Kingston DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 Generation 2 USB Flash Drive

Model: Kingston DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 Generation 2
Manufacturer: Kingston
Provided By: Kingston

As the world’s largest independent manufacturer of memory products, Kingston Technology doesn't need much of an introduction. The company got its start in 1987, when the computer industry was suffering from a severe shortage of surface-mount memory chips. To provide a solution, Kingston's founders designed a new Single In-Line Memory Module (SIMM) that used readily available, older technology through-hole components. Today, Kingston offers more than 2,000 memory products for everything from computers, servers and printers to MP3 players, digital cameras and cell phones.

While computers with USB 3.0 ports are still few and far between, this hasn't stopped Kingston from embracing the new technology. Last fall, the company introduced its first USB 3.0 flash drive, the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0. Available in capacities up to 64GB, the drive was capable of reading at 80 MB/s and writing at speeds of up to 60 MB/s. The DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 was also backwards compatible with USB 2.0. However, in some cases, it required a special Y-cable to provide enough power to initialize the drive.

Kingston has now begun to ship its second generation USB 3.0 flash drive, the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 Generation 2. While similar in appearance to the original DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0, this new drive uses a native USB 3.0 controller which offers better performance and power management. The DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 is capable of reading at 100 MB/s and writing at 70 MB/s. It is also backwards compatible with USB 2.0 and can be powered completely off a computer's USB bus without the need for additional cables. To top it all off, the drive is compatible with Windows XP/Vista/7 and is backed by a five-year warranty.

Needless to say, this is only a taste of what the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 has to offer. To give you an idea of what to expect, we'll take a closer look at Kingston's new USB 3.0 flash drive and then see how well it performs. Does the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 have what it takes? Keep reading as we find out.

Packaging:

The DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 comes packaged as shown above. While the plastic bubble gives you a great view of the drive, it can be a little hard to get open without the help of a sharp knife or razor. Along with the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2, you get a small lanyard which can be used to attach the drive to your keychain.

Physical Features:

The DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 shares the same basic design as Kingston's first generation USB 3.0 flash drive. Measuring 2.90" (73.70mm) long, 0.87" (22.20mm) wide and 0.63" (16.10mm) thick, it's about the size of a pocketknife or disposable lighter. While you probably wouldn't want it hanging off of your keychain, it easily fits in a pocket or purse.

One thing you'll want to take note of, is the thickness of the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2. At 0.63" (16.10mm), its almost twice as thick as the DataTraveler 100 that I normally carry with me. This did cause some problems when I tried to plug in another USB device next to the drive. Thankfully, the USB connector on the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 is offset a bit so you simply need to swap the two devices to get them both to fit.

The body of the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 is constructed of lightweight, white plastic which is covered along the sides by brushed aluminum panels. To prevent it from getting lost, the cap can be placed on the opposite end of the drive, similar to the cap on a pen. While you can't see it in these pictures, there is an LED inside of the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2. This LED lights up blue whenever the drive is transmitting or receiving data or is in the identification process.

Installation:

As with most USB flash drives, the Kingston DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 was very easy to install. Those running Windows XP, Vista or 7 can simply plug the drive into any available USB 2.0 or 3.0 port on their computer. If the computer is already turned on, plug and play will automatically detect the drive.

If installed correctly, the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 should show up in the Device Manager. Under Windows 7, the drive is identified as a "Kingston DT Ultimate G2 USB Device".

The DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 comes formatted with FAT32, giving the 32GB model about 29.8GB of usable space. If you plan to store files larger than 4GB in size, you'll want to convert or reformat the drive with NTFS.

Performance:

The test system used in this review was an HP dc7900. The computer came equipped with an Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 3.0GHz CPU, 2GB of DDR2 800MHz memory, Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250310AS 250GB SATA hard drive, NVIDIA Quadro FX570 256MB PCIe graphics card and Intel 82567LM-3 gigabit network card. For the operating system, I installed a fresh copy of Windows 7 Enterprise.

To test the performance of the Kingston DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2, I ran a series of benchmarks using CrystalDiskMark 3.0, HD Tach RW 3.0.4.0, ATTO Disk Benchmark 2.46 and SiSoftware Sandra Lite 2010.SP2. To get a feel for the drive's "real world" performance, I also copied and pasted 500MB of random files and directories in Windows Explorer.

