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Technical Details
Size: 16 GB
- Wireless Network Interface - Wi-Fi 802.11g/n with wireless security (WPA/WEP)
- Rechargeable Battery - up to four hours of continuous use
- Cable - miniUSB to USB cable included. User can upload files and content from their PC/Mac to the Wi-Drive using the USB cable.
- App - downloadable at Apple's App Store
- Compatible with iPad, iPhone 3G/3GS/4, iPod touch (3G is limited to iOS4.2.1+)
- Configurable APN (access point name) and Key functions to connect to Wireless Access Point (Internet Connection)
- Guaranteed - one year warranty
- Supported File Formats: Audio: AAC, MP3, WAV Video: m4v, mov, Motion JPEG (M-JPEG), AVI Image: jpg, bmp,
- Tiff Document: pdf, doc, docx, ppt, pptx, txt, rtf, xls
Product Details
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Product Description
Size: 16 GB
From the Manufacturer
Store and share your favorite content with your favorite people.
Kingston’s revolutionary new Wi-Drive™ gives you added, Flash-based storage for Apple devices and Kindle Fire and lets you share photos, videos, music and more with two other users on their own iPad, iPhone, iPod touch or Kindle Fire. Share documents and other content, or stream media to break through the storage limitations of your iPad, iPod touch, iPhone or Kindle Fire.
With integrated Wi-Fi and four hours of battery life, Kingston's new Wi-Drive offers pocket-sized portable storage and easy file sharing for Apple devices and Kindle Fire. Accessing or sharing your personal media has never been easier. Take it anywhere, in your purse, backpack or briefcase, to share your files, music, photos, videos and more.
Wi-Drive is backed by a one-year warranty, free technical support and legendary Kingston® reliability.
Kingston’s Wi-Drive offers great:
- Portability: Wi-Fi enabled so you can take your favorite media with you — and not be tethered to your computer. Just use your digital device as a player and display.
- Expanded storage: Wi-Drive adds up to 64GB of storage space for more of your favorite music, photos, videos, PDFs and more.
- Casual Sharing: Wi-Drive lets you share your favorite media with two other users simultaneously — without any hassles.
Supported formats for audio files include AAC, MP3, and WAV formats. Playable video files include H.264, m4v, mp4, mov and Motion JPEG (M-PEG). You can view static images of types JPG, BMP, and TIFF and documents in Adobe Acrobat, Microsoft Office, or Apple iWork formats (pdf, doc, docx, key, numbers, pages, ppt, pptx, txt, rtf, xls).
Access to the drive is done over the 802.11 g/n protocol, just like your typical home wireless hub. Carry extra files and content with you and use your iPad, iPhone, iPod touch or Kindle Fire as a display to share information.
Stop worrying about filling up the space on your Apple mobile device or Kindle Fire. Keep a Kingston Wi-Drive in your pocket and share files securely with friends or colleagues — all your files are shareable over a secure local network.
iPhone, iPad and iPod touch are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries.
Product Description
With integrated Wi-Fi and four hours of battery life, Kingston's new Wi-Drive offers pocket-sized portable storage and easy file sharing for Apple devices, including iPod touch Gen 3 & 4, iPhone and iPad. Accessing or sharing your personal media has never been easier. With Wi-Drive, you can add another 16 or 32GB of space accessed wirelessly from your digital device. The content can be shared by three people so you are no longer limited to the space available within your iPad, iPhone or iPod touch. Whether at home, by the pool or on the road, Wi-Drive lets you take more content with you without running out of storage space. Just back-up your files before you go and wirelessly access them from Wi-Drive when you need them. Portability: Wi-Fi enabled so you can take your favorite media with you - and not be tethered to your computer. Just use your digital device as a player and display. Expanded storage: Wi-Drive adds up to 32GB of storage space for more of your favorite music, photos, videos, PDFs and more. It's also a great companion for Windows users on iPads, as it removes the frustration of using auto sync to view content. Casual Sharing: Wi-Drive lets you share your favorite media with three users simultaneously - without any hassles. Access to the drive is done over the 801.11 g/n protocol, just like your typical home wireless hub, with a password. Carry extra files and content with you and use your iPad, iPhone or iPod touch as a display to share information. Best of all, Wi-Drive is backed by legendary Kingston reliability, free tech support and a one-year warranty.
