Kingston recently released their new DataTraveler Mini 3.0 USB flash drive – and now it’s time to review it.
Kingston’s DataTraveler Mini 3.0 features a compact form factor that makes it the ideal companion for devices in which the USB ports are close together. It fits on a key ring or in a pocket to keep it accessible. This capless drive is available in multiple colours and includes a key loop and metal casing to protect the drive from drops, bumps and knocks. It’s backwards compatible with existing USB 2.0 ports, allowing 2.0 users to migrate to 3.0 in the future without replacing their drive.
DataTraveler Mini 3.0 is backed by a five-year warranty, free technical support and legendary Kingston reliability.
Who are Kingston Technologies?
From their website:
In 1987, Kingston entered the market with a single product. Founders John Tu and David Sun addressed a severe shortage of surface-mount memory chips with a memory module that would serve to redefine industry standards for years to come.
Combining one of the most extensive and stringent testing processes in the memory industry, an exceptional free tech support centre and a consistent roll-out of innovative technologies, Kingston Technology has continually set industry standards of quality and reliability throughout its history.
Reliability is the cornerstone of the Kingston product strategy. It has played a key role in maintaining the long-term relationships developed over the years with customers. Kingston remains committed to exceeding industry standards with every new development while maintaining the signature reliability of its products.
Kingston has grown to be the world’s largest independent manufacturer of memory products. With global headquarters in Fountain Valley, California, Kingston employs more than 4,000 people worldwide. Regarded as one of the “Best Companies to Work for in America” by Fortune magazine, Kingston’s tenets of respect, loyalty, flexibility and integrity create an exemplary corporate culture. Kingston believes that investing in employees is essential and that each individual employee is a vital part of the company’s success.
Features
- Available in fashionable colours by capacity
- USB 3.0 performance, backwards compatible with USB 2.0
- Small form factor
- Stylish metal casing
- Handy key loop attaches to key rings
Specifications
What’s in the Box?
The box contains the USB flash drive.
A Closer Look
Performance Testing
Kingston claims a Read speed of 70MB/s and a Write speed of 10MB/s. Using CrystalDiskMark we got the following results:
Final Thoughts
This drive really is small – you can see that on the picture with the £2 coin. It’s so small that you could easily lose it so make sure you secure it to your keyring!
The drive comes in three different sizes and colours – 16GB (Red), 32GB (Cyan) and finally 64GB (Grey).
Speed wise it isn’t the fastest USB 3.0 drive around, but it certainly isn’t slow either, and for average use it will be fine. If you are looking for a drive that is faster if you plan on transferring a lot of data then take a look at the DataTraveller Ultimate.
Price wise, the 16GB drive retails for around £10, so that really is a bargain if you are looking for a small drive.
I had read on an amazon review that this drive cannot be made bootable. I’d love to use this drive as a bootable device for deploying operation systems for my job. Any experience with trying to boot from this device?