INTRODUCTION

   Every single time i think about how much our storage capacity needs have increased compared to even just 10 years ago i can't help but to wonder what the future has in store for us especially when we finally get digital content in 4k resolution (not to mention the upcoming 6k and 8k standards). The most "troublesome" part however is portable storage since although we've even seen some 4TB portable hard drives when it comes to USB flash drives not even a single manufacturer has released anything over 1TB (at least not in the consumer market). For now however even 128/256GB USB flash drives are considered "overkill" for the majority of consumers (most people i know still carry around 8/16GB models with them) and since Mushkin just released their IMPACT line (first unveiled in this year’s CES) we just had to get our hands on the highest capacity model for a review.

   For nearly 20 years, Mushkin has been dedicated to helping overclockers, gamers, IT managers, digital artists and mobile professionals enhance their computing experience by providing reliable, high-performance products. Mushkin products include a line of Flash Memory-based products and complete selection of memory upgrades for desktops, notebooks and servers. Since the company’s founding in 1994, Mushkin has received numerous awards and commendations for quality, reliability and technical excellence.

   Unlike several other manufacturers i was surprised (in a good way actually) to see that Mushkin has yet to "rename" their latest USB products to USB 3.1 Gen1 so the IMPACT is marketed as yet another USB 3.0 flash drive. Under the hood things are quite interesting since the IMPACT is basically a tiny SSD that uses the Phison PS2251-08 dual-channel ultra-high-speed USB 3.0-to-Flash micro-controller chip (supports wear-leveling for increased durability) and Toshiba MLC flash. This isn't the first time we've seen such specifications, as a matter of fact most high-performance flash drives lately follow the same path (for example the HyperX Savage and the Ventura Ultra drives) so although usually we know just what kind of performance to expect the compact size of the IMPACT drive and its high capacity are two aspects that make things far more interesting.