Pros
• Good transfer speeds
• Includes a protective case
• Easy-to-maneuver USB adapter
Cons
• Pricey
• No preloaded encryption or backup software
by Joanna Stern on September 28, 2007
If you need to carry photos, presentations, and music with you but not tons of video or sensitive information, you don't need a 100GB portable drive. You can get a 10GB or 12GB drive, small enough to fit in your pocket but still large enough to hold everything you need. The 12GB Mega TravelDrive is a decent choice for taking large amounts of data with you, but you'll be shelling out $150 for the convenience.
The sleek and small TravelDrive fits in the palm of your hand, and its brushed-aluminum gunmetal shell protects the drive from both shock and scratches. An included protective silicone case adds even more protection. The drive's blue LED light flashes during data transfer. The easy-to-swivel USB adapter is built into the drive and extends from the left side of the device, but it can potentially block nearby USB ports. Though a flexible USB 2.0 extender cable could have eliminated this problem, the TravelDrive doesn't come with one.
Unlike with larger portable drives, the TravelDrive offers no synchronization, security software, or third-party software. This means that if you lose the drive, there's nothing to protect your data, and because it doesn't offer synchronization, chances are you may not have that data on your notebook, either.
We tested the drive with both Macs and PCs, and both recognized the drive just fine. Transferring some episodes of Heroes, we were impressed with the speed. It took us 47 seconds to write a 349MB episode (or 7.4 MBps). That's not as fast as some of the larger drives we've seen, which can transfer data around 18 MBps, but it's still fast enough for most transfers. While 12GB can accommodate more than five hours of DVD-quality video, you'd make better use of the storage by loading it up with photos (about 6,000 at four megapixels), MP3s (3,600), or text documents (more than 150,000).
For $150, Memorex could have thrown in a flexible USB cable and some encryption software, but we do like the included protective case and the Mega TravelDrive's portability. Nevertheless, you can get 160GB of storage for about the same amount of money in a drive that's not much bigger. And you can buy a faster 16GB USB flash drive for the same price.
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