Thank you to Kingston for sponsoring this review. Please click here to learn more about Kingston. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. All opinions are my own.
As a professional blogger that attends several events and conferences, there is no shortage of USB drives in my home. Most PR companies will place their information and pictures of their products on an easy to transport USB drive. It’s definitely genius for them, as it gives me easy access to their product information. Really though, we are swimming in USB drives. So I was definitely skeptical about yet another USB drive, this one promoting the ACTUAL USB drive.
First, the USB drive itself (the DataTraveler 109) is SUPER teeny tiny. I love that it’s the perfect size to keep right on your keychain and not take over the whole thing. It’s got a convenient circle that is big enough to get it onto your key ring without much trouble. The concern I have when I decide to store a USB drive with my keys is damage to the USB drive. This drive doesn’t have moving parts that break easily, and feels sturdy enough to withstand a beating. It also doesn’t stick out too far from my laptop, so it won’t get in the way as I bring my laptop to each room of the house trying to work and watch the kids at the same time!
The second part of this review is about the software that comes preloaded on the Kingston USB Drives called urDrive. There are 2 main purposes for carrying around a USB drive. First, it is used to transport files from one computer to another. The second reason is so that you can access your important files no matter where you are, or what computer you are using. Having access to these files in any location is one reason cloud computing is gaining such popularity. People are no longer tied to using one computer to accomplish their tasks.
With urDrive you have access to your own little mini computer. There are applications stored within the drive for you to access no matter what applications are already loaded on the computer you plug it into. For example, say we head over to Grandma’s house with the kids. The adults are cleaning up dinner, and the kids are starting to get bored (sometimes Grandma’s don’t have toys readily available). I could pop my Kingston DataTraveler into Grandma’s computer and have my kids sign into our FoozKids account to allow them to play games and browse the web safely (protecting both Grandma’s computer from the kids, and protecting the kids from the internet at Grandma’s house).
There is also a browser so you can sign into your Facebook account without entering your login information into a strange computer. This is perfect for if you take the kids to the library for story time, and you want to either get a little bit of work done, or you want to check your friends Facebook updates.
There are several more apps and games available on urDrive, including free online backup, it’s own picture viewer and music and video player. My only issue with trying to use the programs on urDrive was that either they took a while to load or it kept changing what it wanted from me. I’d double click and nothing would happen, but then I’d right click and it would pull up. Other than that it’s a great little program! You don’t have to be tied to having all of your files and personal information on one computer, you can carry them around wherever you go. For a busy mom, student, or business person, this is definitely a great solution.
Want to win a 5-pack of USB drives from Kingston, with urDrive installed? Simply leave a comment on this post. Only one entry allowed per person. Giveaway will be open until 11/15/2011 at 8 PM MST. Thanks!
I am a mom who can fix your blog, your computer, or your server. I have been in the IT industry supporting small businesses for over 15 years. As a diehard PC and Android user, I can usually be found sparring with Apple fanboys, or watching movies with my family.