Available Warranties for This Item
Size: 16 GB
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
284 of 287 people found the following review helpful
Size Name:32 GB|Amazon Verified Purchase
I read the pre-release Engadget reviews of this device and pre-ordered the 32 GB Wi-Drive when available. It took 2 hours for a first-time complete battery charge via USB and mini-USB adapter. When I first connected to the computer, I saw that the drive was named KINGSTON, not WI-DRIVE, but it was easy to rename under either OS X or Windows 7. It took only 10 minutes to get things running. First, I loaded 10 full-movie video and 50 audio song files to test the device with 3 different iPads and turned the unit on by simply pushing the side button which has a green indicator light. Then go to your iPad/iPhone and download the free Apple Wi-Drive app, go to Network settings and select the WI-DRIVE network which is broadcast from the unit with blue indicator lights. There are no security settings by default so anyone nearby can connect to the drive. Open the Wi-Drive app and go to the setting button icon which you can set security WEP/WPA/WPA2 settings and complete your WiFi access point setup.
The app interface is just like using Dropbox or GoodReader and the menus are nicely designed. The audio and video files are listed on the left menu and simple to select. Now comes the great part, I used 3 different iPads to connect at the same time to the Wi-Drive and selected 3 different movies for each iPad and the movies ran perfectly without a single buffer hiccup. This problem plagues the Seagate GoFlex Satellite. I read comments by others who appear to be overly impressed by the 500GB storage which is functionally limited. The GoFlex menu is slow and does not permit sorting, drops connections and streaming video are choppy at times. The worst feature of the GoFlex is that it does not truly stream media, but rather sends a copy of the media file to your iDevice unlike the WiDrive which truly streams files allowing the user to maximize storage capacity. I just wanted a simple portable network device that will keep everyone in the car happy watching their own movies or listening to their own music. I was pleased to see that 3 different devices can access this portable WiFi network drive without any degradation of media streaming quality. Of course I wish we could have 64 GB or more storage, but 32 GB is fine for day trips and can still hold more than enough media files to satisfy everyone's preferences.
The next nice feature is the ability of the drive to connect to another WiFi network which you also configure in the setting button icon. For example, you're with the family at Starbucks and connect the Wi-Drive to the free Starbucks WiFi using the iOS app. The Wi-Drive reboots, connects to Starbucks network and now every one of your 3 other devices can access streaming media files on the Wi-Drive and also access the Internet using the Starbucks connection. Remember, you have to connect your device to the Wi-Drive network to use your files, but this network setting still allows you to retain internet access at the same time.
The drive is just a bit smaller than my iPhone 4 and very light. Unfortunately, the unit doesn't appear to work while plugged in to recharge. I was hoping that I could connect the device to a car outlet to continuously power the device on long trips since it is advertised to last only 4-5 hours on a single charge. Looks like you'll have to perform a complete recharge when it runs out which will take several hours using the provided adapter.
Summary - this is the best available portable media streaming network device for the iPad/iPhone which works well and simple to use with excellent streaming speeds. Definitely happy with my pre-order decision and suspect these units will sellout fast. Enjoy.
****** update 2 days later ******
I downgraded it to 4 stars after 2 days of use. File transfers are problem-free and easy to do remmebering that you can only use media files recognized by iOS (eg. mp4, m4v). Programs like Air Video Server are better for local networks allowing live conversion of all other media file types like avi and flv. So if you use other file types, you're stuck with having to use a conversion program which there are plenty available for free. Media streaming to multiple iOS devices works perfectly without any stutters. The main problem I see is the battery life which runs closer to 3 hours rather than 4 hours with constant streaming to more than one device. Contrary to other recent online reviews which makes me question whether some reviewers actually use their products, you CANNOT recharge this device with the miniUSB adapter while using the device. For example, if you have a long car trip, you will only have a little over 3 hours of use and then you'll have to recharge for a few hours using a USB car adpater or whatever else. The access point does not work while recharging. Some reviewers talk about using a plane adapter, but it still won't work while plugged in and I think it's a bad idea and just wrong to use this on a plane since this creates an unauthorized WiFi access point which may interfere with the plane electronics. I think it would be a major improvement if the AC adapter was permitted to continuously charge the lithium battery while in use allowing uninterrupted streaming. That would make it the ultimate traveling companion. Also, even with the 32 GB option space is limited and you will be forced to delete and add other files as time goes on which is a why a 64 GB SSD upgrade would be something I would be willing to pay extra.
