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Review: Transcend |
Transcend has kindly given us a lend of its
JetFlash 620 64GB secure USB pen drive for review, featuring a throughput of up
to 32MB/s read and 18MB/s write and a Private Zone which is a password
protected hidden volume using 256-bit AES encryption.
USB pen drives have come on a long way
since the very first pen drives that held just 64MB of data. Before the pen
drive, the only way to carry a large quantity of data was with a removable
media drive, such as Zip Disk and recordable CD/DVD. USB pen drives have the
huge advantage in that they work on pretty much any PC with a USB port, are
more rugged than removable disks and some are small enough to fit on a
keychain.
In this review, we will take a look at the
performance, how it handles with various file systems such as exFAT and NTFS,
its encryption software and how well its Private Zone performs.
Transcend Company Information
Transcend is a well-known manufacturer of
memory products, including USB flash drives, flash memory cards, card readers,
computer RAM and a variety of consumer electronics goods.
The company was founded in 1988 with its
headquarters in Taipei, Taiwan and claim to be the first memory module
manufacturer in Taiwan and also the second in the world to receive ISO 9001
certification. Their products are marketed around the world, serving all the
major markets.
Further information on the Transcend
Company Profile can be found on
their website.
Retail packaging
The Transcend JetFlash pen drive came in retail
packaging, as shown in the following images:
Front / Back
What’s inside the package?
The following shows what the pen drive came
with.
The package consists of the following:
- Transcend JetFlash Ultra Speed 620 64GB
pen drive - Card with warranty & password
security usage info - Flyer showing Transcend's range of pen
drive products - Flyer showing Transcend's media player
products
The pen drive is simply plug & play, so
nothing other than the pen drive is required to get started. The security
software is preloaded on the pen drive itself.
Now, let’s take a look at the drive itself:
Front
Reverse side
Cap removed
The pen drive itself is very compact and is
slightly wider and about the same thickness as a USB ‘A’ plug, so should easily
fit in USB ports that have limited space.
Operation mode indication
Like most pen drives, this one has an LED
that serves to indicate power and activity. When powered up, it flashes blue to
indicate activity and remains solidly lit when idle.
The following image shows it lit while
plugged in my Netbook:
Product Specifications
The following are the specifications, as
provided on the Transcend website:
- Storage Capacity: 64GB (1GB = 1 billion
bytes) - Data Retention: 10 years
- Erase Cycles: >10,000 times
- Connector Durability: 10,000 times
- System Performance: Read: 32MB/sec
(max.), Write: 18MB/sec (max.) - Wear-levelling: Dynamic
- Power Supply: DC 5V±10%, Max current:
200 mA - Temperature Range: Operation: 0-70°C,
Non-Operating: -20°C-75°C - Certificates: CE, FCC, BSMI
Features:
- Compact, streamlined design
- Includes JetFlash SecureDrive data
protection software - Downloadable JetFlash Elite data
management tool - Fully compatible with hi-speed USB 2.0
- Easy plug and play installation
- USB powered. No external power or battery
needed - LED indicates the usage status
- Limited Lifetime Warranty*
* Warranty requires online registration to
activate
Additional specifications on the
packaging:
- Dimensions: 60.9 x 19.3 x 8.5 mm
- Weight: 8.5g
- Certificates: FCC, CE, BSMI, C-Tick, KCC
- System Requirements:
- Windows 7/Vista/XP/2000/ME
- Mac OS 9.0 or later, Linux Kernel 2.4.2
or later - JetFlash Elite only works in Windows
- Built-in 256bit AES encrypted password
security - Requires Windows, not Mac or Linux
compatible - Requires Administrator rights
For a pen drive, Transcend clearly makes
sure every little specification and detail about it is revealed!
Now let’s head to the next page where we
will look at our test PC and testing procedures…
