A thumb drive is a portable USB flash memory device for storing and transferring files. It can be used by inserting it into a computer’s USB port and dragging and dropping files. It has benefits such as being solid-state, secure, and having large storage capacity, but also has limitations such as limited program erase cycles and potential data loss.
A thumb drive is a portable universal serial bus (USB) flash memory device for storing and transferring audio, video, and data files from a computer. As long as your desktop or laptop has a USB port and the thumb drive is compatible with the operating system, it should be easy to move data from the hard drive to the device — and to another computer — in minutes. The unit gets its name from the fact that many have a retractable port connector like a ballpoint pen and are small enough to fit in a pocket. Other names include flash drive, jump drive, and thumb drive.
How to use it
Using a pen drive is simple: the user inserts one end of the drive, equipped with a USB connector, into a USB port on a desktop or laptop and activates it. Once the drive is active, files can be dragged and dropped or copied and pasted into memory. The process is usually no more difficult than attaching files to an email or copying files to a disc, mp3 player, or other storage device.
There are several computer operating systems in use today, so most manufacturers configure their pen drives to work with a variety of systems. Before purchasing any portable storage device, the consumer should read the packaging carefully to ensure that it will work with their computer. Often, even users with older operating systems can find compatible storage devices, as long as such computers have a USB port.
How does it work
Technicians classify pen drives as NOT AND, also called NAND, gate style data storage devices. This technology works by storing data in chunks rather than randomly; as such, it does not function in the same way as a computer’s primary memory systems, read-only memory (ROM) and random access memory (RAM). Using blocks instead of allowing random access allows the drive to store more information and be made at a lower cost.
Transfer speed
Actual transfer speed depends on several factors, such as how fast your computer is reading and writing to the device. Typically, the advertised speed of a thumb drive is the read speed because it is faster than the speed at which data can be written to it. Manufacturers usually list speed in megabytes per second (MB/s). The age of the drive and the way it’s used, such as writing and erasing small files, also affect transfer speed.
Benefits
Equipped with a large amount of memory, the pen drive is often considered an improvement on both older floppy disks and more modern compact disks. They can transfer data much faster than these older technologies. Because they are solid state, there are no moving parts, flash drives usually last longer, and the data stored on them is more secure. Depending on the size of the storage, flash drives can hold anywhere from 128MB to 32GB or more; by comparison, a standard CD-ROM holds about 700MB of data.
Even a thumb drive with relatively low storage capacity tends to provide plenty of room for all different types of files. Any file that can be stored on a computer’s hard drive can usually be copied to a flash drive, as long as there is enough memory. There are also programs that can be run directly from the drive, without needing to be installed on the computer first.
Limits
Pen drives have some limitations, including the number of times they can be used. Each drive has a limited number of program erase cycles (P/E cycles), which is the act of putting files on the drive and erasing them. Typically, the device can go through 100,000 P/E cycles before the integrity of the drive is compromised and files are corrupted.
Another limitation is how manufacturers build devices. The NAND gate style allows a user to program or read data one byte or word at a time, but erases data in chunks. When only small amounts are deleted, the storage capacity is reduced.
The NAND gate style device can also cause data loss due to the way information is accessed. Reading data into one cell can trigger changes in the cells around it. Typically, a user has to read the cell thousands of times before this occurs, however, periodically rewriting the surrounding cells can prevent this problem.
The computer chip in the drive can also wear out, slowing down the operation of the device. The NAND gate-style method of programming and erasing files smaller than a block can also slow things down. This can cause the device to mark some blocks as bad, even if they are not completely full; trying to read bad blocks and remap them can slow down how fast your device works.
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