*** update 8/12/2011 ***
Used this on 2 summer car trips and camping and the kids used this a lot. We had 3 iPads streaming 3 different movies from the WiDrive all at the same time without any stutters. Battery life seemed a bit better with average times of 3.5 - 4 hours in between charges. It works so well, that each of the kids now want their own personalized movie lists which is forcing me to constantly remove and upload movies to the WiDrive limited to only 32 GB (~ 25 movies encoded for iPad at medium quality settings). The perfect device would combine the functionality of the WiDrive with the space of the GoFlex Satellite. We have a 64GB iPad and 2 16GB iPads, and this fits our needs perfectly by serving as a portable media drive since the iPads are full of apps/photos/games/books/etc. The kids can keep all their games and not waste precious space with huge media files.
*** update 10/6/2011 ***
With price drop to $99 for 32GB WiDrive, went ahead and got another. Now I can setup movies/music for each of the kids and let them choose their own media libraries. This is a perfect easy way to upgrade a 16 GB iPad. Another option for those of you going on extended trips > 4 hours is to duplicate the drives so you can recharge one while the other transmits giving your audience continuous streaming (the WiDrive won't work while recharging).
Now for the biggest clarification - I also got the SeaGate GoFlex Satellite on sale. Another example that you can't always believe what you read (except for my review . . .) the GoFlex actually works pretty well and the app isn't that bad. It streamed video stutter-free contrary to many reviews that I read. The app has basic sorting capabilities. 500 GB storage is a big advantage. It also works while charging with the AC adapter, not the USB plug. For long travel, this is a better choice. However, it is bulky and heavy (feels like an oversized external hard drive - which it is . . . ). The WiDrive is much more portable and convenient. I actually like both and recent price drops make either drive a good buy for iPad and iPhone users. Which factors are more important to you will help decide between the WiDrive vs GoFlex Satellite - small, convenient, portable, limited space, max 4 hr runtime with no simultaneous charging VS large, bulky, capacious disk space, and simultaneous charging
*** 12/20/2011 ***
Thought it would help to give some advice about managing video files. The WiDrive is limited to iOS formats (i.e. mp4, mkv) and there are numerous options available to convert your video collections. HandBrake is freeware, well-supported and been around for a while which shows on its interface, but it gets the job done. There are lots of other alternatives from WonderShare, Aieesoft, Aimersoft,Snowfox, Tipard, WinX, etc. Check often at Giveawayoftheday.com for free, fully-functional, non-upgradable software packages. They frequently offer full-version disc transfer (sounds better than ripping), video conversion, disc burning, and video editing software. There's more flexibility with the GoFlex Satellite and they actually provide references to third-party freeware to view other video formats using their iOS application which work well enough. It's a pain having to convert your video files, but once you get the hang of it it's actually not that hard and you don't need the latest and greatest machine which only determines how fast the conversion process will take. Many of the software packages allow you to setup up batch file conversions which you can run overnight. Good luck.
