| Corsair Flash Survivor GT 8GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive
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The Corsair brand name has long been associated with high performance system memory, and over the last few years they have built up a similarly solid reputation for USB 2.0 flash drives. In addition to offering high performance, Corsair distinguishes their flash drives from the other brands with their toughness. We were first impressed by a Corsair flash drive two and a half years ago when we looked at a Flash Voyager that not only put up some respectable benchmark results, but survived some serious abuse and soakings.
Corsair has hit the market with another 'tough' flash drive, this time in the form of the Survivor series. These drives are available with 4GB and 8GB capacities, with the 4GB model intended for those with price and performance in mind, and the 8GB GT model intended for high performance with what is essentially a dual channel memory configuration inside.
The promotional image above shows an 8GB Corsair Flash Survivor GT at home in the mud, conveying that it isn't your typical "indoor cat" variety of drive. In addition to boasting high transfer rates, this drive is enclosed in a tough aircraft grade shell that is sealed with o-rings providing water resistance to 200 meters. Before taking a look at the Flash Survivor GT 8GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive provided for review, let's look at the rest of the published data taken from the Corsair website...
Features and Specifications:
» Encased in extremely strong CNC-milled, anodized aircraft-grade aluminum.
» Water resistant to 200M through the use of a EPDM waterproof seal.
» Protected from vibration or impact damage through the use of a molded shock dampening collar.
» Plug-&-Play with any USB 2.0 certified peripheral computer port (backward compatible with USB 1.1).
» Includes the True Crypt security application (Windows Vista/XP/2000 compatible only) allowing for a virtual encrypted drive using AES-256 encryption.
» USB extension cable and Dog Tags included.
» Protected by a Limited 10-year Warranty.
The Survivor GT is definitely for those who demand more than just reliability and high speed performance. My first impression is that the toughness of this drive may be excessive and has to add quite a bit of cost in order to appeal to what I would perceive as a rather small audience. I have learned from experience that keeping your data safe from shock and water is important, so perhaps the price and performance of this unit will help change my mind.
My only other comment on the features and specifications is that the review sample did not come with the True Crypt security application, so I will not be testing that during the review. Review samples are often early releases and may be lacking features found on retail products, but I would recommend taking advantage of such an application. Losing 8GB of sensitive personal/business data is only made worse by it falling into the hands of someone else.
Packaging:
The images below show the clear plastic blister pack that the Corsair Flash Survivor GT 8GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive is sold in. It provides a good look at the product, as well as listing all the key features, specifications, and some of Corsair's in-house performance data.
 
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