Lexar's new flash drives prove why physical storage still matters

Although cloud storage has supplanted the use of USB flash storage for quick file transfers in many workplaces these days, some people still need that physical storage. This is especially true among those likely to find themselves in adverse conditions such as photographers. For people who are afraid of their devices getting wet or banged around, it is good to have something that is reliably rugged. Durable flash drives currently exist to meet the needs of this market, but upgraded storage options never hurt.

Lexar's new JumpDrive Tough drives use USB 3.1, but they keep the Type-A connector. While USB Type-C is slowly supplanting Type-A, it is not close to becoming the primary USB connector in most people's lives yet. Using USB 3.1, however, should offer some nice speed improvements. The JumpDrive Tough can reach speeds of 150Mbps for reading data and 60Mbps for writing.

The flash drives are available with capacities of 32, 64 or 128GB. Those traveling around in extreme conditions can be comforted by the fact that the drives can withstand pressure up to 750 PSI, temperatures between -13 and 300 F and water up to 98ft. The JumpDrive Tough also employs Lexar's own EncryptStick Lite 256-bit AES encryption to ensure the contents of the drives stay secure if someone does happen to lose one.

It is rare that a user needs this level of protection for a thumb drive, but this market niche is still important enough to target. The products also are not that expensive, all things considered. They start at $20 for 32GB and go up to $35 for 64GB and $60 for 128GB. That is not bad for a flash memory that can withstand these kinds of conditions.