*** 1/24/2012 ***
Thanks and all credit to Andrys (Kindleworld blog) who revealed a great charging tip. Turns out the WiDrive actually can work while recharging under certain circumstances. If you turn on the WiDrive first and let it establish the access point first (blue lights on), and then connect your USB cable/AC adapter, you'll notice that it keeps working while the charging light indicates the drive is recharging. It won't work if you connect the charging cable before activating the drive which is what I tried before receiving the tip from Andrys. It also won't work if you plug the USB into a computer/laptop (I assume it's not receiving enough current through the USB ports to support simultaneous recharging and WiFi signal generation). Read more ›
The app interface is just like using Dropbox or GoodReader and the menus are nicely designed. The audio and video files are listed on the left menu and simple to select. Now comes the great part, I used 3 different iPads to connect at the same time to the Wi-Drive and selected 3 different movies for each iPad and the movies ran perfectly without a single buffer hiccup. This problem plagues the Seagate GoFlex Satellite. I read comments by others who appear to be overly impressed by the 500GB storage which is functionally limited. The GoFlex menu is slow and does not permit sorting, drops connections and streaming video are choppy at times. The worst feature of the GoFlex is that it does not truly stream media, but rather sends a copy of the media file to your iDevice unlike the WiDrive which truly streams files allowing the user to maximize storage capacity. I just wanted a simple portable network device that will keep everyone in the car happy watching their own movies or listening to their own music. I was pleased to see that 3 different devices can access this portable WiFi network drive without any degradation of media streaming quality. Of course I wish we could have 64 GB or more storage, but 32 GB is fine for day trips and can still hold more than enough media files to satisfy everyone's preferences.
The next nice feature is the ability of the drive to connect to another WiFi network which you also configure in the setting button icon. For example, you're with the family at Starbucks and connect the Wi-Drive to the free Starbucks WiFi using the iOS app. The Wi-Drive reboots, connects to Starbucks network and now every one of your 3 other devices can access streaming media files on the Wi-Drive and also access the Internet using the Starbucks connection. Remember, you have to connect your device to the Wi-Drive network to use your files, but this network setting still allows you to retain internet access at the same time.
The drive is just a bit smaller than my iPhone 4 and very light. Unfortunately, the unit doesn't appear to work while plugged in to recharge. I was hoping that I could connect the device to a car outlet to continuously power the device on long trips since it is advertised to last only 4-5 hours on a single charge. Looks like you'll have to perform a complete recharge when it runs out which will take several hours using the provided adapter.
Summary - this is the best available portable media streaming network device for the iPad/iPhone which works well and simple to use with excellent streaming speeds. Definitely happy with my pre-order decision and suspect these units will sellout fast. Enjoy.
****** update 2 days later ******
I downgraded it to 4 stars after 2 days of use. File transfers are problem-free and easy to do remmebering that you can only use media files recognized by iOS (eg. mp4, m4v). Programs like Air Video Server are better for local networks allowing live conversion of all other media file types like avi and flv. So if you use other file types, you're stuck with having to use a conversion program which there are plenty available for free. Media streaming to multiple iOS devices works perfectly without any stutters. The main problem I see is the battery life which runs closer to 3 hours rather than 4 hours with constant streaming to more than one device. Contrary to other recent online reviews which makes me question whether some reviewers actually use their products, you CANNOT recharge this device with the miniUSB adapter while using the device. For example, if you have a long car trip, you will only have a little over 3 hours of use and then you'll have to recharge for a few hours using a USB car adpater or whatever else. The access point does not work while recharging. Some reviewers talk about using a plane adapter, but it still won't work while plugged in and I think it's a bad idea and just wrong to use this on a plane since this creates an unauthorized WiFi access point which may interfere with the plane electronics. I think it would be a major improvement if the AC adapter was permitted to continuously charge the lithium battery while in use allowing uninterrupted streaming. That would make it the ultimate traveling companion. Also, even with the 32 GB option space is limited and you will be forced to delete and add other files as time goes on which is a why a 64 GB SSD upgrade would be something I would be willing to pay extra.
*** update 8/12/2011 ***
Used this on 2 summer car trips and camping and the kids used this a lot. We had 3 iPads streaming 3 different movies from the WiDrive all at the same time without any stutters. Battery life seemed a bit better with average times of 3.5 - 4 hours in between charges. It works so well, that each of the kids now want their own personalized movie lists which is forcing me to constantly remove and upload movies to the WiDrive limited to only 32 GB (~ 25 movies encoded for iPad at medium quality settings). The perfect device would combine the functionality of the WiDrive with the space of the GoFlex Satellite. We have a 64GB iPad and 2 16GB iPads, and this fits our needs perfectly by serving as a portable media drive since the iPads are full of apps/photos/games/books/etc. The kids can keep all their games and not waste precious space with huge media files.
