SanDisk 256GB Ultra USB Type-C Flash Drive

This is going to be MUCH shorter than my usual reviews…not because I have little to say, but because, in all honesty, there isn’t much that can be said about a thumb drive. For the most part, they either work, or they don’t; they either equal the manufacturer’s claims, or they don’t. in the case of the SanDisk 256GB Ultra USB Type-C Flash Drive, it does work, and it is quite fast, but it does NOT “equal” the speed claims.Starting with the design, it is somewhat on the cheap side. SanDisk has always produced high-quality products…so, when I first opened the package, and felt the drive, I was slightly disappointed. It’s not “super-cheap”, but it’s also not “solid”. The primary plastic casing is thin, and somewhat flimsy. Worse, the sliding mechanism appears poorly ... MoreThis is going to be MUCH shorter than my usual reviews…not because I have little to say, but because, in all honesty, there isn’t much that can be said about a thumb drive. For the most part, they either work, or they don’t; they either equal the manufacturer’s claims, or they don’t. in the case of the SanDisk 256GB Ultra USB Type-C Flash Drive, it does work, and it is quite fast, but it does NOT “equal” the speed claims.Starting with the design, it is somewhat on the cheap side. SanDisk has always produced high-quality products…so, when I first opened the package, and felt the drive, I was slightly disappointed. It’s not “super-cheap”, but it’s also not “solid”. The primary plastic casing is thin, and somewhat flimsy. Worse, the sliding mechanism appears poorly constructed, and can be slightly difficult to open…and, even more difficult to close. Thankfully, that’s the worst I can say.In the speed transfer department, SanDisk claims “write speeds that can transfer a full-length movie in under 30 seconds”. The first ‘problem’ in determining what a “full-length movie” actually is. Is it 2 hours? Is it 2.5 hours? Is there even a ‘standard’ anymore? Since there is no definitive length, thus, no definitive file size, I copied two different movies (both 1920x1080 resolution @ 23.98fps), of two different lengths, with two different bit rates. First up was “Star Trek: Horizon” (a Paramount-sanctioned’ fan film’) that’s 1hr 42min, in MP4 format, and 994MB is size. This is compressed with video @ 1222kbps, and audio @ 125kbps @ 44.1kHz. the file transfer took 33 seconds, which is well under one minute. At this point, one would think the thumb drive comes close to SanDisk’s claim of “under 30 seconds”, but doesn’t quite match said claim. Next up was “Batman: The Dark Knight Returns”, which is 2.5 hours in length, in MKV format, and consists of two files which combine to be 9.84GB in size. The video is @ 1509kbps, with audio @ 1509 kbps @ 48kHz. Obviously, the files size is 10.13 times that of the first movie, so its transfer time of 5:28 (9.85 times the time of the first movie) is understandable…but, this is WAY longer than the claimed “under 30 seconds”. Of course, this takes us back to the question of “how long is a ‘full-length’ movie? Also, the file format, and recording-compression will make a difference.So…what do I truly think oof the SanDisk Ultra USB Type-C drive? Honestly, I like it…not by a ‘huge’ amount, but, I definitely do like it. Its compact size is a huge improvement over the size of traditional (ie. USB Type-A) flash drives, and it is considerably faster than Type-A drives. At the same time, the actual speed WILL depend on what kind of USB-C port you plug it into, as all USB-C ports are NOT equal, as there ARE two different variants – USB-C 3.0, and USB-C 3.1. the 3.0 variant maxes out at a theoretical 5Gbps, while the 3.1 variant maxes out at a theoretical 10Gbps. As the SanDisk thumb drive transfers “up to 150MBps, that’s only 1.2Gbps…or, barely more than 1/10 the max speed of USB-C 3.1. put another way, even when plugging into a USB-C 3.0 port, the SanDisk USB-C flash drive doesn’t even come close to maxing out the ports true data transfer rate. However, in-truth, there are very few USB-C devices capable of even coming close to USB-Cs (3.0 or 3.1) “max data throughput”. Getting back to my question, as I said, I do like it. The smaller size is MUCH easier to transport than a traditional USB-A flash drive…and, with almost all computers these days having at least one USB-C port, it makes sense. Even better, as more & more mobile devices switch to USB-C ports, this makes this flash drive usable on an even greater number of devices. Best of all, it makes transferring files between computers, and mobile devices, incredibly easy, and incredibly fast. My ONLY complaint is the build quality, and the difficulty in opening/closing the drive. For this, I lowered the rating by one star.Disclaimer: This product was provided free, or at reduced cost, for the purpose of reviewing the product. Nevertheless, the above review, be it positive, negative, or somewhere in-between, is a 100% honest review, and the price paid played absolutely no part in my review.

