EasyDisk 16Mb
Price: $24.00
http://www.easydisk.com

The EasyDisk itself is pretty well constructed. We actually tried throwing it down onto the floor and it showed no signs of cracks or damage. It seems to be sturdy enough to be carried around without extra care for it.

On one side of the drive there is an LED indicator which shows a green light when the drive is connected, and blinks orange and green when there is read/write activity, which is another thoughtful feature the EasyDisk supports.

The EasyDisk has some unique features like the write protection switch, and the password protection utility. The write protection switch works like the ones on floppy disks, which protects your data from accidental deletion. The password security feature is an optional software security feature that allows you to restrict your data with a password. Backup for the utility, user manuals, and drivers for older versions of windows that don't completely support plug and play are all stored in the CD that came with the package.

Installation is a snap on our testing. We tried it on Windows 2000 and Windows XP machines and it recognized the drive and installed itself after plugging it into a USB port. The driver CD was not even required in the installation process.

Data transfer rate is excellent with the EasyDisk. It supports 950KB/S read speed(3MB/S with Windows cache), and 600KB/S (2MB/S with Windows cache) write speed. That is reasonably fast enough to transfer mp3 files, documents, or maybe even reasonable sized programs around easily. We also tried playing mp3 music with our PC reading directly from the drive, and it worked without a glitch.

Verdict
It is interesting to note that we've had a slight problem with the drive when we connected multiple devices to our USB hub, and it seems to have a little problem running aside our Logitech MX700 cordless mouse. Nevertheless, the slight problem did not affect the nice features and convenience of the EasyDisk. Then again the USB extension cable, carrying case, and neck strap are icing on a cake. It absolutely deserves our Highly Recommended award without a doubt. We would, however, recommend the 64Mb or 128Mb model which seem to have the best value for the bucks while the memory capacity seem to be flexible enough for everyday use.

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