It has a metal casing with a loop for a keychain, and it is very slim. It has a Lightning plug for iPhones and iPads at one end and flips to reveal a USB-C plug at the other, so you can transfer files to or from Android devices and laptops. If you want a flash drive to back up and copy photos and other files from your smartphone, I like the iXpand Luxe. Subscriptions help fund the work we do every day. com and our print magazine (if you'd like). Special offer for Gear readers: Get a 1-year subscription to WIRED for $5 ($25 off). Updated June 2023: We added drives from PNY and Kingston, and updated prices throughout. And don't forget to back up your digital life. If you need more than 1 terabyte of storage, check out our guide to the Best Portable Storage Drives. They are affordable, small enough to fit on a keychain, and boast ever-increasing capacities and data transfer speeds.Īfter testing many, we've found these to be the best USB flash drives for various purposes and budgets. Also known as thumb drives or memory sticks, flash drives provide storage to back up precious photos, play movies on the big screen, or copy files from one phone or laptop to another.
Once ubiquitous, USB flash drives have declined in popularity with the advent of the cloud, but these portable devices have a lot to offer.
