Compatibility
USB drives are compatible with almost every type of computer available. You can use them with a wide range of Operating Systems, such as Windows XP, 2000, ME, NT and 98 (Windows 98 will require installing drivers, which are normally included with the drive). These can also be used on Apple computers, as well as with the Linux operating system with no additional setup. No additional hardware is required to use these drives; the only requirement is that your computer has an available USB port. Even if it doesn't, you can purchase USB upgrade cards you can install in your computer that will then allow you to use USB drives.

All you have to do to use a USB drive is to plug it into your USB port. Your system will recognize it within seconds and it will appear as an extra hard drive in your "My Computer" section. This makes it quick and easy to transfer files, just like you would transfer to a hard drive or floppy disk!

Storage sizes
USB drives are available in a wide variety of storage sizes, ranging from 32MB (about 22 times the storage of a floppy disk) up to 4GB (about 2800 times the storage of a floppy disk, or 6 times that of a CD). This broad range of choices gives you the ability to find the size that best suits your needs, whether you are storing and transferring spreadsheets, music, video, or presentations. USB drives can store any type of file, so there is no limit to what you can store and transfer between computers. USB drives can also be written, erased and rewritten thousands of times, and store data for up to 10 years, so they are a very durable solution. The fact that they use Flash memory, which has no moving parts, also makes them very resistant to damage from dropping or rough handling.

Transfer speeds
One of the biggest advantages to USB drives is the high speed with which they can transfer data. This means that you can load large files to and from the drive much more quickly than with a floppy or other media. There are two available speeds of USB drives, referred to as versions 1.1 and 2.0. USB 1.1 has a maximum transfer speed of 1.5 Megabytes per second, or MB/s. USB 2.0 vastly increased the data transfer speed to a maximum of 60MB/s, making it 40 times faster than 1.1. This means you can load large files to and from a USB 2.0-enabled computer in a matter of seconds. One thing to keep in mind is that some older only have USB 1.1 support, although you can purchase inexpensive USB 2.0 upgrade cards that will allow you to take advantage of the higher speeds.

See the chart below comparing transfer speeds of various types of storage.