Not much happens in the world of USB drives. But, when something new and innovative comes along, it definitely benefits the world to know about it. SanDisk – the one name that’s synonymous with USB drives – has just developed a new USB called the Extreme 3.0. Not only is this drive bigger and faster than all the rest, but it also stands out from the USB crowd, quite literally. In a world where USB drive manufacturers have all forgotten about the importance of design, SanDisk is forging ahead with a new USB design that you’ll actually want to look at (and run your fingers across), but, first, the specs.

Inside the New SanDisk Extreme 3.0 USB Drive

The Extreme comes with a 64GB capability, it is compatible with both Mac and Windows, and even comes with 2GB of free cloud storage. How fast is the Extreme from SanDisk? The company has offered up these speed specs: 190 MBps read speed and 170 MBps write speed – yep, that’s fast. Of course, these speeds are only valid when using the Extreme with a USB 3.0 port, but the speed tests conducted when plugging the Extreme into a USB 2.0 port weren’t half-bad either. If you only have a USB 2.0 connection, you can expect speeds around 31.7 MPbs read speed and 29.5 MPbs write speeds (still better than most other USB drives out there).

SanDisk also takes your security and encryption preferences to mind by including the SanDisk SecureAccess program, which is, essentially, a password protection and data encryption program that’s user-friendly and simple to set up. Unfortunately, the SecureAccess program is only compatible with Windows out of the box, but Mac users can head to the SanDisk website in order to download a Mac compatible version of this software. Randomly, SanDisk has also decided to include something called “Club SanDisk,” which you’ll want to skip over, since the information included are nothing more than advertisements for potential downloads.

The Slick Look and Feel of the Extreme USB

As mentioned above, this USB drive does not look like all the rest. The drive itself is sleek and wrapped in a cool black plastic, and it is not bulky in any manner. Specifically, the Extreme measures 2.75 by 0.5 by 0.8 inches (width by height), and it weighs in at just 0.5 ounces. You know that feeling of pure annoyance and frustration you get when you try to plug two USB drives next to each other but one takes up all the space? You won’t have to worry about this problem ever again with the Extreme 3.0, it’s just that slim.

Finally, a USB drive developer has made a drive that’s slim, fast, and powerful. As far as the price of this drive goes, SanDisk has stated that the Extreme USB 3.0 will retail for $139.99 (64GB). Paying more than $100 for a USB drive might seem, well, extreme, but this is actually a fair price to pay for a drive of this size and class. Keep in mind that the SanDisk Extreme 3.0 comes with speed, lots of space, a tight design, cloud storage, and an encryption package – all of these things are fairly hard to beat. You can get your hands on the SanDisk Extreme 3.0 USB drive right now by checking for the drive through various online retailers.