STACK #144 Oct 2016

visit stack.net.au

TECH FEATURE

The Flashiest of Flash Drives With overwhelming technological advances occurring in all directions within contemporary society, it’s often easy to overlook how classic storage and transfer devices – such as the stoic and trusty USB – have matured over the years. SanDisk is one of the world’s premiere manufacturers of flash memory cards and readers, having assisted consumers shift their data for over twenty-eight years. Words John Roebuck

SanDisk iXpand The SanDisk iXpand is a simple and elegant solution to the unnecessarily common dilemma of trying to find space on your iPhone where there is none to find. We’ve all stumbled across a perfect-looking Avocado Smash, only to discover that we can’t take a photo of it because the storage space on our phone is full. The revelatory SanDisk iXpand is a USB thumb drive, armed with a Lightning connector – the mini connector that is compatible with the most recent iterations of the iPhone and the iPad. The days of storage inadequacy are over. The iXpand Sync mobile app must be downloaded in order to utilise the benefits of the drive; once downloaded, the app automatically recognises the device when you plug it in. The app is also a breeze to use and effortless to understand. It doesn’t automatically organise content into groups, but is so responsive in its connectivity with the iXpand apparatus that finding the file you’re after is a walk in the park. Most notably, when connected to the iXpand Sync app, the drive has extraordinary content playback, with the iXpand capable of loading High Definition video almost immediately once a file is selected, with no lag or buffer time. The media playback potential coupled with the storage functionality make the iXpand one of the handiest iPhone/iPad companions on the market.

SanDisk Extreme Pro MicroSD If you're looking for high transfer speeds in a microSD card, check out SanDisk’s Extreme Pro MicroSDXC UHS-II cards, available in 64 and 128GB models. This release offers transfer speeds of up to 275mb/s from card to computer – the fastest that you’ll find available today. Perfect for offloading 4K Ultra HD video from your camera, drone or smartphone, the UHS-II card offers a dramatic reduction in transfer time, permitting more time behind the lens and less time waiting for your tech. The cards also include a USB 3.0 reader, allowing for the best possible transfer rates. SanDisk’s Extreme Pro MicroSDXC UHS-II cards are shock-proof, temperature-proof, waterproof, and even X-ray-proof, so there’s nothing preventing you from recording – and safely preserving – your adventures on the fastest card on the market. Getting your hands on one of these will also offer you access to RescuePro deluxe data recovery – a free one-year subscription download that makes it easy to recover files that may have been accidentally deleted; no need to worry about trashing your best captures ever again. Additionally, if you’re using your MicroSDXC UHS-II card on an Android device, SanDisk offers a Memory Zone app that will let you back up your captures to the cloud.

SanDisk Ultra Dual USB Drive 3.0 The iXpand is a wonderful tool for iPads and iPhones. For everyone else, the SanDisk Ultra Dual USB Drive is one of the most convincing options for on-the-go USBs that money can buy. Ever watched a movie on your laptop on a long trip, only to have your viewing cut short because your computer ran out of battery? Thanks to the Ultra Dual, which stores and transfers data between phones and computers, you can now finish interrupted movies on your smartphone. With its super speed USB 3.0, capable of reaching transfer speeds of around 150MB per second – which makes it as fast or faster at transferring as any comparable product – the Ultra Dual connects to almost every Android smartphone or tablet. It’s slightly bulkier than SanDisk’s previous iteration of the same product (which likely won't affect the majority of consumers) but might be worth considering for anyone looking to use the device with a smartphone in their pocket. The SanDisk Ultra Dual USB offers Android users a portable solution for additional storage space on their devices – and at its wonderfully low price, it’s very difficult to overlook.

OCTOBER 2016

80

jbhifi.com.au