*** update 10/6/2011 ***
With price drop to $99 for 32GB WiDrive, went ahead and got another. Now I can setup movies/music for each of the kids and let them choose their own media libraries. This is a perfect easy way to upgrade a 16 GB iPad. Another option for those of you going on extended trips > 4 hours is to duplicate the drives so you can recharge one while the other transmits giving your audience continuous streaming (the WiDrive won't work while recharging).
Now for the biggest clarification - I also got the SeaGate GoFlex Satellite on sale. Another example that you can't always believe what you read (except for my review . . .) the GoFlex actually works pretty well and the app isn't that bad. It streamed video stutter-free contrary to many reviews that I read. The app has basic sorting capabilities. 500 GB storage is a big advantage. It also works while charging with the AC adapter, not the USB plug. For long travel, this is a better choice. However, it is bulky and heavy (feels like an oversized external hard drive - which it is . . . ). The WiDrive is much more portable and convenient. I actually like both and recent price drops make either drive a good buy for iPad and iPhone users. Which factors are more important to you will help decide between the WiDrive vs GoFlex Satellite - small, convenient, portable, limited space, max 4 hr runtime with no simultaneous charging VS large, bulky, capacious disk space, and simultaneous charging
*** 12/20/2011 ***
Thought it would help to give some advice about managing video files. The WiDrive is limited to iOS formats (i.e. mp4, mkv) and there are numerous options available to convert your video collections. HandBrake is freeware, well-supported and been around for a while which shows on its interface, but it gets the job done. There are lots of other alternatives from WonderShare, Aieesoft, Aimersoft,Snowfox, Tipard, WinX, etc. Check often at Giveawayoftheday.com for free, fully-functional, non-upgradable software packages. They frequently offer full-version disc transfer (sounds better than ripping), video conversion, disc burning, and video editing software. There's more flexibility with the GoFlex Satellite and they actually provide references to third-party freeware to view other video formats using their iOS application which work well enough. It's a pain having to convert your video files, but once you get the hang of it it's actually not that hard and you don't need the latest and greatest machine which only determines how fast the conversion process will take. Many of the software packages allow you to setup up batch file conversions which you can run overnight. Good luck.
*** 1/24/2012 ***
Thanks and all credit to Andrys (Kindleworld blog) who revealed a great charging tip. Turns out the WiDrive actually can work while recharging under certain circumstances. If you turn on the WiDrive first and let it establish the access point first (blue lights on), and then connect your USB cable/AC adapter, you'll notice that it keeps working while the charging light indicates the drive is recharging. It won't work if you connect the charging cable before activating the drive which is what I tried before receiving the tip from Andrys. It also won't work if you plug the USB into a computer/laptop (I assume it's not receiving enough current through the USB ports to support simultaneous recharging and WiFi signal generation). Read more ›
120 of 131 people found the following review helpful
Size Name:16 GB
The Kingston Wi-Drive is an idea whose time has come. It works well and makes viewing movies and other multimedia files via your iPhone/iPad very easy.
However, there is one hidden drawback that makes the device far less desirable: it is formatted in FAT32 and thus will not allow any file larger than 4gb to be copied over. Let me repeat that so that it is very clear: you cannot copy a file larger than 4gb to this device and there is no workaround for this limitation. For those of you that are in the IT field, you understand what this limitation means. For those of you not tech-savvy, what this means is that the largest size file that you can copy onto this device is about 4gb. Now that may not sound like a big deal, but when you have a studio-produced movie file often the size of the file exceeds 4gb. For home movies, song files and other basic multimedia files this is not a deal breaker. But if you are using the device like I am, for watching Hollywood movies, then you will run headlong into this limitation.
I contacted Kingston support to confirm that there is no workaround to this problem and they did confirm that this is a fixed limitation. The drive cannot be reformatted to NTFS due to the configuration files for management of the wireless connectivity. What really is frustrating is that Kingston chooses to hide this issue from the consumer. No where is there any mention of this little restriction, and I believe that this type of fact should be clearly disclosed in the product description.
