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Review: Kingston DataTraveler 4000

Nafisa Akabor
By Nafisa Akabor, ITWeb junior journalist
Johannesburg, 22 Mar 2011

The Kingston DataTraveler 4000 (8GB) USB flash drive looks like any other memory stick and features a 256-bit AES encryption. Its titanium-coated stainless steel casing is quite solid and requires some serious effort to uncap.

Once you plug it into your Windows machine, you don't have to worry about installation. You will see a pop-up window, which prompts you for your name, company and a secure password.

If you are using a Mac, you will have to go into the Mac folder and open the application to fill out the same information. There are no admin rights to the drive.

A secure password comprises of upper- and lowercase characters, numbers or special characters. You have the option to choose a password hint. It is best to fill this out because if you cannot remember your password, you have to format the drive and start from scratch.

In summary:

Good: sturdy, stored data is protected.
Bad: pricey.
Rating: 9/10
Price: 2GB - R499; 4GB - R615; 8GB - R899; 16GB - R1 659 all VAT incl.
Contact: Axis - 011 237 7228

Each time the flash stick is plugged into a USB port on any machine, it prompts you for a password before allowing you to access data. If you work in an environment that deals with sensitive data that cannot get into the wrong hands, the DT4000 would be an ideal solution.

The drive will lock down after 10 incorrect password attempts and the encryption key is destroyed.

Speed is consistent - a single 1.4GB file copied at 15MB per second, while multiple files - 1.3GB worth of MP3s - copied at the same speed.

The DT4000 is USB 2.0-compatible and works on Windows (XP, Vista, 7) and Mac OS X (10.5 to 10.6). It is available in a 2GB, 4GB, 8GB and 16GB capacity.

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