So we now have an official Xbox360 USB drive.. from what I can see though there’s not too much special about it besides the fact that it’s pre-formatted..

SanDisk Corporation (NASDAQ: SNDK), the global leader in flash memory cards, today announced that it is shipping the Xbox 360® USB Flash Drive by SanDisk for the Microsoft Xbox 360 gaming and entertainment console. The new drive makes it easier than ever for gamers to take their gamertags, saved game progress, map packs, Arcade game downloads and bonus content with them for fast and convenient access on another Xbox 360 console†.

“SanDisk has a proven track record of creating high-quality storage solutions”

The Xbox 360 USB Flash Drive by SanDisk delivers the best experience on the Xbox 360 console. Pre-configured for seamless plug and play action, the drive eliminates the need to format storage or download an initial software update for an Xbox 360 console. For gamers looking to get in on the fun or for those with existing accounts who want to extend their play, a one-month Xbox LIVE Gold membership is included with purchase of the drive††.

“Xbox LIVE contains a world of content for gamers to explore and download, including full-length games, movies and music,” said Shuki Nir, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Retail, SanDisk. “The Xbox 360 USB Flash Drive by SanDisk is specifically engineered to deliver a great user experience and maximum compatibility with the console, offering gamers greater freedom and flexibility in how they store, manage and enjoy their favorite files.”

“SanDisk has a proven track record of creating high-quality storage solutions,” said Ilan Spillinger, Vice President, Xbox Hardware and Technology, Microsoft. “The Xbox 360 USB Flash Drive by SanDisk provides a great solution for gamers who need portable storage for their Xbox 360 content. It’s plug and play simple.”

Pricing and Availability

The Xbox 360 USB Flash Drive by SanDisk is available now on SanDisk.com and at major retailers. The drive is available in 8 gigabyte (GB)¹ and 16GB capacities, carrying suggested retail prices of $34.99 and $69.99, respectively.

About SanDisk

SanDisk Corporation is the global leader in flash memory cards, from research, manufacturing and product design to consumer branding and retail distribution. SanDisk’s product portfolio includes flash memory cards for mobile phones, digital cameras and camcorders; digital audio/video players; USB flash drives for consumers and the enterprise; embedded memory for mobile devices; and solid state drives for computers. SanDisk is a Silicon Valley-based S&P 500 company, with more than half its sales outside the United States.

1 ¹ gigabyte (GB) = 1 billion bytes.

† Includes Xbox 360 system software, see www.xbox.com for more details.

†† Terms and Conditions apply, see www.xbox.com/live for more details.

SanDisk’s product and executive images can be downloaded from: http://www.sandisk.com/corporate/media.asp

SanDisk’s web site/home page address: http://www.sandisk.com

Today for review I’ve got a small product, but it’s a very useful one if your cell phone uses a sim card. A sim card usually stores all of your numbers and other information, but to access and edit the information you need to do it from your phone usually. This isn’t always the best way to make changes or edits. Making these changes and edits can be time consuming, especially if your phone doesn’t have a full keyboard.

The product I’ve got today is called the i-Tech SIMDrive and it looks like a small USB flash but it has a slot on it for your sim card to be inserted into. On the drive itself is software to allows you to access, edit, backup and even export your contacts from the sim card. You do all this from your computer so it makes the whole process much easier. It’s inexpensive, and in my opinion well worth it to be able to easily access and backup your contacts.

Specifications:

i-Tech SIMDrive

The i-Tech SIMDrive is a lightweight, easy to carry SIM card reader. User friendly, simply plug and play into your PC and access all your mobile phone SIM card data straight from the PC.

Features:
* Simple plug and play solution.
* Insert easily into your PC USB.
* Easy download and management of all SIM contacts.
* Works with 2G and 3G phones.
* View, create, edit, and backup SIM card details using the PC.
* Archive up to 1,000 contacts on your PC.

Specifications:
* Supports Windows 2000 and Windows XP.
* Supports 3V/5V SIM card.
* Supports USB 1.1.
* Capacity: 512KB (Flash).
* Dimensions: 44 x 21 x 10mm.
* Weight: 8.4 grams.

