Staples Relay Flash Drive- Too Vulnerable

This is handy, but didnt stand up well to the abuse anything on my key ring must endure.

This was the very first flash drive I ever bought, and I actually got it for free with an order of stuff from Staples.It only holds 256K of data, but thats an OK amount for stuff in a hot file sort of application.

The body of the drive swivels out from a somewhat protective cover.But the drive insert portion is not really capped, but only shielded.The whole thing is metal, with a short nylon lanyard attached to a ring.I had doubts right off the bat about how well it would hold up for me, being subjected to dirt and rough handling on my key ring.But I decided to try it because it was handy to keep a few files with me.And I lose anything thats not attached.

Ive had it for about 4 years.This summer it began giving me errors.Still works most of the time, but how would you be able to count on it in a pinch?And, of course, by todays standards it is way too low on memory.

They actually still make this style in an 8 GB drive for $45.And I see some other brands that work the same way . But I cant recommend them.I think that its just too easy for damage to occur.Its one thing for a free drive to fail.Id sure feel differently about a $45 one with a lot of data on it!