Otherwise this is a great little device. It's small, light, easy to work with, and the streaming of the files has so far worked flawlessly. Unfortunately, the file size limitation severely reduces the number of production movies that you will be able to copy to the drive.
[...]
November 13th, 2011:
Please click the COMMENTS link below to see a reply to my post and my subsequent reply to that post. A suggestion to use a freeware application named Handbrake resulted in my ability to rip the original HD files over 4gb into reduced-size files optimized for my iPad. Once I ripped (reformatted) the files, I ended up with a file that was less than half the size that I could move to my Wi-Drive. There was no loss of quality and I now can watch all of my movies via the Wi-Drive.
However, there is one hidden drawback that makes the device far less desirable: it is formatted in FAT32 and thus will not allow any file larger than 4gb to be copied over. Let me repeat that so that it is very clear: you cannot copy a file larger than 4gb to this device and there is no workaround for this limitation. For those of you that are in the IT field, you understand what this limitation means. For those of you not tech-savvy, what this means is that the largest size file that you can copy onto this device is about 4gb. Now that may not sound like a big deal, but when you have a studio-produced movie file often the size of the file exceeds 4gb. For home movies, song files and other basic multimedia files this is not a deal breaker. But if you are using the device like I am, for watching Hollywood movies, then you will run headlong into this limitation.
I contacted Kingston support to confirm that there is no workaround to this problem and they did confirm that this is a fixed limitation. The drive cannot be reformatted to NTFS due to the configuration files for management of the wireless connectivity. What really is frustrating is that Kingston chooses to hide this issue from the consumer. No where is there any mention of this little restriction, and I believe that this type of fact should be clearly disclosed in the product description.
Otherwise this is a great little device. It's small, light, easy to work with, and the streaming of the files has so far worked flawlessly. Unfortunately, the file size limitation severely reduces the number of production movies that you will be able to copy to the drive.
[...]
November 13th, 2011:
Please click the COMMENTS link below to see a reply to my post and my subsequent reply to that post. A suggestion to use a freeware application named Handbrake resulted in my ability to rip the original HD files over 4gb into reduced-size files optimized for my iPad. Once I ripped (reformatted) the files, I ended up with a file that was less than half the size that I could move to my Wi-Drive. There was no loss of quality and I now can watch all of my movies via the Wi-Drive.
24 of 25 people found the following review helpful
Size Name:16 GB
Have you ever found yourself wishing you could extend the storage of your smartphone or tablet? If so, Kingston has stepped up to provide you with a solution. The Wi-Drive is a wireless storage solution for your device--and it's a good one.
PROS:
- Easy to set up
- Supports all native iOS file types
- Android support coming in November '11
- Acts as a bridge to extend Wi-Fi connection
- Connectivity for up to three devices
- Small and sleek design
CONS:
- Bridge mode currently doesn't support unadvertised Wi-Fi networks
- Can get pretty warm
IN THE BOX
The Wi-Drive comes with a Getting Started guide, a wall plug for charging, and a USB cable
DESIGN
The Wi-Drive is basically a flash-based USB storage device that comes in 16GB and 32GB sizes. Since it uses flash memory, rather than a mechanical drive, the Wi-Drive is incredibly slim and light.
The exterior is made out of a glossy plastic that looks great, but attracts a fair amount of dust and fingerprints. At the top of the Wi-Drive is a standard mini-USB port for connecting it to a computer and for charging. On the right side is a small power button and a pinhole reset button.
Despite the thin plastic material for the housing, the Wi-Drive feels pretty well-made. It does creak a bit though, if you put pressure on the plastic housing. I also wish it had non-skid feet on the backside to keep it from sliding around.
SETUP
Setting up the Wi-Drive is pretty simple and involves just three steps: 1. Connect the Wi-Drive to a computer and transfer files over 2. Install the free Wi-Drive app 3. Connect your device to the Wi-Drive over Wi-Fi.
