USB Memory Drive Creativity

If you're still handing out press kits and detailed product information on CDs instead of USB memory devices, you need to get with the times. Notebooks, ultrabooks, and tablets don't have CD drives. And if you are handing out flash drives, you should look at shelling out a few extra dollars for something that really stands out.

The picture you see accompanying this piece should give you a good idea of the many different styles of USB devices that are available.  

I picked up these different drives when I was running around at CES (News - Alert) 2012 from meeting to meeting and the different devices in the picture are a good snapshot of creative ways companies have moved away from a "stock" drive to something a bit more interesting. After all, if you're going to give someone something with your company logo on it, you want it to be conversation piece they will hold onto and actually use rather than getting tossed into a drawer.

At the 3 o'clock position on the circle, there's a stock memory drive with the Corning (News - Alert) Gorilla Glass logo. Compare it to the petite Zienon device in the center at about maybe a third the size when it is folded up. Moving clockwise, the Fraunhofer keychain/memory drive combo and the generic 4 GB SanDisk (News - Alert) blue slider are a bit bigger; the Fraunhofer is a solid metal construct, so you can throw it in your pocket with a set of keys (so long as you slid the connector back) and expect it to survive without damage.

The real boo-boo on the SanDisk giveaway is a lack of a company logo imprint -- no stickers, no laser etch, no screen print, nothing. In contrast, the "Netgear (News - Alert) Green" USB drive pops out. The memory storage is put in a bamboo box, with a pair of magnets holding the cover over the connector.

Audience's USB giveaway has a couple of interesting features going on. The purple "earSmart" lanyard has a 4 GB USB drive hidden in the clip and is sealed in a plastic bag to prevent tampering. It's a nice touch.

At the 11 o'clock position, Conexant handed out a combination memory connector/ bottle opener; the USB connector slides into the "handle."  

DSP Group's key at the top of the clock is a solid contraption guaranteed to set off an airport metal detector, with the USB connector at the end. It comes with a solid metal key ring so you can throw it in your pocket, but the drawback is the plastic cover over the connector; I'm not sure if it would stay into place after a day of jingling around in a pocket with keys and change.

Closing the circle, the Supertooth (News - Alert) USB memory drive is surrounded by a soft rubber case that is designed to look like the company's car speakerphone.  It's different, but it's hard to put a lot of detail into the model.

If you don't have the cash to make your own customized USB memory device, you may want to simply buy a selection of different types -- animals, sports, sushi, Angry Birds -- and let people pick their own drive.