The USB port may be in a bit of flux, but that doesn’t mean the USB drive has changed, and a recent collaboration means there’s still more drives coming in more form-factors.
Even though sharing files has become dependent on the internet, using something like a Dropbox, WeTransfer, or email, for many of us, moving files from one computer to another still has us reliant on the classic thumb drive. A concept that first popped up in the late 90s, the thumb drive is something that has been around so long, it’s just become a staple of using a computer and moving files.
For many of us, it’s a small backup mechanism we can keep with us that nearly every computer will take, and depending on the port it uses, maybe even a phone or tablet.
Thumb drives are gradually changing to support that new type of USB being adopted by more devices. The older rectangular USB is known as Type A, and while USB A is what we’ve all used for yonks, its new cousin is the smaller and almost ovular USB Type C, which can be used for data, charging, video, and sound, and is found on phones, tablets, laptops, headphones, speakers, cameras, and pretty much anything else electronic these days.
But it’s not entirely there yet, and while more things are becoming Type C specific, there are still plenty of computers with a rectangular classic Type A USB port.
That’s an area PNY is still making hardware for, as are plenty of other manufacturers, and in its latest release, is collaborating with HP for a few more flash drives.
Most of the options are fairly standard, offering the standard thumb drive with the slide-out push-pull USB connector (x796w), another that is simply cap-less and stays out (v150w), while another is water and shock resistant coming with a rubberised cap (v245w).
Bizarrely, the one that grabs us is a thumb drive available in a carabiner clip (x760w), not just making it easy to clip onto a keychain, but useful for clipping on other things, as well.
The downside to these PNY drives for HP is they’re all the Type A rectangular USB port, and not the more modern Type C, meaning if you have a recent MacBook Air, you’ll need to bring your own converter to make them work. A representative for PNY did tell Pickr that HP’s Type C models are coming to Australia soon, however, so if you have a recent laptop and these interest you, it might be worth waiting.
Until then, though (and even a little afterwards), the PNY HP USB drives are heading to JB HiFi stores across Australia and New Zealand.
