SanDisk's Cruzer Profile
By Peter Rojas 
posted March 10th 2005 12:20PM
posted March 10th 2005 12:20PM
Oh man, you know how we sweat the combo gadgets (especially when there is USB involved), which is why the Cruzer
Profile, SanDisk's new USB flash drive with a built-in biometric fingerprint scanner, should be getting us all hot and
bothered, right? Too bad it's not. Unlike Lexar's USB
Jumpdrive TouchGuard or Sony's Micro Vault, it
doesn't look like SanDisk could be bothered to actually build the scanner into the drive; instead the scanner comes as
a tethered attachment (unless there's something about that press photo we're not getting). Totally kills the buzz, but
if you're still up on this, the Cruzer Profile should be out in mid-April in both 512MB and 1GB versions.
[Thanks, Mills00013]
Methinks the news poster has not ever tried the Lexar offering. We have them at Best Buy and I must say that I hate them. They are a fine concept but your USB port is not always in an optimal position and integrating the scanner into the drive itself is a very BAD idea.
Having used Lexar's unit and disliked it, the SanDisk offering is much cooler. In fact, I would have to say that the SanDisk offering is many times more practical than the former since it allows you to comfortably scan your finger even if the USB port is in an awkward location.
Form before function?
Or function before form?
I'll take both, please!
i duuno...it kind-of makes sense to me. i assume you have to scan your fingerprint while the device is attached to the computer. having it 'break apart' like this seems like it would make it easy to scan your fingerprint in a natural way instead of having to scan your finger sideways or from the back of your notebook computer or somesuchthing.
Guess I'd just rather not have something so awkward to carry around, that little cable bugs me, I'd rather they had something that swiveled or folded out and was a little easier to pack away. Also, I have USB ports on the side of my laptop, so not as big of any issue for me. I can completely respect that someone else might have different needs or preferences.
Isn't that the cap of the usb drive which has the scanner? No problem with that.
Probably they tethered the cap coz I've seen numerous complaints in reviews (amazon) about the loose caps on the cruzer micros
Looks to me like the USB connector slides into the white part above the fingerprint scanner. So you can use the tether to attach this thing to your keychain so you don't lose it.
Actually it seems like a pretty nice design to me because of the acessability, and multiple functions it has in addition to the obvious two.
"Probably they tethered the cap coz I've seen numerous complaints in reviews (amazon) about the loose caps on the cruzer micros"
AMEN! Forget the thumbprint scanner, the (likely) absorbident(sp?) price is probably worth it just to keep the cap on!
All joking aside (though I was only partialy joking), fugly as it may be I agree that this design has a number of advantages over having the scanner on the main chasis. It probably is rather important to have your thumb oriented correctly when scanning, and it is nice that this one is more flexible in that regard (imagine using one of the integrated design) with a usb slot that forces the scanner surface to face towards the BACK of you laptop...).
I just wish laptops had USB in the frame of the screen like many Dell flat panels do, and that keyboards with integrated USB hubs were more common (ie easier to buy locally)...
This thing looks terrible... looks like I could use it as a leash to walk my dog. Come here ginger...
Yikes, scary... our dog's name is Ginger.
Ditto about being fugly.
Sweet! It might loko horrible but its 1GB comparing to existing 128MB or 256GB. When (and where) is it going to be available on the UK? Too bad you can't use it to log on Windows, though.
You can use it to log onto Windows. The only thing that concerns me about the connecting cable is how the drive will work if the cable becomes cut.
You can use it to log onto Windows. The only thing that concerns me about the connecting cable is how the drive will work if the cable becomes cut.
how do u use it to log on to windows?