Review: iBall 2GB Flash Drive
A week back I bought myself a new iBall 2GB flash drive ordered through eBay. Although I received the packet last week, I got a chance to check and review it 2 days back.
The box contains;
- 2GB iBall USB Flash drive
- Driver CD with disk partition & password protection software
- Mini storage case
- Hand strap
Although its mentioned that CD is bundled with the pack, CD was not available in the pack. When contacted the vendor told me that recently in some packs they have stopped shipping the CD. The USB is plug-n-play in all the OS, except Windows98 SE, where drivers are required. So even if the CD is not available, its not a big issue.
Coming to the specifications;
- Host Interface: High Speed USB 2.0 (Backward compatible with USB 1.1)
- Hardware Compatibility: IBM compatible PC or Notebook, Mac Operating Systems
- Supported: Windows 98SE, ME, 2000, XP, 2003, Max OS 9.1, Mac OS 8.6 or above, Linux 2.4x or above
- Data Retention: Over 10 years
- Indication LED: Flashing – Reading or writing data
- Reading Speed: 14MB/sec (max)
- Writing Speed: 8MB/sec (max)
- Operating Temperature: 0 to +40 degree C
- Relative Humidity Under Operation: 10% to 90%
- Bundled Utilities: Disk partition & password protection
- Bundles Accessories: Mini Storage Case, Hand Strap & Driver CD (was not available with this pack).
iBall USB flash drives are extremely small and compact with fibre body. The quality of plastics could have been better. One thing I was disappointed is that the drive does not have a cap to cover the USB. Because of this you need to keep it in the storage case provided.
Another good thing about this drive is the disk partition and password protection bundled with it. The format application allows you to partition the drive, one called as public area and other one security area with a password. You can select the amount of disk space in each partition.
Once you partition the disk, there will an executable file called Lock.exe. To enter the secure area you need to run this application with the password. Once you are in the secure are, you wont be able to access the public area. The application will be minimized to the task bar.
Verdict: The USB drive is extremely compact, light weight and can be carried even in the wallet, but you need to be careful with the body as it can damage the drive with rough use. Transfer rate and performance is good and comparable with other USB drives. It would have been better if they can provide a cap for the USB like other drives.
Rating: 3.5/5
Price: I purchased it from eBay for Rs. 775 /- (1USD=40.78 Rs).
You can also check out the review of iBall 4GB drive at Shivaranjan’s Blog
Share this Post
nice gizmod
Is it ReadyBoost compatible?
With all the USB drives out there, this one looks plain. Even though appearance shouldn’t be up there on the list when talking about flash drives, this one just looks too “plain jane” for me.
pretty small
This drive is ready boost compatible. That’s a great review nirmal.
USB drive with no cap …
The no-cap thing is worrying for me because it won’t function even if it is damaged a little..
The USB without the cap is the worrying thing for me also.
wow ! 2GB flash for just Rs775
and yeah iBall drives are gr8.. really compact..
Seems to be really small when compared to other drives in the market
If data retention really is 10 years then it is a damn good buy.
@Deepak,
Price of USB drives have come down in the recent time. Long back I purchased 1GB drive for same price.
@Shankar,
Its really small in size compared to other drives.
@Pallab,
Its a good buy except for the defects I have mentioned. It has a retention of 10 years.
Congrats Nirmal.
Your appealing review also made me to order 4 GB of same.
And yes, without cap isn’t a problem provided you are keeping it in the box which is of course for its protection
is it u3 compliant, i would love to run programs from the flash drive
I asked a local retailer here, at my place. He told me the price of 2GB kingston as Rs.850
How about it?
Nirmal was this a payperpost? I’ve seen two of these reviews in the past couple of weeks.
@Ashish,
850 for 2GB kingston is also good offer.
@Listikal,
Its not a paid review. Its owners review.
Nice Gizmo nirmal
i want to get the software of usb formatting tool.becuse my software will be lose my pendrive.please help me.my pendrive is iball2gb.
I want to get the software of usb formatting and scurity of i ball igb flash drive
@Ranjith,
I dont have it right now, let me check if I can get it.
I got the same pen drive a month back but it didnt work even at the first instan. Whenever I insert it in my system, it is detected and the indicator glows but does not blink. whenever i try to access the pen drive, i get a message that “Please insert disk into the drive “. It was a gift sent by someone so cant return it. Even when i try to format it, doesn’t get through. Please, help me out to get the problem solved.
Thanks
I got the same pen drive a month back but it didnt work even at the first instan. Whenever I insert it in my system, it is detected and the indicator glows but does not blink. whenever i try to access the pen drive, i get a message that “Please insert disk into the drive “. It was a gift sent by someone so cant return it. Even when i try to format it, doesn’t get through. Please, help me out to get the problem solved.
Thanks