SanDisk's new wireless flash drive kills two birds with one stone

[Shawn Knight]

SanDisk has come up with a clever take on a common PC accessory that kills two birds with one stone. Its new wireless mobile flash drive is designed to make it easier to transfer files between devices while simultaneously extending your mobile device’s local storage.

The SanDisk Connect Wireless Stick packs between 16GB and 128GB of storage with pricing ranging from $39.99 to $99.99 depending on the model you select. The device looks like your average USB flash drive (perhaps a little on the chunky side) and can connect to devices using the USB connector or wirelessly via 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi.

The gadget is battery-powered and can simultaneously connect to three devices at once. It can be used to transport or store whatever type of media you wish. If it’s video or music files you desire, the stick can stream them without having to transfer them over to the source device using the SanDisk Connect app for Android, iOS, Mac and PC. A full charge is said to render 4.5 hours of usage in single stream mode.

We’ve seen similar such devices in the past like Kingston’s Wi-Fi Drive but the added flexibility of having a built-in USB connector will no doubt come in handy.

SanDisk’s solution certainly fills a need when you consider micro SD card slots on smartphones are on the way out (Apple mobile devices have never had them). The industry is pushing the idea of cloud storage as a viable alternative although not everyone is anxious to send their media to the cloud. The Connect Wireless Stick lets you store your data locally but then again, it’s yet another gadget you need to keep charged and remember to bring with you or else it’s pretty much useless.

The SanDisk Connect Wireless Stick is available for purchase as of writing.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/61403-sandisk-new-wireless-flash-drive-kills-two-birds.html

 

[RustyTech]

"...when you consider micro SD card slots on smartphones are on the way out."

Just because a prominent phone maker decides to experiment by not including the microSD slot, does not mean this tech is on the way out. There is REAL need for this, and if the big S doesn't want to include this in their phones, people will find other phones that do have this capability.
Lets not forget just how bad sales were/are for the S6.

 

[Guest]

+1 Micro SD cards are a stable for any real mobile power users any company thinking they are on the way out most be confusing them with SD and flash cards which have indeed been on the decline since MicroSD cards are taking over everything.

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

"...when you consider micro SD card slots on smartphones are on the way out."

Just because a prominent phone maker decides to experiment by not including the microSD slot, does not mean this tech is on the way out. There is REAL need for this, and if the big S doesn't want to include this in their phones, people will find other phones that do have this capability.
Lets not forget just how bad sales were/are for the S6.

I would go so far as to say over 10 million devices sold is bad sales, especially when you consider the things price. Some countries have less than 10 mil in population.

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

(Apple mobile devices have never had them)
Thats true. If they had then Apple wouldn't have been able to charge $100 per gig storage and that could've upset their good nights sleep.

 

[Guest]

Having a microSD slot is nice but not really necessary. Both my tablets have them but I don't really use them often. I stream most of my files from my NAS. And when I travel I just use an OTG cable and a flash drive. You can even buy a flash drive that has a microSD connection so it can be used on a tablet or phone. I should mention I use Android devices that support it. Apple sheep might be more impressed with this device.

 

[BSim500]

So yet another device to carry around that needs yet another battery to remember to charge, to compensate for a few brainless +$500 "smart" phone designs that lack a simple Micro-SD card slot which even some cheap "dumb" $30 Nokia's come with? The only thing "too trendy for a Micro-SD card" 'smart' phones do for me is scream out "This phone makes a rubbish MP3 player"...