CONCLUSION

   Normally whenever i test a USB flash drive i expect end results that will surpass its advertised performance and 8 out of 10 times that's exactly what happens. Unfortunately this was not the case with the Extreme PRO 128GB USB 3.0 flash drive by SanDisk since it wasn't really able to achieve its advertised read/write speeds (the highest we recorded was 208.089MB/s read and 199.6MB/s write) and that's basically the only "drawback" i can think of. Of course even the recorded speeds are not to be taken lightly since there aren't many flash drives in the market that can match them and i think that says a lot. The aluminum casing looks very nice and is quite sturdy although i would like it much more if the Extreme PRO featured a rugged water-proof casing again by aluminum. Moving to the bundled software suites they can certainly come in handy but i don't know how professionals will look at AES 128bit encryption to safeguard their sensitive data especially when there are quite a few models out there that feature AES 256Bit (in lower capacities however).

   USB flash drive prices have dropped quite a bit compared to even just a year ago but high capacity models still cost quite a bit and so the SanDisk Extreme PRO 128GB USB 3.0 flash drive currently retails for USD150 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and 132Euros inside the EU (Amazon.co.uk).Compared to a similar product like the DataTraveler HyperX 128GB USB 3.0 Flash Drive by Kingston the Extreme PRO 128GB USB 3.0 Flash Drive by SanDisk is priced slightly higher and it doesn't feature a rugged housing, instead however it's faster in some tests (although it seems both drives are trading blows mostly) and features an elegant aluminum housing so in the end it's all about what you consider more important. SanDisk has created an elegant and very fast USB 3.0 Flash Drive with enough capacity to cover even the most demanding users and that's why it gets our Golden Award.

PROS

- Build Quality (Aluminum Casing)
- Read/Write Speeds (208MBs/199MBs)
- Storage Capacity (128GB)
- Software Bundle (SecureAccess/RescuePRO Deluxe)
- Lifetime Warranty

CONS

- Price (For Some)
- Could Not Achieve Advertised Performance