the more classic types of logos, so the corporate branding doesn't over power the aesthetics of the device.

Ergonomically, the Rally2 is well designed. It's small, so you do increase the risk of losing it if you opt not to use the included lanyard, but at least you won't have anyone pointing at your pants asking it you're happy to see them. As the Rally2 is uniform in shape, it will fit in most situations where the USB port may be surrounded by other connections into the computer, provided those connections don't physically block access to the port.

Performance was stellar, and significantly faster than the two comparison drives except for the single small file test. That was more to the fact that the file was so small, all USB 2.0 devices should be quick.

Originally, we quoted the price around the $20 in the review, but upon some research and advisement from OCZ, we've discovered the OCZ Rally2 Turbo to be closer to around . The $20 was for the first-gen Rally2, which is not as fast as this one. At this price though, it is still below some of the competitor's high speed drives. Otherwise, we don't see any pit falls to the Rally2 as it performs as advertised. Add the above average warranty and the Rally2 looks very good.

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