USB drives are something of a necessity these days, seeing as most everything and everyone takes advantage of a computer. Whether you’re using the drive to transfer files at school, work or home it stands to reason you need the drive to remain intact for an extended period of time.

If you’re smart you already have a backup of the data stored on your flash drive, but that’s not always the case. Realistically, there are times when you only have one copy of a file, and it happens to be stored on a USB flash drive. If something were to happen to the drive, which isn’t that out of the question, then the file or data would be lost. That is frightfully grim news indeed.

Considering most flash drives aren’t meant to withstand extreme conditions or serious physical harm, it is extremely easy to lose sensitive data. Even just losing the flash drive itself can cause irreparable harm.

Do you not agree that it is time for a more secure, portable storage device?

Cue in the LaCie RuggedKey, a durable, heavy-duty flash drive designed to withstand any amount of rough treatment.

The LaCie RuggedKey USB Flash Drive

The LaCie RuggedKey is an extremely durable flash drive designed to withstand extreme conditions, while retaining the data stored internally. With the RuggedKey, the stored data will remain protected from physical harm, and it also includes various security measures to protect sensitive information from outside intrusions.

Rather than continuously hyping this baby, we’ll go over the biggest features of the RuggedKey and let you decide if it’s worth your hard earned money.

Sky High Drop Resistance

The LaCie RuggedKey is 100M drop resistant, which essentially means that even if you drop the drive from high up the sucker won’t break. LaCie even has a video of a World Champion Skydiver, Alexandre Gillard, dropping the RuggedKey from 100M in the air.

The RuggedKey is protected from almost all elements including extreme heat, cold and water. The heat and cold resistance ensures the device will retain data even in the hottest, or coldest, of climates. In addition, the LaCie RuggedKey is IP-54 certified, which means it is totally resistant to damage from dust and water projection.

High Speed Transfer Capable

The RuggedKey is capable of speeds in excess of 150MB/s when plugged into a USB 3.0 input. That means, with the average 8GB video transfer size, it takes 8 seconds total to copy the file to the drive. Of course, the RuggedKey is also backward compatible with USB 2.0.

But Wait… There Are More Features Included With The LaCie RuggedKey!

No, we’re not talking about a free set of kitchen knives that are included with the purchased of a RuggedKey, we’re just talking about more features the device has.

Security & Encryption Support

The RuggedKey also includes AES 256-bit encryption support, which means that you can password protect any personal data, and it will be securely locked away. Confidential information will remain secure even if you lose the USB drive, and we all know that can happen easily.

Additional Cloud Storage Included

With the purchase of a RuggedKey, LaCie also offers cloud storage support from Wuala. Bundled with the RuggedKey is a year of one-to-one cloud storage through Wuala services. That means if you buy a 16GB RuggedKey you will also receive 16GB of cloud storage space courtesy of Wuala.

Wuala even offers a mobile app so that you can access your files on the go from any connected mobile device.

The LaCie RuggedKey is Available Now

The RuggedKey USB Drive is available in two different models, both of which contain the same features and specifications except for the storage capacity.

• The 16GB RuggedKey includes a 2 year limited manufacturer’s warranty, an additional 16GB of cloud storage space through Wuala and costs $39.99.
• The 32GB RuggedKey includes the same 2 year limited manufacturer’s warranty, an additional 32GB of cloud storage space through Wuala and costs $69.99.

If you decide that you want one, the RuggedKey flash drive can be purchased from LaCie directly via their official website.