This review is for the Kingston Digital 16gb Data Traveler Locker USB thumb drive. Sometimes Amazon lumps reviews of different models/products together and it's important to know that the review being read is pertinent to the product being considered for purchase.
I purchased the Kingston drive to supplement the drive space on an Acer Cloudbook. The Cloudbook has rather limited storage space (32gb before formatting and installing the operating system) and the additional 16gb (before formatting) of the thumb drive is welcome. An additional feature of the drive is as important to me (YMMV) as the space - the hardware encryption. Files on the USB drive should be as safe, or safer, than the files stored on the internal chip in the Acer. Bitlocker is not an option on a Windows 10 Home computer; an older version of TrueCrypt might have sufficed or a newer version of VeraCrypt. However I opted for the Kingston encryption because setup seemed a bit easier and I wanted to try something new.
While no encryption is perfect the encryption on the Kingston Data Traveler adds a level of comfort and security.
Physically the drive is heavier than most thumb drives, being of metal construction. The fit and finish are good - perhaps a bit TOO good in that the drive is a tight fit when installing on a computer.
There is a drive light on one side of the Kingston that lights when the device is first plugged into the computer. Once the connection is made the internal software on the drive prompts for the password and, if the password is correct, the "real" storage is mounted as the next drive letter in line.
(In my Acer the drive shows as "D" for the physical drive and "E" for the mounted secure drive containing the data.)
The removable cover on the Data Traveler is a nice, tight fit. It is not, however, connected to the drive when removed and thus can be lost. It can be mounted on the opposite end of the drive and is a tight fit there, too - but had Kingston added a hole or bracket on the lid it could be attached to the drive via a length of nylon line, etc., which would prevent the cover from being misplaced.
There is a small hole in the drive for attaching the device to a key chain or some such.
The unit comes with a five (5) year warranty, see Kingston for details on that.
It also comes with "Cloud Storage". I cannot review that feature because I opted out; I have other methods of backup and remote access to files if need be. Once you opt out of the Cloud Storage option a small text file is created on the root of the storage device. As long as that file is in place, it seems, you will not be asked again about Cloud Storage. If you erase the .txt file then the next time the drive mounts you will be offered, again, Cloud Storage.
Overall performance of the drive when attached to a USB 3 port is quite snappy - keeping in mind that I am using a Cloudbook, which is not necessarily the fastest horse in the corral.
I rate the Kingston 16gb Data Traveler at 5 stars because it adds the storage that I require, adds a level of security to that storage, and has good performance qualities. When all of that comes at a reasonable price it hits all of the marks for me. YMMV.
HTH
Regards,
Jim
| Connectivity Technology | USB |
|---|---|
| Color | Silver |
| Flash Memory Type | Micro SD |
| RAM | 16384 MB |
| Wireless Type | 802.11a |
