InnoDisk Develops Lighter, Tougher USB Flash Drives

The security (and safety) of one's personal data is an extremely important issue nowadays and this is the reason why it's always a good idea to choose a tough (and a bit more expensive) portable storage solution rather than a cheap one, which might give in to the slightest shocks. And since in the case of USB Flash drives, the most sensitive part is the connector (which is generally exposed), the Taiwanese company InnoDisk has decided to improve this design and launched an USB flash memory drive that has a connector block made of polyetheretherketone (PEEK) integrated with the main body.

Thus, according to the Japanese website TechOn, it would seem that the use of resin (which is provided by a company called Victrex Plc. and has quite a high flexibility in design) can have some pretty beneficial effects, as it can reduce both the product weight and the production cost. Furthermore, said material has some pretty interesting physical features as well, as for example a high resistance to abrasion and heat as well as a high dimensional stability.

Since the dimensions of metal connectors used in USB memories are standardized by the USB specification, the company had to find some other way to make its device smaller. Thus, besides using the aforementioned resin for the connector block instead of metal (which, by the way, is a lot harder to work with), the company has also reduced the thickness of the drive's main body, in order to match that of the connector block. The result is a drive with a thickness of 4.6mm and a weight of around 3 grams.

Furthermore, the people over at InnoDisk have managed to streamline the production process by reducing the number of separate sub-processes involved, thus further reducing the time required for manufacturing an unit, as well as the overall production costs.

There's no word on the pricing or availability of this new brand of flash drives, but it seems that the company intends to showcase the new drive at SEMICON Japan 2007 scheduled for Dec 5-7, 2007.

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