Most regular computer users are familiar with them – the USB flash drives that we carry our data around on.  Useful for everything from transferring files between computers to, er, less legal forms of file sharing they’ve grown in popularity just as fast as their price has dropped.  About five years ago when I bought my first one they were about £35 for a 128MB model.  Nowadays that price will get you (coincidentally) 128 times as much storage, 16GB.

More fascinating than the speed at which we’ve adopted USB flash drives, though, is the vast range of names people give them.  While ‘USB flash drive’ is probably the most accurate, here are some of the other names I’ve heard people give theirs…

Memory Stick: This is the name I hear most frequently and one that causes quite a bit of confusion.  Sony’s propritary Memory Stick format seems to have developed ‘Hoover’ levels of generic use.  If someone says to me” can you take some photos off my memory stick” I shake my head thinking they must be rampant Sony fanboys.

Pen Drive: This was the first name I ever heard referring to our friendly USB companions and the name I find myself using most frequently.  I suppose they are roughly pen-shaped and they are drives, so at least it’s accurate, if a little odd.  I’d like to see one that actually did have a pen on the end -

Thumb Drive: Similar to ‘Pen Drive’, this name bears some relation to the object’s shape.  Like Memory Stick, it’s actually a brand name too.  It’d be better if you could keep data in your actual thumb though.  In a time when you can put a chip in your arm to unlock doors it’s got to be in the realms of possibility to store data in your body.  The ultimate in data security – if they want it they’ll have to kill you first!

Key: Now this is just silly.  Unlike the aforementioned chip-in-the-arm, a USB Flash Drive doesn’t open doors.  I’m sure the Chinese are working on it though.

Dongle: Just as a flash drive is not a key, it’s not a dongle either.  Still, ‘dongle’ is a nice word.  Maybe we could call it a ‘dingle’ instead.  “Stick your dingle in my slot” people would say and oh how we’d laugh!

Stub: Stub? Stub?!  That makes no sense at all!  Still, similar to a ‘thumb drive’ maybe you could stick some data storage in your toe?  It’d bring a whole new meaning to ’stubbing your toe’.

I’m sure I’ve heard more names over the years – if you can think of any more leave them in the comments!

[Image credit: Scott Beale / Laughing Squid]