It works fine, but its structural integrity is compromised, and if it was ever waterproof, it sure isn’t now. The F150’s shell cracked after four hits.Still, I wouldn’t be comfortable hitting it any more. I was worried that the R500 would have real internal damage, as it appears to have no internal shell, but it worked fine. The Survivor and the R500 showed no visible damage.Five or six smart hits from various angles, about as hard as you’d want to hit a nail. Update: I then (after being chided for taking it easy on the drives, kind of true) took a hammer to them. The F150, the most like “normal” drives, has no protection, but is constructed of metal.The Survivor’s rubber banding also protected it, but if it were to drop on an irregular surface (rocks) it’s not as protected as the R500.The DT R500 worried me the least its thick rubberized outer layer let it bounce harmlessly.I don’t expect it to crack, of course, but it just seemed like it was hitting the ground pretty hard. The LaCie, being the heaviest, worried me the most despite being extremely solid.Most small drives should be able to withstand this without cracking or anything, but sometimes you can jar the internals enough to loosen or dislodge them. The first thing I did was drop all of these drives ten times, from a height of ten feet, onto a hardwood floor. Also, none of these drives are USB 3.0, just in case you’re looking for that. Most drives will survive a few falls or a splash of coffee, but it’s legit to want one that’s made for it.

There’s not a lot that can go wrong - but a poorly-built drive will fall apart, and of course there’s the price you pay for peace of mind. I should say at the outset that USB flash drives are naturally rugged, being essentially just a few memory chips, a drive controller, and a USB interface. Today we’re testing the Corsair Survivor, Imation F150, Kingston R500, and the LaCie Xtremkey. I thought it’d be worth taking a closer look at these to see whether they live up to their rugged pedigree, and whether that pedigree is worth the money to begin with.

The big flash drive sellers all have entries in this category, some newer than others. After all, if you plan on having it with you everywhere you go, there’s a good chance this thing is going to get dropped, sat on, spilled on, and otherwise beaten up. Flash drives are a dime a dozen these days, so if you’re going to actually spend money on one, it may as well be one that can take a little abuse.

Imation flash drive support