Price: $14.00

Unboxing:
The i-Tech SIMDrive comes in a small box with some information listed on it about the product.

Inside you’ll find the drive itself in a plastic try and a brief instruction manual.

You can easily mistake it for a flash memory drive, it’s very small and portable.

It’s black in color and the cap comes off to reveal the USB connection.

On the bottom you’ll find the sim card slot with a diagram showing you how to insert it:

Installation, Performance, Comparison
When you plug the i-Tech SIMDrive into your computer it will pop up just like a flash drive, accessing it you’ll find a few file there including the main program.

I first tried this with Windows Vista X64, but ran into a problem. The software just refused to run, even as Admin or with Compatibility Mode and even with both.

So I grabbed my netbook running Windows XP and used that. Really That’s where I would want my information backed up to anyway as if I’m going to be somewhere my netbook will be with me. What would be the point of backing it up to my main computer because if something happened while I’m away I won’t have access to it.

I’m on AT&T  and they use the sim card system, some carriers don’t and personally I don’t care for that. With a sim card I can easily switch between phones.

The sim card just pops into the slot on the bottom of the SIMDrive:

There is a red light on the unit to let you know it’s on.

My sim card is PIN protected so I had to enter my code to access the contents, it took about 30 seconds to access the information:

Once it was accessed the contents where displayed, and I realized that not all of my contacts are on my sim card. The reason there’s only a few contacts listed is that I use a Windows Mobile phone, specifically an AT&T Tilt and they’re all saved on the phone and not the sim card as I expected them to be. I guess I’m going to have to fix that later to make sure my contacts are on the sim card so if something happens to the phone I’ll still have them.

Obviously I blacked out names and numbers for privacy reasons.

Across the top are the options, the first is File, here you can Read, Save, Import and Export your contacts.

Under the Configuration options you can make some adjustments if needed to make sure everything is compatible with your sim card and your carrier.

The option is Phone Book, here is where you can edit, delete, add, write, copy to phone book, copy to archive and move to archive.

The software is simple and easy to use. You can easily access, edit or add contacts and then just write them to your sim card.

The backup is the most important part I would think, but I do like the export feature as well. The software will export to Excel format then you can just print out your contacts so you’ve also got a hard copy. You can also import that Excel document as well, just edit the information, import it and then write to the sim card. So really the program gives you a couple ways to edit your contacts.

I did run into the issue with Vista, and I found the same problem with Windows 7.  It does say in the specs that it’s compatible with Windows 2000 and Windows XP, but I would expect something like this to work with the current operating systems, especially since XP and Win2000 are so old at this point in time.

On the other hand, Windows XP might be old, but it’s still very much alive, especially on netbooks, so it still has come life left in it obviously.

Conclusion:
The i-Tech SIMDrive can be a very valuable asset to anyone with a sim card enabled phone. It makes, editing and adding contacts much easier, and of course it makes backing up and restoring easy as well.

The backup part of this product is probably the most important really, if you’ve ever lost all of your contacts then you know how much of a hassle it is to add them all back into your phone. I’ve done it before and it’s not fun at all.

The i-Tech SIMDrive costs about $14, not including shipping, I think that’s well worth it for the ease of access and peace of mind this little gadget gives you.

The fact that it doesn’t work with Vista or 7 might put some people off, but I don’t think it’s too big of a deal though.

Pros:
+Easy to use
+Inexpensive
+Very small and portable

Cons:
-Doesn’t work with Windows 7 or Windows Vista

Ratings
Overall: 4 out of 5
Performance: 4 out of 5
Aesthetic: 5 out of 5
Build Quality: 5 out of 5

I would like to thank MobileFun for the opportunity to review the i-Tech SIMDrive and for their support of Bona Fide Reviews.

Disclosure: This product was given to Bona Fide Reviews for review by the company for review purposes only, and is not considered by us as payment for the review, we do not, and never will, accept payment from companies to review their products.

