We would have never considered using a flash drive with an iPhone or iPad? Today, however, we put on the spot the iXpand Mini flash drive, a dual USB drive for your iPhone and Mac, discovered how well it performs and came to some conclusions.
iXpand Mini Dual Flash Drive
A dual flash drive has two connectors, which means it can be plugged into your smartphone/tab as well as your computer. Many of us had and used dual flash drives for a long time but have rarely seen one that is compatible with iPhones. iPhones’ file systems aren’t meant to be as available as those on computers and Android phones.
Western Digital’s iXpand Mini flash drive is a small and portable device that works with iPhones and iPads as well as Mac and Windows computers.
The iXpand Mini dual drive has two connector ports: a standard USB-A connector for PCs, and a Lightning connector for iPhones. The Lightning connector is protected by a transparent protective piece of plastic, while the USB-A connector is exposed.
The iXpand Mini Flash Drive in Details
- Storage Capacity: 32GB / 64GB /128GB / 256GB
- USB Type: USB 3.0
- Connectors: Lightning; USB-A
- PC/Mac computer compatibility: Windows® 7, Windows 8, Windows 10, Chrome OS, Mac OS X v10.9 and higher
- Mobile device compatibility: iPhone 5, iPhone 5c, iPhone 5s, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone SE, iPad Air, iPad mini, iPad mini 4, iPad Pro 12.9″, iPad Pro 9.7″ iPad with Retina display, iPod 5th Generation and newer, with Lightning connector and iOS 8.2+.
Using The iXpand Mini Flash Drive
We took a look at the 32 GB capacity. When we plugged it into a Windows 10 laptop, it made the typical audio prompt and opened a file manager window to reveal the contents of the drive as you would expect with a flash drive in a PC.
With the PC it works like every other USB drive. You are likely interested to see how the dual drive works with an iPhone.
Using iXpand Mini Flash Drive With iXpand Drive App
If you are familiar with the IPhone, you might imagine that without an app, the iXpand Mini flash drive would not work on an iPhone. At first, when the drive was plugged into the phone, a message – ‘App Not Installed’ pooped up. We had to install the iXpand Mini flash drive app to use the drive.
The drive is essentially a tool for backing up, transferring, and managing images, videos, and files between your iPhone, iPad, and computer. It also allows you access to your iPhone’s file system (at least a part of it), allowing you to move files around and copy and paste just like on a computer or an Android phone.
It’s a great deal to be able to access your files on an iPhone. Albeit, Apple introduced a Files app, but it only gives you limited access to your iDevice’s files. The app’s primary function is to help you manage your files across Apple’s iCloud Drive and third-party cloud storage services such as Dropbox, Google Drive, and Microsoft OneDrive. You’ll need to install an app that allows you to access your local files on your device. That’s where the iXpand Flash Drive application comes in.
iXpand Mini Flash Drive Compatibility
From the iPhone 5 onwards, it is compatible with all iPhones that have a Lightning port. It works with any iPhone or iPad that has a Lightning connector.
iXpand Mini Flash Drive Price
The iXpand Mini Flash Drive is available in a variety of storage capacities, including 32GB, 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB. The 32GB model we checked costs N10,500, while the 64GB model costs about N18,000 on Jumia.
Western Digital’s website has the 32GB unit for $22.99, the 64GB unit for $33.49, the 128GB unit for $45.99, and the 248GB option for $73.99. They are also available online from both domestic and international retailers.
Summary
For anyone with an iPhone smartphone and a Mac or Windows laptop, the iXpand Mini flash drive is a basic but convenient USB accessory. Even though you don’t have a laptop or a Mac, you never know when a portable drive that can be plugged into your smartphone will come in handy. After all, smartphones are today’s computers.
