Introduction

I would like to thank my luck for winning this sample during the Patriot/Gigabyte CES Party.

Lacie is well known for making some very cool looking storage devices. The company focuses on delivering such units with a heavy dose of design inspiration. While their product line is based largely on external hard drive enclosures for both PCs and Macs, they offer USB flash drives, displays and even external optical drives. Lacie has been in business since 1987 and they have recently bought up a company called Caleido and their software Wuala, which is an online storage solution - a perfect fit for Lacie's product lineup.


The Key series comes in multiple shapes with up to 32 GB of storage. They are each called a slightly different name with the word "key" in it, but follow the same design idea: A USB flash drive in the shape of a traditional key made with a metal enclosure, an included key hole for easy addition to your existing key chain.

Features:

• Sturdy metal key design; fits on a keyring
• Fast transfer rates (Read mode: up to 30 MB/s; write mode: up to 10MB/s)
• Ultra-mobile and lightweight
• Gold SIP technology, water- and scratch-resistant

Packaging

The iamaKey drive ships in a clear, plastic package. It has been sealed shut so you better have some scissors or a knife available. One can see the flash drive and its shape clearly, along with the plastic cap to be used as a protective cover of the USB connector. Turning the package around, we have the list of features in multiple languages. This listing actually lacks the actual performance rating, while such numbers are being mentioned on the Lacie website.

A Closer Look

Even though the metal sheet used to form the key is fairly thin, the tightly joined back and front of the unit result in an excellent construction quality. The company logo has been placed on the top part of the key, while some certification can be found on the key shaft. It is just as thick as most normal keys and the overall shape fits perfectly unto your chain. I have been looking everywhere for an USB flash drive to use on my key chain and this may just be the perfect one for such a scenario.


I was a bit worried about the clear plastic cap, as you may lose it quite easily, but even after travelling from Las Vegas to Austria, getting on multiple flights and thus having to take the key chain out of my pocket numerous times, the protective cover is still in its place.


To give you an idea about the overall size of the key, I placed it on a CD and on my personal key chain. As you can see it looks right at home. It only looks way too clean in comparison to the other keys.