In the past few years we have seen many technological changes taking place. Floppy disk drive was transformed into much smaller drives called Pen drives. This in turn helps us in storing our data and carrying it safely for further use. The tech-savvy people always pined for something that can easily store huge amount of files and documents, for this 'Pen Drives' came as a solution. Transporting data has become easier with this small yet power packed device.

Basically, the USB flash drives are NAND- type flash memory data storage devices, which are integrated with a USB connector. You can rewrite the document in it time and again. They are small, lightweight and removable. Pen drives have many advantages over other portable devices. They can hold more data, are compact, run faster and are reliable because of their design and compatibility. As compared to the floppy drives, they are more durable. Furthermore, it has become the most commonly used device for today's generation.

These pen drives use the USB mass storage standards that are supported by Windows, Mac OS X and other Linux systems. Data retrieval for both Apple Macintosh or Microsoft Windows operating system for formatting and deletion is provided by the major manufactures like Jet flash, Sony, Apacer, Sandisk, Lexar, Ritek Ridata, Transcend, Kingston, Super media and Super Flash. Among them Transcend and Kingston are making waves in the pen drive industry. Though small in size, they can store massive data. Transcend 2GB pen drives and Kingston DTI 4GB drives are the most sought after in their category.

Pen drives ranging from 32 MB to 8 GB are 5600 times more fast than any 1.44 MB floppy disk. Compatible with all PC's and Laptops they are very convenient to use and reuse. These drives just need to be plugged into the USB port of your computer or laptop and your machine automatically detects it.

With cut throat competition in the market, the manufacturers are now trying to imbibe new technological features in them. Features like the MP3 playback; built-in Cameras, fingerprint biometric privacy etc are already doing rounds in the market. These USB pen drives are surely going to engulf the world in their small space.