On our desk - 10 - bit-tech.net Forums

Tim S · 19th Oct 2007, 15:58

http://www.bit-tech.net/bits/2007/10...ur_desk_-_10/1

We take a look at the various bits and pieces which have been gathering on our desks these last few weeks. High-end mouse mats and some indestructible USB sticks - will they measure up or fall by the wayside? Find out within!

will. · 19th Oct 2007, 16:00

Gotta love how they are fancying up these memory sticks now that people know they are only really worth a tenner at most on ebay.

Dr. Strangelove · 19th Oct 2007, 16:46

you call that work?? man I sometimes don't understand why I work where I do....

Paradigm Shifter · 19th Oct 2007, 16:56

I can't remember where (although I have a sneaking suspicion that it was Hexus) that tested one of those Corsair Survivors by getting an APC to run over it...

Even so, it's a strong little bugger.

capnPedro · 19th Oct 2007, 17:10

Great to see this feature returning!

kenco_uk · 19th Oct 2007, 17:11

The Voyager GT is faster than flying hot poo.

Smilodon · 19th Oct 2007, 17:23

I just got my own Survivor in the mail today!

(all though mine is only 4GB and not the GT version. (but at a third of the price...))

It looks really nice. Works well as a keyring as well. (I just hated that plastic Kingston datatraveller that made my key collection make more noise than Santa's reindeer!)

Jodiuh · 19th Oct 2007, 17:51

It's slower than crap, the 4GB version. I loathe mine.

sk8ter646 · 19th Oct 2007, 17:57

i have one of the corsair voyager GTs a 4gb one and its fallen apart the actual memory stick has come out of the rubber cover

Smilodon · 19th Oct 2007, 17:58

The day word documents get so big that i can't wait for them to transfer i might consider a GT.

Jodiuh · 19th Oct 2007, 18:18

The problem's Portable Firefox. Whereas a viable option to browse from a Lexar Lighting, it just doesn't happen on the Survivor 4GB. It's a good fit for someone trying to protect a word file from a horde of angry Fords tho.

And it might just end up being the only key I've never killed.

Smilodon · 19th Oct 2007, 18:54

Yeah. We all know how nasty those fords can get!

I haven't tried running any apps from it yet. I don't feel the need for it yet. I have computers (where i have admin rights) placed on all the places I'll need a computer. It's easier to transport files than a whole computer

I just thought of something... The memory stick part of the survivor should be pretty easy to dismantle (with some brute force). After that it's just a matter of finding a cheap, but fast memory stick, make a new inner casing and glue it in place on the inside.

Bindibadgi · 19th Oct 2007, 19:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jodiuh

It's slower than crap, the 4GB version. I loathe mine.

Remember it depends what port you plug it into and what chipset you're using and USB is inherantly limited to about 33MB/s - so if something claims to be above that, it's effectively useless.

USB should be able to do 60MB/s (being 480MBit) but I've never ever seen it. Even Firewire "400" performance is above it.

Firehed · 19th Oct 2007, 19:36

Well that's something wrong with the transfer protocol rather than something specific to the devices or physical interface, to my understanding. IIRC, it's something to do with data integrity testing.

Anyways, I wonder what on earth Joe was thinking when he wrote that they should put a drainage hole in the caps. If you put a hole in there, it's about 74,542 times easier for water to get stuck there in the first place.

Da Dego · 19th Oct 2007, 21:34

The fun part is I actually have the 8GB flash voyager GT on my keychain. Well recommended for those who genuinely hate to sit around waiting for files to move from place to place. The ability to take an entire DVD on the go is handy.

docodine · 19th Oct 2007, 23:08

I have an OCZ Rally II 1gb, and a SanDisk Cruzer Micro 2gb. I love the OCZ, it's very small, and made of metal, and it was $12, but a few months later I needed more memory, and saw the SanDisk for $16 and bought it too. It's made of plastic, and I doubt that the mechanism hiding the USB connector will last very long. The OCZ still looks brand new, and the text on the Cruzer is already fading off.

Krikkit · 19th Oct 2007, 23:32

I was in a similar position to docodine - I had a 1GB OCZ Rally, great little pendrive, very flash... Then I washed it. Although it lived, I realised that it might be time for something a) bigger and b) water resistant.

Went for a 4GB Voyager GT and loved every minute of it. Great piece of kit for uni clusters too - got a stash of portable apps on there, along with several video files for watching while I'm there!

cjmUK · 20th Oct 2007, 01:23

I rate the mouse pad... and if I was an SAS Trooper hacking a rogue Middle Eastern state's missile launch computer's, I'd get the MOD to buy me a Survivor... but I'd never pay for it myself... the other two are just mutton dressed up as lamb.

It strikes of desperation:

'****... Flash memory prices are dopping through the floor'
'Well, we'll add some bling and give it a cool, plus GT suffix, and we can keep charging you Â£50+'

No you can't. I've got a Kingston drive that cost me less than Â£20 and it survives normal knocks that you can expect to give it. I dont generally put it through each wash cycle, but I have ran over it in the car. What is more, I'm not ashamed to let my work colleagues see it.

