Flash memory storage media has become the most popular form of portable storage in the world today notably because of the ease of use and flexibility of USB devices and helped along by both the reliability of USB flash memory and of course the ever increasing amount of data that these devices can now hold, which is a plus point for many users.
Recently though the reliability of these devices has come under a lot of scrutiny as the failure rate of what is normally very reliable technology has escalated to previously unseen levels. Data recovery companies around the world are fielding increasing number s of enquiries and have geared their operations to cope. So what is the problem here?
As with any storage technology over time costs drop and adoption increases and the humble USB memory stick is testament to this paradigm. From the time the technology went mainstream it has had a massive growth rate and recent years have seen a doubling of sales year on year . The expectation for the end of this year is expected top be circa three hundred million.
With such large quantities of devices arriving in consumer's hands, there is, of course bound to be a number of failures experienced in the field. What data recovery experts at Flash Data Recovery have found is that failure rates could be running at up to 5% - this relates to a tremendously high number of devices failing in the field, up to 15 000 000 devices per year!
Given the previous reliability of USB storage media why then is there an increase in the ratio of failures? Investigations tend to have a common theme and a common result. In a majority of reported cases the actual flash memory in the device has not failed at all and is in perfect working order.
Consumer demand for cheaper goods and services invariably leads to driving manufacturing abroad and in this case to the far east where a lot of the premature failed devices seem to originate. The biggest culprits seem to be the generic unbranded memory sticks found cheap on auction sites. Notably though there is also a huge increase in the number of fake devices finding there way to the market.
These fake devices are intended to appeal to the greed emotion that is prevalent in all but a few consumers , but just because it is cheaper does not mean it is better. The manufacturing process may be cheaper in different world economies but the other factor that is immeasurable by the consumer is the quality of the components.Lower standard components are cheaper but just don't last the distance in a lot of cases.
The best advice that anyone can give you here is to buy branded devices if the cost is affordable (which it generally is). And also ask your self this question, is the risk of losing all my data really worth risk of saving a relatively small amount of money? - 16089
Recently though the reliability of these devices has come under a lot of scrutiny as the failure rate of what is normally very reliable technology has escalated to previously unseen levels. Data recovery companies around the world are fielding increasing number s of enquiries and have geared their operations to cope. So what is the problem here?
As with any storage technology over time costs drop and adoption increases and the humble USB memory stick is testament to this paradigm. From the time the technology went mainstream it has had a massive growth rate and recent years have seen a doubling of sales year on year . The expectation for the end of this year is expected top be circa three hundred million.
With such large quantities of devices arriving in consumer's hands, there is, of course bound to be a number of failures experienced in the field. What data recovery experts at Flash Data Recovery have found is that failure rates could be running at up to 5% - this relates to a tremendously high number of devices failing in the field, up to 15 000 000 devices per year!
Given the previous reliability of USB storage media why then is there an increase in the ratio of failures? Investigations tend to have a common theme and a common result. In a majority of reported cases the actual flash memory in the device has not failed at all and is in perfect working order.
Consumer demand for cheaper goods and services invariably leads to driving manufacturing abroad and in this case to the far east where a lot of the premature failed devices seem to originate. The biggest culprits seem to be the generic unbranded memory sticks found cheap on auction sites. Notably though there is also a huge increase in the number of fake devices finding there way to the market.
These fake devices are intended to appeal to the greed emotion that is prevalent in all but a few consumers , but just because it is cheaper does not mean it is better. The manufacturing process may be cheaper in different world economies but the other factor that is immeasurable by the consumer is the quality of the components.Lower standard components are cheaper but just don't last the distance in a lot of cases.
The best advice that anyone can give you here is to buy branded devices if the cost is affordable (which it generally is). And also ask your self this question, is the risk of losing all my data really worth risk of saving a relatively small amount of money? - 16089
About the Author:
Author Bio: Mike White is a technology journalist specialising in business computing, Raid Data Recovery, Raid Recovery computer hardware and design and technology trends.
