On The...Torture Rack? LaCie's Unbreakable USB Thumb Drive

[Guest]

Today we have a set of test lines up that are certainly not par for Tom's Hardware: we're putting LaCie's XtremKey through hell and back using an oven, ice, propane and dimethyl ether, acid, a five-story building, a blender, fire, and the Tom's Hammer.

On The...Torture Rack? LaCie's Unbreakable USB Thumb Drive : Read more

 

[winner4455]

Wow, I found it amazing how much a regular drive could handle.

 

[Guest]

Why not try get a gun a shoot the LaCie USB drive and see if it is able to stop a bullet? If so, i will buy right away...

 

[alikum]

[citation][nom]jupiter optimus maximus[/nom]Why not try get a gun a shoot the LaCie USB drive and see if it is able to stop a bullet? If so, i will buy right away...[/citation]
And chain them together and use as bullet proof vest?

 

[Randomacts]

So its a no go on the buy...

Big surprise ...


Not..

 

[iam2thecrowe]

you forgot the washing machine test (my usb stick has been through twice and survived) and the run over it with a lawnmower test (again my usb key survived!)

 

[ta152h]

Next time use a better acid. Nitric Acid will dissolve many things normal acids can't. Of course, Hydrofluoric Acid would work quite well on just about anything, although not a strong acid.

I would strongly recommend one more test. Let a goat eat it, and see what happens. The damn things eat cans, so they have a chance against this thing. If the goat displays unusually good memory a little while after eating it, you'll have your answer.

 

[jj463rd]

Some thermite with an igniter will do it in.So will some R.D.X. with a #8 blasting cap too.

 

[cangelini]

Had this been performed in the US (our French team wrote it), you *know* I would have taken as much California-legal firepower to it as possible. Ever since that "CPU Shootout" two April 1sts ago, I've been itching to put a few more rounds into hardware.

Call it payback for pre-production components that keep me up late at night troubleshooting...

 

[jasperjones]

^^^ lol

 

[arkadi]

What next? You guys will test computer rigs? That i want to see ^_^

 

[sudeshc]

whats the point of alot of those useless tests i dont want a USB sticky thing for world war, i want them for serious use for what they are meant.

 

[Guest]

Why would you pick a control only to swap it out for non-identical other... not very scientific method; they may be similar but not the same.

The experiment does show the durability but not in any kind of legitimate quantitativeness; I ended more annoyed at this article than informed.

 

[eddieroolz]

The regular drives stood up to the test amazingly well! And here I was, worried about mistreating my drive.

On the other hand, the LaCie drive is no less impressive either. That thing's probably indestructable. Unless you nuke it.

 

[Guest]

(1) I had an Imation USB drive in the slot while reformatting a hard drive to reload Win XP. Unfortunately, the PC brought up the USB rather than the HD partition, and it did not survive reformatting. Dead as a dodo.

(2) Are you auditioning for Mythbusters?

 

[Guest]

They should give it to the "Will It Blend" guy. If it survives that I'll be impressed.

 

[simontay1984]

You should've tested it with thermite. It burns at around 2000 degrees C.
Nothing that brainiac has ever tested has survived. For US readers, brainiac is a science program in the UK. Thermite vs safe: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8a2OeWS3G-A

 

[Guest]

I bet a microwave could do the job you guys couldn't!

 

[adaman2576]

[citation][nom]simontay1984[/nom]You should've tested it with thermite. It burns at around 2000 degrees C.Nothing that brainiac has ever tested has survived. For US readers, brainiac is a science program in the UK. Thermite vs safe: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8a2OeWS3G-A[/citation]
+1 for brainiac. They don't show that enough in the US. Way better than mythbusters.

 

[soulrider4ever]

would love to see how the IronKey holds up to these tests in comparison.

 

[C00lIT]

Got a 2gig Cruzer Titenium that is now 5 years old that has always been on my keychain.

Montreal Canada so dropped in water, slush, snow and pavement.
USB Keys are quite unkillable unless you get their weakspots.

Mine got killed by my friend stepping on it when it was plugged into the computer... Tho I opened it and welded the connector inside back in place... still running perfectly.

 

[christop]

Regular thumb drives can take a beating just the same.. I have yet to break one.

 

[tburns1]

[citation][nom]jupiter optimus maximus[/nom]Why not try get a gun a shoot the LaCie USB drive and see if it is able to stop a bullet? If so, i will buy right away...[/citation]
Man ...what part of the world do you live in? Afganistan? L.A.? Is stray bullets a problem for you?

 

[warezme]

time will always win. I take good care of my USB drives yet over time they all fall apart and fail, usually fall apart first.

 

[icepick314]

I have pico from Super Talent...

they're small but it's almost indestructible since it's just small piece of metal...

and yes I have yet to brick one even after my abusive usage...