One of The Test Pit's first ever reviews was of the DatAshur Secure USB Flashdrive. Massively impressed with the drive's ability to encrypt your saved data, which is then only accessible after entering a pin number on the physical keypad, we've kept a close eye on maker iStorage. That's why we were very happy to test their latest weapon in the fight against data theft, the DatAshur Personal.
Just like it's predecessor, the name of the game with the Personal is to enter a passkey directly into the drive's keypad to gain access to the saved files within. We found the process of setting this up was pretty simple and exactly the same process utilised by the Secure. In fact what we have here is essentially the same product with some notable differences.
Whereas the Secure was all business with its tough, military-looking case and no nonsense colours, the Personal is a little more stylish and pleasing on the eye. The body of the drive has been rounded off, the large metal ring has been replaced by a subtle loop, and the price has come down to more attractive amounts.
Although you can now pick up an 8GB version from iStorage for less than £30 (as opposed to around £60 18 months ago) nothing has been cut from the level of security the Personal offers. Once it is removed from your PC (running either Windows, Mac, Linux, Citric or Android) the device will automatically lock, requiring the passkey to function again.
In practice we found that the DatAshur Personal was pretty identical to the DatAshur Secure, just with a more pleasing aesthetic. If you have sensitive personal or work documents and files to transport about, and fear what would happen if they ever fell into the wrong hands, this is definitely for you.
