When Microsoft announced Windows 8, there was a new feature for corporate in the form of Windows To Go. Windows To Go is a feature in Windows 8 Enterprise that allows Windows 8 Enterprise to boot and run from mass storage devices such as USB flash drives and external hard disk drives. It is a fully manageable corporate Windows 8 environment. We had covered in detail about Windows To Go and also how to create a Windows To Go drives. Windows To Go is your own fully manageable, corporate image installed on a bootable certified USB drive. It is a new feature of Windows 8.1 Enterprise available to customers with Software Assurance to help businesses address a wide range of mobility and travel light requirements.
There are many Microsoft certified Windows To Do drives and Kingston DataTraveler Workspace is one of them. We will have a review of this Windows To Go drive and see how it works and the performance.
Kingston’s DataTraveler Workspace is a Windows To Go, a portable, bootable version of Windows 8 that lets you use an IT certified operating system on one or many systems without having to install it. On the design and build quality aspect, the DataTraveler Workspace looks like any other high-capacity flash drive, with a USB 3.0 connector and a chunky, rugged design similar to other Kingston drives. The drive has a great quality build and feels solid. There is also a lanyard loop for the drive, letting you attach it to a lanyard or keychain and it also comes with a lanyard included.
The drive we tested is the 32GB one, but there is also 64GB variant along with 128GB available on custom ordering. Remove the cap and you can see the USB 3.0 drive which incorporates SSD controller technology to produce a high-performance, low-latency drive. It’s also secure, offering support for BitLocker encryption and Trusted Boot anti-malware and boot protection software. Since the OS works from a USB drive, there is also added protection in case you remove it accidently. Kingston offers 60 sec protection which means you can insert back the drive before this time and still get all the files without losing them.
To use the simply insert to the USB drive and restart your PC and then select the boot option as Kingston drive. When you are first using it, the drive will configure Windows 8 for few minutes and then you are ready to use it. The drive we got was 32GB and there was around GB of space available for installing apps. In case you want more storage, you need to connect external hard drives. The hard disk on your PC will not be accessible. You can install apps like Office on to the drive with the remaining space, but Windows Store is not available for Windows To Go users.
Even though it is USB 3.0 drive, it works well on USB 2.0 as well.
Here is a video review and demo of Kingston DataTraveler Workspace.
Specifications of the drive:
- Capacities: 32GB, 64GB, 128GB* (*build to order)
- Speed
- Max Sequential Read/Write speed: 250/250MB/s
- Sustained Random 4k Read/Write: 3,750/9,800 IOPS
- PCMARK Vantage HHD Suite score: 22,250
- Supports TRIM and SMART commands
- Dimensions 75.29 x 22.98 x 16.44mm
- Operating temperature 32°F to 140°F (0°C to 60°C)
- Storage temperature -4°F to 185°F (-20°C to 85°C)
Verdict:
Kingston’s DataTraveler Workspace is a extremely efficient Windows To Go drive which comes with Windows 8 built in and you can start using Windows 8 in just 5 minutes. The design is good and so is the build quality, but since the width of the drive is large, you might block nearby USB slots when this is in use. Overall, Kingston’s DataTraveller is totally worth the price if you want to have the power of Windows 8 on an USB drive.
