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USB Technical Tips

Clear, practical answers to the technical questions that come up around USB drives. Our Technical Tips explain memory sizes and real-world capacity, USB 2.0 versus 3.0 data transfer speeds, formatting and file systems, troubleshooting unreadable or corrupted drives, and how to get the best performance and reliability from branded flash storage. Written in plain English for everyday users and IT buyers alike, these guides help you specify the right custom USB stick for the job and avoid common pitfalls before you order. Whether you're preloading content for a campaign or simply want a drive that performs, the articles below give you the technical grounding, from a UK supplier that builds bespoke USBs every day.

How to Measure USB Data Transfer Speeds
Blog, USB Technical Tips
Jun 12, 2023

How to Measure USB Data Transfer Speeds

The term USB is an acronym for “Universal Serial Bus”. The “bus” refers to a circuit connection that is used to transmit…

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How to Use a USB Drive to Lock and Unlock your PC
Blog, USB Technical Tips
Jun 4, 2023

How to Use a USB Drive to Lock and Unlock your PC

Much of our lives are now played out in a digital realm, and when you consider some of the personal information, let…

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USB Data Packets Explained
Blog, USB Technical Tips
May 25, 2023

USB Data Packets Explained

USB data packets play an intrinsic role in USB communication protocols. When a device is attached via a USB port, whether that…

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My USB is Corrupted and Unreadable on Windows: How Do I Fix It?
Blog, USB Technical Tips
May 15, 2023

My USB is Corrupted and Unreadable on Windows: How Do I Fix It?

If you’ve recently plugged in your USB drive into your Windows device, and you’re greeted with the following error message: There’s a…

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What is Wear Leveling?
Blog, USB Technical Tips
May 9, 2023

What is Wear Leveling?

Wear leveling is a means to prolong the lifespan of a range of erasable storage devices which utilise flash memory. These devices…

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What is Windows ReadyBoost & How Does it Work?
Blog, USB Technical Tips
Apr 4, 2023

What is Windows ReadyBoost & How Does it Work?

In 2007, Microsoft unveiled a brand new disk caching feature, known as ReadyBoost which was initially intended to make Windows Vista’s operating…

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How Long Can a USB Stick Hold Your Data?
Blog, USB Technical Tips
Apr 4, 2023

How Long Can a USB Stick Hold Your Data?

Flash drives have been a familiar presence in our everyday lives for almost as long as many of us can remember, even…

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Data Blocker & Why You Need One
Blog, USB Technical Tips
Jan 11, 2023

Data Blocker & Why You Need One

If you ever find your smart battery running low, then public charging ports can really be your saviour. But using these charging…

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How to Encrypt a USB Flash Drive
Blog, USB Technical Tips
Jan 2, 2023

How to Encrypt a USB Flash Drive

Do you use your Branded USB Stick to store and transport data, some of which may be of a sensitive nature. But,…

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How Flash Drives Are Made
Blog, USB Technical Tips
Dec 9, 2022

How Flash Drives Are Made

  On the outside USB drives are simple looking devices, which many of us are very familiar with using. This familiarity is…

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How to Fix a Water Damaged USB Flash Drive
Blog, USB Technical Tips
Oct 26, 2022

How to Fix a Water Damaged USB Flash Drive

Most flash drives are designed to be incredibly small and portable. While this is great for the most part, it means they…

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6 Ways to Fix Slow USB Transfer Speeds in Windows
Blog, USB Technical Tips
Sep 30, 2022

6 Ways to Fix Slow USB Transfer Speeds in Windows

If you’ve just purchased a new branded USB, or indeed any other kind of USB device and noticed incredibly slow read and…

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USB Saying It’s Full When It’s Not: Why is This Happening?
Blog, USB Technical Tips
Sep 30, 2022

USB Saying It’s Full When It’s Not: Why is This Happening?