USB Drives come in all shapes and sizes, most are just a stick with a removable cap, while you can find novelty ones as well, and then some are actually sort of useful. All USB drives though are useful in that they help you transport your stuff to and from places, but not all are of equal performance.

Today for review I’ve got the Verbatim Tuff-Clip 8GB USB drive. This USB drive resembles a carabineer style clip that you can attach to most anything. The drive comes with software to create two partitions as well, one secure and one public so you can hide any important data so it can’t be accessed without a password. I’ve put it up against a few other 8gb USB drives I’ve got on hand for comparison and the Tuff-Clip performs well actually..

Specifications:

TUFF-CLIP 8GB USB Drive

Looking for a portable USB drive that’s tough enough for backpacks or key rings?  Check out the new Verbatim TUFF-CLIP USB Drive.  This rugged flash drive clips onto backpacks, belt loops or even notebooks.  With an easy slider that protects the USB connector, the TUFF-CLIP USB drive is super durable and great for music, videos, school projects or photos.  It also offers a password security feature that ensures you’re the only one who can access your important information.  This drive is enhanced for Windows ReadyBoost for Windows 7 and Vista users. With the Verbatim TUFF-CLIP USB drive, just clip and carry your files with you!

Features & Benefits:
* Portable USB drive with rugged clip for backpacks or key rings
* Durable easy slider protects USB connector
* Password security feature for privacy protection
* Enhanced for Windows ReadyBoost
* Works with all USB connections
* Compatible with Windows 7, Vista, XP or 2000, Mac OS 9.x or higher, Linux kernel 2.6x or higher
* Available in either 4GB or 8GB

Unboxing:
The Tuff-Clip comes packaged in everyone’s favorite sealed plastic clamshell.

It’s black in color and features a spring clip on the back, the USB connector slide out of the bottom for access. It is made of plastic so it’s lightweight but I’m not too sure about using a plastic clip..

Here’s a size comparison for you with a quarter and my Jawbone2 headset for scale:

Installation, Performance, Comparison
There is a blue LED in the Tuff-Clip that blinks to indicate activity:

I’m comparing the Tuff-Clip to a few other 8GB capacity flash drives. The Super Talent Pico Gold, Corsair Flash Voyager Mini and the ATP Touchdrive Camo.

Here’s the tests using ATTO Disk Benchmark first:

As you can see they all have rather low write speeds, but the read speeds are decent.

For the testing I used DiskBench and two types and sizes of files. One is a 349MB .AVI video file, while the other is a 3GB .ISO file so we can see how they all handle large and small file transfers.

First up I’ve got two graphs for you with testing of the smaller .AVI file. The first graph is the times in seconds it takes to Copy To and Copy From the drives. Lower is better of course, and the graph is ordered by the Copy To or write speed.

As you can see the Verbatim has the fastest time for the Copy To test, but falls a bit behind in the Copy From test.

Here’s a chart showing the actual Transfer Rates in MB/s for the above test:

Next up is the same tests using the larger 3gb .ISO file:

Again the Verbatim Tuff-Clip has the best Copy To or Write speed, and the Copy From speeds are all similar between the drives. We can see they each handle the larger file differently than they do the smaller files.

And finally here’s the Transfer Rates for the above test:

Conclusion:
The Verbatim Tuff-Clip has the fastest write speed of those I tested and overall it’s not a bad choice for a thumb drive. The little clip can be useful to attach to your bag, or even your keys so you’ll always have storage available to you.

I can say though that I’ve seen much faster USB drives than this. the write speeds are fairly slow really.

The idea of it being plastic is ok I guess, but I’m not sure about the plastic clip, I don’t think I’d trust it for any type of rough usage…

Pros:
+Useful clip for keys or whatever
+Fastest write speed of those tested
+Fairly fast read speed

Cons:
-Slow write speeds
-Made of plastic

Ratings
Overall: 4 out of 5
Performance:4 out of 5
Aesthetic: 5 out of 5
Build Quality:4 out of 5

I would like to thank Verbatim for the opportunity to review the Tuff-Clip and for their support of Bona Fide Reviews.