Reviews

Corsair Flash Survivor GT

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We’ve used too many Jack Bauer references lately, but c’mon, how could we review this key and not say it’s the one Jackie boy would use?

The 8GB Flash Survivor GT, after all, is shock and water resistant—and if your service automatic runs out of ammo, you can even fling its hard aluminum body at someone’s head. But how does it perform?

Quite well, actually. Older keys can deliver great speeds with medium and large files but are painfully slow when transferring small ones. The Survivor GT, however, is speedy with all file sizes in both reading and writing tests. So if you need to copy that PowerPoint presentation off of Salazar’s laptop before the building explodes, this is the thumb drive for you. The Survivor GT handily beats the original Flash Voyager GT in all our read and write tests.

We also tested the Survivor by dunking it in boiling water, freezing it, flinging it against a concrete wall, burning it with a butane torch, dropping it down four flights of stairs, and attaching it to a car muffler during a lunch outing, and it, well, survived. It didn’t look pretty in the end, but the data was still intact.

Not all is perfect with the Survivor though. Our unit, like others from Corsair, didn’t include any bundled encryption software, although it is supposed to ship with TrueCrypt freeware. Other small problems: One rubber grip wasn’t glued on the unit, and the device made an annoying squeaking noise when closing—not good if two dozen ninjas are parked inside the room you’re about to enter. Still, if speed and durability are your top concerns, we can’t imagine getting a key that’s any tougher than this baby.

Click to Enlarge

We burned it, threw it, and froze it — and the Corsair Flash Survivor GT survived.

Corsair, Flash Survivor GT
www.corsair.com
plus
Survivor (occupation)

Fast reads/writes for all file sizes, well-nigh indestructible.

minus
Survivor (reality TV show)

Slight squeak when closing. No bundled encryption software.

COMMENTS
avatarlet's not forget that it retails for ($23.75 per gig) or $190!

With that amount of money you can double your capacity and opt for the PNY - Attaché 16GB Flash Drive from BestBuy and save $20.

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avatarAnd one trip through a

And one trip through a washer/dryer cycle & that PNY - Attaché Flash Drive will be toast, or at least the two that went through my washer & dryer were.

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avatarresults vary

@chaosdsm: My 256MB PNY Attaché, the first flash drive I ever bought, is still going strong, five years later, having survived approximately six washer/dryer cycles, five moves, four cities, and several rain storms. It's outlasted every other drive I've ever had. So I guess your mileage may vary.

And daveyd, with the Survivor you're not paying for the capacity, you're paying for the durability. So chaosdsm's point applies.

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avatarthe Attache's are durable

the Attache's are durable enough. Besides the durability factor doesn't warrant such over-inflated price tag. Heck remove the shell from the 16GB, dunk it in some epoxy resin, let it dry, and you can run it over with a bus.

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avatarBut can you burn it with a

But can you burn it with a torch? Or drag it from your muffler? I have to admit, I still have a very old generic 512mb drive that has been missing its string and cap for a couple years now and it has survived the washer/dryer a few times. Which I've never "accidentally" burnt mine with a torch, or left it in the freezer when going for a waffle in the morning; but if I did I don't think it would survive the materials expanding and then shrinking back. But I could be wrong.

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