Customer Reviews

LaCie 32GB iamakey USB 2.0 Flash Drive 131045 (Silver)

5 star:		(102)
4 star:		(44)
3 star:		(17)
2 star:		(17)
1 star:		(28)

 

 

While this drive is very cool (albeit slow as everyone else has pointed out), it's completely worthless when it dies within 6 months (purchased June 18). I've seen several other posts here of the same issue: just decides one day to never mount again. And even though there is a 2-year warranty, LaCie doesn't want to honor it because I can't provide a serial number.

For what it's worth, there is NO serial number on the key itself. Apparently the S/N was on the disposable packaging, which as you may guess, was thrown away back in June.

So, for a product that has a 2 year warranty, and has only been on the market for 6-9 months (so there's NO WAY ANY OF THEM could be out of warranty), and that I have a receipt for, LaCie still won't honor their warranty (at least so far). I'll edit this review if in fact they do decide to honor the warranty, but this loophole/runaround is inexcusable and I'd avoid this purchase again because of it.

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UPDATE - FEB 2010

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Finally after about 3 weeks of arguing, LaCie agreed to let me send it back so they could "look" at it. On January 5th I received a new, in package, 8GB key.

While I'm happy I finally got resolution, I'm not happy with the experience, and I can say that even today (Feb 20th) I still haven't used the key. I simply feel less than overwhelemed with it now. But you can bet that I didn't throw the packaging away this time! Just in case.

Pros: As advertised, imakey is the size of a (large) key and fits very well on a keychain. Very high "cute" and convenience factor.

Cons: It is quite slow relative to other flash drives. For example, to write and read a 122MB file took 52.6 and 11.5 seconds on the imakey compared to 37.0 and 7.7 seconds on a Lexar Firefly jumpdrive.

Pros

Looks great, feels great. Very inconspicuous, everyone I've shown it to immediately asks where I got it from. I would definitely buy it again.

Cons

Plastic tip that protects the contacts falls off easily, but the contacts seem to be holding up just fine.

Transfers are a little slow.

Edit - 01/06/2010

I would NOT buy this product again. My brother and I have both purchased this and carried it on our keychains. Today I find out that NEITHER flash drive will mount/be recognized by any of our computers, I've tested it on 7-8 different computers and none of them recognize it. Apparently to use the warranty you need the serial number, which is located on.....dun dun dun........THE PACKAGING OF THE PRODUCT.............NOT THE PRODUCT (flash drive) ITSELF.........so unless you were smart enough to save the packaging, the warranty is useless.

The gold connectors are slightly scratched since the plastic tips were lost (after a couple days) but they don't look any different from when the keys used to work.

Waste of money, fortunately I have backups on other drives but not worth the headache of rebuying this flash drive.

Update - 07/08/11

I couldn't help myself and repurchased this product about six months ago, since then it has held up fine. I lost the tip within the first month (again), and made sure to take photos of the packaging and document the serial number prior to discarding the packaging. Like others have said, it is definitely a conversation starter, and gets lots of questions/compliments. My girlfriend recently "borrowed" the IamaKey indefinitely, and she definitely enjoys it.

I changed my rating to 3/5 since the new version seems to be working better, and if anything happens I at least have the warranty/serial number now.

I went ahead and ordered the v2 of this product, and will post a review about that one as well.

I didn't really get this Flash Drive for the performance my motivation was a bit more shallow. I liked the way it looked. I am asked about it all the time in the office when my coworkers see me using it or even when its sitting on my desk. It seems to work good enough for me. If you want a "fun" flash drive, this is a great product, if your looking for max performance and could care less about looks you may want to consider others.

I bought this because if my flashdrive can disconnect from my keys I'll certainly lose it.

Pros: Strong, doesn't flex under weight of keys when plugged in. Looks good and is slim enough in my keyring that it doesn't add any bulk.

Cons: A little expensive per GB, could be faster (not a major problem). Once you lose the tiny clear plastic cap for the end, the end of the key drive is a little sharp. Should have been brushed aluminum, gets a little scratched up from my other keys.

Final Thoughts: Probably the best combination of form and function for a usb flash drive.

I've had the 8GB version of Iamakey for a few weeks now. As mentioned in other reviews, the screen printing on the sides wears off pretty quickly. No big deal as far as I'm concerned... the convenience of having a low profile jump drive on my key ring far outweighs that.

I felt compelled to write a review though, because of something that happened this weekend. I did a load of laundry, and I inadvertently left my keys in my pocket. So the Iamakey got a full wash and dry! I choked a little when I saw the keys in the dryer... but when I plugged it into the computer, and it worked just fine, sweet! Makes it the perfect jump drive for me, because that's probably not the only time I'll do that.

So I've gone through two of these...they randomly quit working. Amazon won't replace it the second time and, as others have commented, lacie refuses to replace them as well. Avoid this company/brand.

I really liked the Lacie flash drive when it arrived. Worked great for about two weeks. One day it was fine- the next day it didn't do anything. I'm trying to contact Lacie now.

(that was my review when i bought it)

Lovely piece, with 4GB of storage..

You will even mistake it with your house keys :)

Now, i had to edit my review as the Key just died after i bought it in June 2009. Frankly, it's not reliable after loosing all the content inside and the key became useless.

In fact, i just read a review from another customer who faced the same issue. It's really disappointing from a very well known brand such as LaCie. The same customer mentioned that they needed a serial number in order to benefit from the warranty; which is on the original package that was thrown away.

So, my advice for who wants to buy this key, to stay on stand-by after 6 months of buying it and keep the original serial number.

Before this incident I had a good opinion of Lacie. I bought the 8GB iamaKey four months ago at the Apple Store. The key, from the design prospective, is a very nice concept, plus the 8GB storage capacity and with the reputation of Lacie back then I thought it was a good deal. I used it for four months and was extremely disappointed by how terribly slow it performed.

After only four months of usage it died on me. I went to the Apple store and they did not accept to return the item even though it was still in warranty. They asked me to contact LaCie support directly. I created an account in the Lacie web site and contacted support. Lacie support keep asking for the same things again and again. I did keep the receipt and the original package, they tried to dodge me knowing that this key does not come with a serial number imprinted but appears only on the package. After 2 months sending emails to support and with long waiting delays, they finally offered a return procedure. I did what they asked me to, send the key by post and that was it, when the letter arrived to Lacie in Basel they claimed that the letter was opened and the key stolen! Their theory is that the Swiss post would open and steal a defective USB stick key ... in conclusion I lost the money. I could have contacted insurances and lawyers but it is a waste of time and energy to deal with crooks. I will never buy anything from Lacie ever again.

I now decided to make it right and after some research found this memory stick to be the best money can buy Sandisk 8GB Cruzer Titanium USB 2.0 Flash Drive (SDCZ7-8192-A11, Retail Package). I bought this one and have been using it for a week and it is extremely fast literally a bunker memory stick build in Titanium.

I really do not recommend buying any Lacie products, specially this iamaKey, specially after knowing what you will have to go through if you encounter a problem with any of their products.