The Wi-Drive can be connected to a Windows XP computer and higher, Mac OS 10.5 and higher, and Linux 2.6 and higher. No drivers are needed as the Wi-Drive just shows up as an external USB drive. For maximum compatibility, the drive is formatted in FAT32. When I connected the 16GB model, it showed a formatted capacity of 14.3GB. Once connected, I transferred over some music, photos, video files and documents to the Wi-Drive.
After transferring the files over, I downloaded the free Wi-Drive app from the App Store. The Wi-Drive only supports iOS devices currently, but I'm told that Android support is coming in November. Out of the box, the Wi-Drive is configured as an open Wi-Fi network. I went into the iPad's network settings and the drive showed up in the network list as "Wi-Drive."
If you want to keep the contents of your Wi-Drive private, you can change the device name (SSID), disable advertising (visibility), and set a password using WPA2. You can also set up bridge mode so that you can connect to the Wi-Drive and a Wi-Fi network at the same time. Without configuring bridge mode, you'll only be connect to the Wi-Drive itself, but not the Internet. Unfortunately, the firmware in the Wi-Drive doesn't support unadvertised networks yet, but I'm told that it's in the works.
USAGE
The Wi-Drive is very easy to use. First, you connect to the Wi-Drive over your device's Wi-Fi connection, then launch the Wi-Drive app and browse the drive for media. Tap on the media you want to view or hear and that's pretty much it. You can even transfer files from the Wi-Drive to your device, if you feel like keeping something locally.
I had no problems with music, videos, photos, or documents. All the streaming content was smooth and free from lag or stuttering. If you want something that just works, the Wi-Drive is it. The only issue I had was that the drive does get a little warm so you might not want to store it in your pants pocket while it's in use.
Battery life is rated at 4 hours and the power button doubles as a battery indicator. A green LED indicates 51-100% battery life remaining. An orange LED indicates 25-50% remaining and a red LED indicates less than 25% charge remaining.
CONCLUSION
The Kingston Wi-Drive is dead simple to set up and even easier to use. The form factor keeps the drive conveniently portable for use on the go and with an Android app coming soon, the popularity of the Wi-Drive is bound to go up. If you're looking to add storage to your smartphone or tablet, the Wi-Drive is one of the easiest and coolest ways to do it.
* Review unit provided by Kingston
PROS:
- Easy to set up
- Supports all native iOS file types
- Android support coming in November '11
- Acts as a bridge to extend Wi-Fi connection
- Connectivity for up to three devices
- Small and sleek design
CONS:
- Bridge mode currently doesn't support unadvertised Wi-Fi networks
- Can get pretty warm
IN THE BOX
The Wi-Drive comes with a Getting Started guide, a wall plug for charging, and a USB cable
DESIGN
The Wi-Drive is basically a flash-based USB storage device that comes in 16GB and 32GB sizes. Since it uses flash memory, rather than a mechanical drive, the Wi-Drive is incredibly slim and light.
The exterior is made out of a glossy plastic that looks great, but attracts a fair amount of dust and fingerprints. At the top of the Wi-Drive is a standard mini-USB port for connecting it to a computer and for charging. On the right side is a small power button and a pinhole reset button.
Despite the thin plastic material for the housing, the Wi-Drive feels pretty well-made. It does creak a bit though, if you put pressure on the plastic housing. I also wish it had non-skid feet on the backside to keep it from sliding around.
SETUP
Setting up the Wi-Drive is pretty simple and involves just three steps: 1. Connect the Wi-Drive to a computer and transfer files over 2. Install the free Wi-Drive app 3. Connect your device to the Wi-Drive over Wi-Fi.
The Wi-Drive can be connected to a Windows XP computer and higher, Mac OS 10.5 and higher, and Linux 2.6 and higher. No drivers are needed as the Wi-Drive just shows up as an external USB drive. For maximum compatibility, the drive is formatted in FAT32. When I connected the 16GB model, it showed a formatted capacity of 14.3GB. Once connected, I transferred over some music, photos, video files and documents to the Wi-Drive.