The_Beast · 20th Oct 2007, 02:20

I'll take anyone of those off your hands

[cibyr] · 20th Oct 2007, 03:19

In the "tried to crush" part of the USB tests, did you back a car over it?

19th Oct 2007, 15:58	#1
Tim S Pewlius Caesar bit-tech Staff Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Ascot, Berks Posts: 18,021	On our desk - 10 http://www.bit-tech.net/bits/2007/10...ur_desk_-_10/1 We take a look at the various bits and pieces which have been gathering on our desks these last few weeks. High-end mouse mats and some indestructible USB sticks - will they measure up or fall by the wayside? Find out within! __________________ Tim on Twitter \| Tim's Blog \| Tim's Flickr The bit-tech Blog \| bit-tech on Twitter \| Join the bit-tech & Custom PC folding team (#35947)

19th Oct 2007, 16:00	#2
will. A motorbike of jealousy! Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Yorkshire! Posts: 4,403	Gotta love how they are fancying up these memory sticks now that people know they are only really worth a tenner at most on ebay. __________________ work \| play \| blog PS3 & 360: willblack Flickr my twitter. Last.FM Check out my Last.FM & iToggle & Nav-o-Matic jQuery plugins.

19th Oct 2007, 16:46	#3
Dr. Strangelove Supermodder Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Dundee Posts: 306	you call that work?? man I sometimes don't understand why I work where I do.... __________________ If it isn’t broken, fix it. If it is broken, mod it till it looks like it's meant to be broken.

19th Oct 2007, 16:56	#4
Paradigm Shifter Lethargic Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 1,210	I can't remember where (although I have a sneaking suspicion that it was Hexus) that tested one of those Corsair Survivors by getting an APC to run over it... Even so, it's a strong little bugger. __________________ Core i7 920 D0 @ 3.8GHz \| 6GB Corsair 1600MHz \| Gigabyte EX58-UD5 \| XFX 4870X2 2GB \| 4TB \| WUXGA Last edited by Paradigm Shifter; 19th Oct 2007 at 16:57. Reason: Correct grammar is a good thing...

19th Oct 2007, 17:10	#5
capnPedro Deaf forever to the battle's din Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: North-East England Posts: 2,975	Great to see this feature returning! __________________ ASUS M4A785TD-M Evo \| AMD Phenom II x4 955 BE \| D-Tek FuZion 4GB Corsair XMMS3-10666 \| Corsair TX650 Point Of View 8800GTX \| EK FC-8800

19th Oct 2007, 17:11	#6
kenco_uk glourious bacon? Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Bourne, Lincolnshire, UK Posts: 6,292	The Voyager GT is faster than flying hot poo. __________________ MSI X58M - i7 920 4Ghz - 6GB Corsair - GTX260 648/2520 ::: Vote for bit-tech T - theevilelephant - "it sounded like bouncing around on a pogo stick, screaming in chinese while occasionally throwing a cat at a door."

19th Oct 2007, 17:23	#7
Smilodon The Antagonist Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Norway Posts: 4,887	I just got my own Survivor in the mail today! (all though mine is only 4GB and not the GT version. (but at a third of the price...)) It looks really nice. Works well as a keyring as well. (I just hated that plastic Kingston datatraveller that made my key collection make more noise than Santa's reindeer!) __________________ "You have to wonder about a business plan based on the notion that people want to interact with a soda can." -Jeff Salkowski abot the :CueCat My Flickr

19th Oct 2007, 17:51	#8
Jodiuh Multimodder Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Tempe, AZ Posts: 77	It's slower than crap, the 4GB version. I loathe mine.

19th Oct 2007, 17:57	#9
sk8ter646 Supermodder Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Isle of wight England Posts: 554	i have one of the corsair voyager GTs a 4gb one and its fallen apart the actual memory stick has come out of the rubber cover __________________ AMD 3800x2 @ 3ghz 1.44v - DFI Lanparty UT Nf4 SLI DR - 2gb infineon RAM at 250mhz cas 2 2.7v - POV 8800gts 320mb - 2 x 300gb Maxtor sata dirves - Custom Watercooling

19th Oct 2007, 17:58	#10
Smilodon The Antagonist Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Norway Posts: 4,887	The day word documents get so big that i can't wait for them to transfer i might consider a GT. __________________ "You have to wonder about a business plan based on the notion that people want to interact with a soda can." -Jeff Salkowski abot the :CueCat My Flickr

19th Oct 2007, 18:18	#11
Jodiuh Multimodder Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Tempe, AZ Posts: 77	The problem's Portable Firefox. Whereas a viable option to browse from a Lexar Lighting, it just doesn't happen on the Survivor 4GB. It's a good fit for someone trying to protect a word file from a horde of angry Fords tho. And it might just end up being the only key I've never killed.

