Pen Drive – History and Facts

Often referred to as a jumpdrive, the pen drive is a portable flash memory solution, designed to transport data files from one computer to another. The product can carry audio, video, and data files, and it’s brilliantly simple; all the user has to do is plug the pen drive into a computer’s USB port, drag and drop the necessary files from the hard drive, remove it, and plug it into another machine.

Durable, portable, and scratch resistant, the pen drive is a marked improvement over previous data transport devices such as CDs and floppy disks, and a constant source of relief and graduation for millions of people around the world. .

The history

At the dawn of the new millennium, it became clear that traditional storage solutions were no longer up to the task. People now needed to move large files between computers in the blink of an eye, using intermediate technology that was quick to set up, easy to transport, and hard to damage. A handful of software companies, including SanDisk (then known as M-Systems), Lexar, Trek, and IBM, began working on a solution to meet these needs.

His solution was the revolutionary USB flash drive, which gradually developed in the last years of the 20th century. In 2000, Trek released the first flash drive, called the Thumb Drive, in Singapore, and IBM introduced a similar model to the North American market. Just a few months later, Lexar introduced a Compact Flash (CF) card with a USB connection and add-on read/write card and USB cable; this eliminated the need for a USB hub and allowed the pen/flash drive to enjoy meteoric growth for the next decade.

How does it work

Each flash drive includes a small printed circuit board (or PCB) to store data, a USB connector, and a NAND flash memory chip that uses multi-cell level technology; this innovative solution was first developed by SanDisk and Toshiba in 2005. The component technologies are encased within a durable outer casing, made of metal, rubber or plastic, and the USB connector can be encased in an outer cap or protected by a shrink strip. which allows the user to remove the connector when not in use.

The name pen drive is actually an anachronism; drives generally rely on mechanical systems, but this little gem doesn’t. The term drive remains a vestigial nod to the past because computers read and write data from the flash drive using the same system commands as for a mechanical disk drive, with the storage appearing to the computer’s operating system and interface. user as one more unit.

meteoric growth

In less than 10 years, the pen drive has gone from being an optional extra for techies to an indispensable staple for all computer users. People have found more and more reasons to use a flash drive and have been encouraged by the rapid increases in storage capacity; Early pen drives had space for only 8MB, but this soon increased as technology improved. Nowadays, you can choose a flash drive with a capacity of 128 GB, as long as you are willing to pay the maximum price for the privilege.

The growth of the USB flash drive has made the old floppy disk almost obsolete. Until 2005, most PCs were equipped with floppy drives as standard. Now, faced with the ubiquity of the pen drive, designers are ditching the old drives and installing USB ports instead. The revolution is almost complete!