After transferring the files over, I downloaded the free Wi-Drive app from the App Store. The Wi-Drive only supports iOS devices currently, but I'm told that Android support is coming in November. Out of the box, the Wi-Drive is configured as an open Wi-Fi network. I went into the iPad's network settings and the drive showed up in the network list as "Wi-Drive."
If you want to keep the contents of your Wi-Drive private, you can change the device name (SSID), disable advertising (visibility), and set a password using WPA2. You can also set up bridge mode so that you can connect to the Wi-Drive and a Wi-Fi network at the same time. Without configuring bridge mode, you'll only be connect to the Wi-Drive itself, but not the Internet. Unfortunately, the firmware in the Wi-Drive doesn't support unadvertised networks yet, but I'm told that it's in the works.
USAGE
The Wi-Drive is very easy to use. First, you connect to the Wi-Drive over your device's Wi-Fi connection, then launch the Wi-Drive app and browse the drive for media. Tap on the media you want to view or hear and that's pretty much it. You can even transfer files from the Wi-Drive to your device, if you feel like keeping something locally.
I had no problems with music, videos, photos, or documents. All the streaming content was smooth and free from lag or stuttering. If you want something that just works, the Wi-Drive is it. The only issue I had was that the drive does get a little warm so you might not want to store it in your pants pocket while it's in use.
Battery life is rated at 4 hours and the power button doubles as a battery indicator. A green LED indicates 51-100% battery life remaining. An orange LED indicates 25-50% remaining and a red LED indicates less than 25% charge remaining.
CONCLUSION
The Kingston Wi-Drive is dead simple to set up and even easier to use. The form factor keeps the drive conveniently portable for use on the go and with an Android app coming soon, the popularity of the Wi-Drive is bound to go up. If you're looking to add storage to your smartphone or tablet, the Wi-Drive is one of the easiest and coolest ways to do it.
* Review unit provided by Kingston
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Best accessory for a Tablet or Kindle Fire
I purchased the Wi Drive from when I travel to provide me with additional storage to both my Galaxy Tablet and Kindle Fire. Read more
Published 2 days ago by Granville N. Gilbert
THIS IS AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!
This is great. If you have a ipad or a Kindle Fire and you want some back up or stored data or media on the go, this is the product for you. Read more
Published 8 days ago by Laura Schile
Works great!
I debated between this and the Seagate wireless drive. I decided on this one, although 32GB may not be much for some. For me it is the perfect size. Read more
Published 8 days ago by R. Goodson
AWESOME PRODUCT!
I can not say enough good things about this wireless hard drive!
I am going to buy one more of these so my kindle can have one by itself so I can have my books in one... Read more
I am going to buy one more of these so my kindle can have one by itself so I can have my books in one... Read more
Published 13 days ago by Greg Harrison
WARNING: Does NOT work with the HTC One X
I bought this specifically because the HTC One X has almost no internal storage. This would have been PERFECT. Unfortunately, this does not work with the phone. Read more
Published 20 days ago by jim2point0
Extra space for Kindle Fire
This flash drive interfaces nicely with the Kindle Fire. I have been able to copy files, documents and music back and forth from the Fire without any problem. Read more
Published 24 days ago by K. Franklin Kiehner
Love this little device! Works for iPhones and iPads.
I paid $49.99 for this little device because it is actually cheaper to buy this than to buy an extra 16GB for the iPad. This device is so simple to use. Just:
1. Read more
1. Read more
Published 24 days ago by R. Lee
A Great iPad Accessory - Idiot proof wireless memory expansion
If you're like me you don't feel like wasting a lot of time syncing your iPad or being "tethered" to your home wireless network for music and videos. Read more
Published 28 days ago by JoeSixPack
Kingston Wi-Drive 32gb
This is a great product. I had read tons of reviews before I decided to buy one for myself. I wanted this hard drive so my kids could watch movies in the car (or anywhere else) on... Read more
Published 1 month ago by dark_storm83
Works great but is a fingerprint magnet
Great product for accessing files on both my ipad2 and android phone. I prefer to "drag'n'drop" files over using iTunes. Read more
Published 1 month ago by musicfan
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Size: 16 GB