19th Oct 2007, 18:54	#12
Smilodon The Antagonist Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Norway Posts: 4,887	Yeah. We all know how nasty those fords can get! I haven't tried running any apps from it yet. I don't feel the need for it yet. I have computers (where i have admin rights) placed on all the places I'll need a computer. It's easier to transport files than a whole computer I just thought of something... The memory stick part of the survivor should be pretty easy to dismantle (with some brute force). After that it's just a matter of finding a cheap, but fast memory stick, make a new inner casing and glue it in place on the inside. __________________ "You have to wonder about a business plan based on the notion that people want to interact with a soda can." -Jeff Salkowski abot the :CueCat My Flickr

19th Oct 2007, 19:36	#14
Firehed Why not? I own a domain to match. Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: An hour north of Boston Posts: 12,576	Well that's something wrong with the transfer protocol rather than something specific to the devices or physical interface, to my understanding. IIRC, it's something to do with data integrity testing. Anyways, I wonder what on earth Joe was thinking when he wrote that they should put a drainage hole in the caps. If you put a hole in there, it's about 74,542 times easier for water to get stuck there in the first place. __________________ hire me @ eric-stern.com - web developer and php ninja pics @ my smugmug :: Twitter @firehed :: blog @ firehed.net 40D\|580EXII\|285HV\|AB800\|70-200f/4LIS\|17-50f/2.8\|150f/2.8Macro\|50f/1.8 MacPro @ 8x2.8GHz, 10GB FBDDR2, 3TB HD :: MBP @ 2x2.2GHz, 4GB DDR2, 320GB HD

19th Oct 2007, 21:34	#15
Da Dego Brett Thomas Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Cleveland, OH USA Posts: 3,906	The fun part is I actually have the 8GB flash voyager GT on my keychain. Well recommended for those who genuinely hate to sit around waiting for files to move from place to place. The ability to take an entire DVD on the go is handy. __________________ "Frankly that seems overkill. iluvtrees2 arguing with spec is the intellectual equivalent of a bunny rabbit taking on a pissed-off lion." - Nexxo

19th Oct 2007, 23:08	#16
docodine Ultramodder Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Illinois Posts: 1,493	I have an OCZ Rally II 1gb, and a SanDisk Cruzer Micro 2gb. I love the OCZ, it's very small, and made of metal, and it was $12, but a few months later I needed more memory, and saw the SanDisk for $16 and bought it too. It's made of plastic, and I doubt that the mechanism hiding the USB connector will last very long. The OCZ still looks brand new, and the text on the Cruzer is already fading off. __________________ Armagetron Advanced! ~~[ Cooler Master Elite 310 \| Intel E5200 \| Zotac 9600GT \| broken MSI G31 mobo \| Corsair 2x2GB DDR2-667 ]~~

19th Oct 2007, 23:32	#17
Krikkit Don't panic! Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Lancs, UK Posts: 15,141	I was in a similar position to docodine - I had a 1GB OCZ Rally, great little pendrive, very flash... Then I washed it. Although it lived, I realised that it might be time for something a) bigger and b) water resistant. Went for a 4GB Voyager GT and loved every minute of it. Great piece of kit for uni clusters too - got a stash of portable apps on there, along with several video files for watching while I'm there! __________________ \|E8400 @ 4.4GHz\|WC: 2*120.1 GT's, MCP350, Storm G5\|4GB Dominators\|DFI LT X48-T2R\|8800GT\|74GB Raptor\|Chieftec BA01\|OCZ ModXStream 600W\|Dell 2208WFP\| The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, The LOL!!1!!1!, The Zlad!, The Kempness, The Braaaaaains...

20th Oct 2007, 01:23	#18
cjmUK Old git. Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: UK Posts: 1,936	I rate the mouse pad... and if I was an SAS Trooper hacking a rogue Middle Eastern state's missile launch computer's, I'd get the MOD to buy me a Survivor... but I'd never pay for it myself... the other two are just mutton dressed up as lamb. It strikes of desperation: '****... Flash memory prices are dopping through the floor' 'Well, we'll add some bling and give it a cool, plus GT suffix, and we can keep charging you Â£50+' No you can't. I've got a Kingston drive that cost me less than Â£20 and it survives normal knocks that you can expect to give it. I dont generally put it through each wash cycle, but I have ran over it in the car. What is more, I'm not ashamed to let my work colleagues see it. __________________ P180B, Q6600 [with Thermalright HR-01+/Noctua NF-P12], 8GB OCZ Reaper PC2-8500, EVGA GTX 260 SSC, 3.75TB worth of Samsung F1s, running on Windows 7 RC

20th Oct 2007, 02:20	#19
The_Beast I am The Stig Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Wisconsin Posts: 3,212	I'll take anyone of those off your hands __________________ Rendering Machine - Gigabyte DS3L P35 - C2Q Q6600 - Antec New Solution Series NSK4480B - Corsair XMS2 2Gb - Sapphire 2600 XT 256mb - Seagate 'Cuda 320 GB - Antec Earthwatt 430 watt - Windows XP Pro -

20th Oct 2007, 03:19	#20
[cibyr] Sometimes posts here Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: A sunburnt country Posts: 749	In the "tried to crush" part of the USB tests, did you back a car over it? __________________ I guess aTrack being no longer supported by bit-tech means it really is dead...