Testing

To test flash drives the best thing I have found is the Flash Memory Toolkit, availible at www.flashmemorytoolkit.com The free trial allows many of the features to be used, including the two tests that I used.  These combined with a handful of spare flash drives I have laying around provide for a decent comparison.  These tests were run using a USB 2.0 port directly on the motherboard, and all drives were plugged into the same port.

Tests Run:

1. Low-Level Benchmark - This test measures the read speed of the drive.  Provides the average results in MegaBytes per Second, and an "X" Factor ie. This is marketed as a 200x flash drive.

2. File Benchmark - Measures how long it will take to read or write files of various lengths to the device.  Provides the actual speeds to read / write 1MB to 5MB files in KiloBytes per Second.  I will be listing the 1MB, 3MB, and 5MB results for each drive.

Tested Drives:

1. OCZ Rally2 4GB

2. Super Talent Pico_C 8GB

3. Sandisk Cruzer Micro 512MB

4. ADATA PD17 4GB

5. Patriot Xporter XT 4GB

Here are the actual results from the File Benchmark test on the Rally2.  The results will be summarized with the other drives.

Here are the actual results from the Low-Level Benchmark test on the Rally2.  I was amazed at how stable this drive was.  I ran the test twice to make sure that my program wasn't having issues.  Most drives seem to swing like a rollercoaster, but the Rally2 was incredibly even throughout the test.