The Sandisk Ultra is a fast USB-C flash drive that works with either your computer with USB-C ports or a phone with the same. Its all-plastic design comes in at less than 3” x 1” in size, making it very easy to attach to your keys or throw in your bag without taking up a wide amount of space. When not in use the USB port retracts back into the plastic case, though the tip remains exposed to the elements (unlike drives that have a removable cap).Speeds are extremely fast, up to 150 MB/second read and a slightly slower write speed (as with any writeable media). When transferring data from my phone to the device, I’m able to transfer a 1 GB file (movie) in around 30 seconds. Transfers are made easily if you’re using a phone with the “Memory Zone” app which you can ... MoreThe Sandisk Ultra is a fast USB-C flash drive that works with either your computer with USB-C ports or a phone with the same. Its all-plastic design comes in at less than 3” x 1” in size, making it very easy to attach to your keys or throw in your bag without taking up a wide amount of space. When not in use the USB port retracts back into the plastic case, though the tip remains exposed to the elements (unlike drives that have a removable cap).Speeds are extremely fast, up to 150 MB/second read and a slightly slower write speed (as with any writeable media). When transferring data from my phone to the device, I’m able to transfer a 1 GB file (movie) in around 30 seconds. Transfers are made easily if you’re using a phone with the “Memory Zone” app which you can download from the usual app stores.The “Memory Zone” app allows you to do a full sync of your phone to the drive if you don’t already backup your phone with Google or Apple. The app works as a full drive explorer, so it can see your internal memory, any inserted SD cards (Android), and of course the flash drive, thus the app isn’t limited to use only with the drive.None of the files on the flash drive are encrypted by default, which starts a whole series of issues with the device and SanDisk as a whole. First, you have to download a separate .exe/.pkg file (for Windows or Apple) to get encryption. Second, it only works on a computer and does not work on your phone, so any files encrypted on your computer cannot be accessed via your phone. Likewise, you cannot encrypt files on the drive that were added from your phone. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the encryption program has not been updated since 2017 (downloaded directly from SanDisk’s website). There are plenty of new and evolving threats over the past 4 years, so a program that “encrypts” that isn’t regularly updated is a serious security concern. Add to that the fact it’s only using 128-bit AES *and* is 4+ years old, it’s probably something to just avoid for the truly security conscious.Cons:- The slide to move the USB-C tip out doesn’t slide well, and you find yourself fighting with it.- The metal USB-C tip and the board that remains inside the plastic gets EXTREMELY hot when using it. And not just from leaving it in use or doing massive amounts of transfers. Like it gets hot within 60 seconds of being inserted in your phone.- The drive requires you to click on the app or the notification to “safely remove” the device from your phone. If you don’t, you’ll receive a notification that you’ve “unsafely removed” the device with a “click here to reboot” your phone notice. What is this, 1995? The last time I felt the need to “safely remove” a USB stick was with Windows 95. Are we not past that yet?- The all-plastic design does worry me for durability, but so far no issues. I mentioned attaching it to your keys, which clearly you can do, but just know the loop for the keys is all-plastic, as well, so if that breaks it will quickly separate from your keyring.- I find it annoying with companies name their app something obscure and a search for “San” or “Disk” doesn’t locate the app. You have to remember it’s called “Memory Zone”. It wouldn’t take a lot to call it “SanDisk Memory Zone” to make it easier to search for.- No phone-to-drive encryption option.Summary: The drive is a good solution if you’re looking for an easy way to transfer files between 2 computers or a computer and your phone. It is a fast drive with plenty of space for your files, but has some considerable cons, namely the overheating, that make for some concern

Now that USB-C ports are so common on Windows computers, Macs, and many smartphones, drives with a USB-C connector are great for backing up files from -- and moving files between -- a wide variety of devices. That’s why I was excited to give this SanDisk Ultra USB 3.0 flash drive a try.As far as functionality goes, this flash drive does what it’s supposed to do. I was able to use it to read and write files on a Windows computer, a Mac, and my Android phone easily and quickly – just plug in and go. I am getting read speeds that are at or even a bit higher than the 150 mb/sec that SanDisk advertises for this drive. Write speeds have generally been between 65 and 75 mb/sec. To put that into real-life terms: I have a 10-minute FHD/1080p video that I recorded with an ... MoreNow that USB-C ports are so common on Windows computers, Macs, and many smartphones, drives with a USB-C connector are great for backing up files from -- and moving files between -- a wide variety of devices. That’s why I was excited to give this SanDisk Ultra USB 3.0 flash drive a try.As far as functionality goes, this flash drive does what it’s supposed to do. I was able to use it to read and write files on a Windows computer, a Mac, and my Android phone easily and quickly – just plug in and go. I am getting read speeds that are at or even a bit higher than the 150 mb/sec that SanDisk advertises for this drive. Write speeds have generally been between 65 and 75 mb/sec. To put that into real-life terms: I have a 10-minute FHD/1080p video that I recorded with an action camera (1.45 gb). I copied it to the SanDisk Ultra USB 3.0 flash drive in about 25 seconds, then copied it from there to another computer in about 10 seconds. Overall, these seem pretty fast for a flash drive, and are certainly good enough for me, although I know there are (and more expensive) options out there on the market.Another good thing about this flash drive is the compact form factor. It’s narrow -- just a bit wider than the USB-C connector itself – so it should fit into ports even when the neighboring one is occupied by something wider.This drive is also very lightweight. That could be a good thing, but for me it just drew attention to something I don’t like: The outer housing of this drive is plastic, and feels very thin and delicate. It doesn’t give off a rugged or durable feeling at all. Since it will mostly live in a small compartment of my laptop bag, I’m hoping this won’t be an issue for me. Despite the loop for attaching to a keychain or lanyard, I would not be confident keeping this drive in my pocket, on a keychain, or anywhere else it might get bumped around often.Another thing that’s disappointing is the slider to retract the USB-C connector when it’s not in use. When I first got the flash drive, the mechanism was downright difficult to use. It didn’t glide smoothly at all. Instead, it sort-of stuttered along as I held the drive firmly with one hand and forced the slider button down and over with my other. Now, after a few days of working it in, the slider seems to have loosened up a bit. I can at least extend and retract the connector using one hand, but it still feels like I’m having to apply way too much force to a device that feels so delicate.Overall, this is a fast, functional flash drive stuck in an unfortunately mediocre shell. If you don’t mind a thin plastic housing and a slightly hard to use slider, it could be a decent option. I personally would have preferred something that had external construction that was as good as the internal electronics.