USB drives are one of the most trustworthy and reliable means of holding and transferring data, however, as with any electronic device,…

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macOS Monterey USB Bug Fixes
Blog, Featured Posts, USB Technical Tips
Sep 8, 2022

macOS Monterey USB Bug Fixes

If you rely heavily on USB drives, don’t upgrade to macOS Monterey! Why? There have been countless cases of USB Hubs, SSD’s…

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Top 4 Branded Tech products to make working from home easy
Blog, Featured Posts, Marketing Tips
Jun 9, 2022

Top 4 Branded Tech products to make working from home easy

Covid-19 has affected all of our lives in many different ways. The past year has been challenging to say the least and…

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USB Guide: Versions, Connections & Standards
Blog, Featured Posts, USB Technical Tips
Mar 30, 2020

USB Guide: Versions, Connections & Standards

  As the name suggests, the Universal Serial Port or USB is a widely used standard implemented in a wide variety of…

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Branded USB Sticks Buyer’s Guide: What UK Businesses Need to Know Before Ordering
Blog, Marketing Tips, USB Technical Tips
Mar 18, 2020

Branded USB Sticks Buyer’s Guide: What UK Businesses Need to Know Before Ordering

Updated on 6 April 2026 Ordering branded USB sticks for a promotional campaign, corporate event, or client gift should be straightforward. In…

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How Many Times Can I Reuse My USB Flash Drive?
Blog, Featured Posts, USB Technical Tips
Feb 5, 2020

How Many Times Can I Reuse My USB Flash Drive?

It’s a question, we’re often asked here, at USB Makers, “how many times can I reuse my branded USB flash drive?” USB…

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How Does a Flash Drive Work and What’s Inside It?
Blog, Featured Posts, USB Technical Tips
Dec 12, 2019

How Does a Flash Drive Work and What’s Inside It?

Branded USB drives are relatively simple devices on the outside; compact and easy to operate, which is why it’s so easy to…

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What are OTG USB Drives?
Blog, USB Technical Tips
Aug 21, 2019

What are OTG USB Drives?

The Rhea USB drive is a graceful branded USB stick featuring a smooth, curved metallic body that fits comfortably in the hand…

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USB Flash Drive Data Preloading
Blog, USB Services, USB Technical Tips
May 6, 2019

USB Flash Drive Data Preloading

After spending time choosing the right Custom USB flash drive to suit your branding, making sure your logo looks on point, and…

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History of the USB Flash Drive
Blog, Featured Posts, USB Technical Tips
Mar 21, 2019

History of the USB Flash Drive

USB Sticks have had a long and winding road over the past 30 years, with multiple types of flash chips, it is…

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What is USB 3.0?
Blog, USB Services, USB Technical Tips
May 22, 2018

What is USB 3.0?

First introduced in the 1990s, the humble branded USB stick has become an essential everyday item in both work and home life…

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About USB Memory Sticks – Universal Serial Bus
Blog, USB Technical Tips
May 3, 2018

About USB Memory Sticks – Universal Serial Bus

USB Flash Drives (also known as a memory stick or pen drive)A flash drive is a compact storage device that is used…

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The Main Benefits of USB 3.0
Blog, USB Technical Tips
Apr 30, 2018

The Main Benefits of USB 3.0

A USB 3.0 interface can significantly reduce storage and transfer times for external hard drives, USB drives, and camera memory cards, which…

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What are the different grades of USB Flash Drives?
Blog, USB Technical Tips
Apr 27, 2018

What are the different grades of USB Flash Drives?

You may have heard the term A Grade Chip when talking about USB Flash drives. Most people think this is a generic…

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How the Simple USB has changed Computing
Blog, USB Technical Tips
Nov 23, 2015

How the Simple USB has changed Computing

In the digital world we now live in, we can sometimes take for granted the technology at our fingertips but if we…

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How to create a password-protected (encrypted) disk image
Blog, USB Technical Tips
Sep 15, 2015

How to create a password-protected (encrypted) disk image

Creating a disk image or a copy of the entire contents of your hard drive, DVD, or CD can be a life…

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What’s The Secret to Plugging in My USB the Right Way Around?
Blog, USB Technical Tips
Aug 17, 2015

What’s The Secret to Plugging in My USB the Right Way Around?

We have all been there – we are sat at a desk, we have a USB stick, we plug it in and it…

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Promotional USB Memory Sticks History I: The Origins
Blog, USB Technical Tips
Mar 4, 2014

Promotional USB Memory Sticks History I: The Origins

What are USBs? When were they developed? When did they start being used in the mainstream? These are all questions I hope…

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