PNY 8GB USB 2.0 Portable Drive Enhanced for Windows Readyboost, P-FD8GBATT2-FS

PNY 8GB USB 2.0 Portable Drive Enhanced for Windows Readyboost, P-FD8GBATT2-FS
by PNY

PNY 8GB USB 2.0 Portable Drive Enhanced for Windows Readyboost, P-FD8GBATT2-FS
List Price: $37.99
Category: CE
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Digital Photo Product Details

Manufacturer: PNY
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: CD
Platform: Mac, Windows
Model: P-FD8GBATT2-FS
Product features:
  • High Performance USB 2.0 Flash Drive - work with Windows ReadyBoost to boost performance and system responsiveness in Windows Vista
  • Compatible with most PC/MAC laptop and desktop computers with available USB 2.0 port (Backwards compatible to USB 1.0)
  • High performance, low power consumption, non-volatile flash memory makes Attache drives more durable than other storage devices
  • New Design with integrated cap holder on the back to prevent lost caps
  • Free technical support
Accessories:

Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of PNY 8GB USB 2.0 Portable Drive Enhanced for Windows Readyboost, P-FD8GBATT2-FS

Customer Review: It HANGS the computer & can NOT be made Bootable!
Summary: 1 Stars

I bought 3 of these 2GB units to use as boot devices for my HDD recovery software. These units TOTALLY FAILED!!! All were Totally Non-Functional as boot devices!!! DO **NOT** buy these units for this purpose!!! (They have other problems as well, sadly.)

In addition, the PNY Thumb Drive hangs up the computer if you leave it plugged in and reboot the main machine (and have your BIOS configured to look at the USB ports). And now for more details:

I've used several other brands successfully for the bootable function; the 1 & 2GB HP Flash/Thumb Drives work admirably well, as does the Kingston and other brands. One simply runs the software to write the boot sector and set all the right bits, and the "drive" should boot. It doesn't. (NB: Since the software I'm installing is smaller than 100MB, 1 or 2 GB is plenty big enough. Note that the unit is being formatted to FAT16, since it's capacity is only 2GB.)

No error message is given at any point; the programs I've used all think everything is peachy-keen (to use a precise, engineering term) when they're done. I've used multiple programs and they all think that they've done their job properly.

The problem is that when you then try to boot from the unit it hangs the computer solidly. All the computer's keys are frozen. If you remove the drive and try to proceed, the computer is still frozen. (I've tried 2 different machines -- Lenovo & Acer -- with the same results.) The only possible recovery is to remove the unit, and then do a HARD RESET of the computer. This is More than Unfriendly; it's positively Hostile!

And it's not like it just fails as a boot device; the fact that it hangs the computer EVERY TIME it's left plugged in and you restart the OpSys is Very Nearly unbelievable. How could such a design flaw make it into such a simple and mature product!!! Sheish!

As an engineer, I'd have to rate this design flaw as positively and Totally Unacceptable! This is Not a complex product; it's an extremely mature one that should be a cinch to get right. If I were managing the team with a bug like this one I would tell them to fix it or take the time they spent developing it as vacation; they certainly shouldn't get paid for this.

What is this product good for? You can use it to hold temporary data that you take to another party, such as photos to a service bureau or Costco/Walmart. In that application you plug the device in, write whatever, and remove it. But the key is you gotta REMOVE It from the computer! Do NOT leave it plugged in...

And, of course, this is a problem because every time you insert & remove a device from your USB connector you're causing wear. These connectors do not last forever, after all.

So what am I going to do with my PNY flas drives? Give them to the Boy Scouts to use as prizes is about the best Idea I've had so far. They're too small to use as boat anchors.


Description of PNY 8GB USB 2.0 Portable Drive Enhanced for Windows Readyboost, P-FD8GBATT2-FS

Store, transport and share photos, video, music, documents and more from PC to PC, or connect to your digital picture or printer to view and share your photos

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