CrystalDiskMark 3.0:

First, I ran a few quick tests using CrystalDiskMark. This benchmark tool measures the performance of a storage device by testing its sequential read and write speeds as well as its random read and write speeds using blocks 512K and 4K in size.

Kingston DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 - USB 3.0

Kingston DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 - USB 2.0

According to Kingston, the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 is capable of reading at 100MB/s and writing at 70MB/s when connected to USB 3.0 port. Looking at the screenshot above, you can see that the drive had no problems exceeding these speeds in our tests.

HD Tach RW 3.0.4.0:

Next, I used HD Tach to test the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2's read, write and burst speeds as well as its seek times and CPU usage.

When connected to the computer's USB 3.0 port, the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 had average read and write speeds of 130.7 MB/s and 77.7 MB/s, respectively, as well as a burst speed of 136.1 MB/s. As you'd expect, the drive wasn't nearly as fast when using USB 2.0. Compared to what we saw with USB 3.0, the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2's read speed dropped by more than 90MB/s.

ATTO Disk Benchmark 2.46:

I also used ATTO Disk Benchmark to test the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2's sequential read and write speeds. The test was run using blocks ranging in size from 0.5KB to 8192KB and the total length set to 256MB.

Kingston DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 - USB 3.0

Kingston DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 - USB 2.0

When tested with ATTO, the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2's read speeds topped out at about 107 MB/s and its write speeds at 52 MB/s.

SiSoft Sandra File System Benchmark:

While I am not a big fan of SiSoftware Sandra's optical drive benchmarks, it is a great tool if you want to test a system's performance quickly and easily. One of Sandra's more useful tests is the File System benchmark. This benchmark gives each drive an overall score, or "Drive Index," based on the results of its read and write tests.

SiSoftware Sandra Removable Storage/Flash Devices Benchmark:

Designed with removable storage and flash devices in mind, this benchmark tests a drive's read, write and delete performance using six different file sizes (512 Bytes, 32kB, 256kB, 2MB, 64MB and 256MB).  The results are then given in both operations per minute and the corresponding net transfer rate in MB/second. This benchmark also computes an "Endurance Factor," representing the wear and life expectancy of flash devices.

While there were a few cases where the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 lagged behind the Express Duo, it had a clear advantage when writing larger files.

As I mentioned above, Sandra also expresses performance in operations per minute. To keep things simple, I've limited the results to the combined index and the total number of read/write/delete operations for each file size.

The Endurance Factor represents the wear and life expectancy of a flash device. According to SiSoft, this number is computed by "dividing the average performance (normal condition, i.e. sequential write) to the lowest performance (high-stress condition, i.e. same block re-write)."

"Real World" Benchmark:

To test the "real world" performance of Kingston's new flash drive, I copied and pasted 500 MB worth of randomly generated files and directories. All of the files are between 10 bytes and 32MB in size and no more than four directories deep.

The DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 performed very well here, taking less than a minute to write our test data and a mere 12 seconds to read it back.

Final Thoughts:

The Kingston DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 Generation 2 is a great choice for any enthusiast looking to take advantage of the performance offered by USB 3.0. The drive performed very well in our tests, reading at speeds as high as 130 MB/s and writing at nearly 80 MB/s. The DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2's read speeds dropped considerably when plugged into a USB 2.0 port. However, with read and write speeds in excess of 30 MB/s, it was still faster than most of the flash drives we've tested. The only real issue I had was the size of the DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 as the drive is so thick that it can partially block the USB port next to it.

The DataTraveler Ultimate 3.0 G2 is available now in 16GB, 32GB and 64GB capacities. Suggested retail prices range from $77 to $233 depending on the size. However, the drive can be picked up for considerably less from Amazon or through some of the vendors on PriceGrabber.

Highs:

• Excellent read and write speeds
• Backwards compatible with USB 2.0
• Powered off the USB bus
• Compatible with Windows 2000/XP/Vista/7
• Well constructed
• Five year warranty

Lows:

• May block adjacent USB ports
• Pricey