When you are passionate about a franchise like “Star Wars” or “Batman” you can find ways to show your fandom in every part of your life: clothes, coffee cups, mouse pads, etc.
Mimoco has tapped into that with their line of Mimobot USB drives - available in several styles to meet many differing fandoms. Mimoco’s drives are some of the coolest out there, and they just released a new series licensed from Lucasfilm and DC Comics at San Diego Comic-Con.
As the price of flash drives have plummeted, vanity and promotional versions have flourished. In 2007 Mimoco sent CNN.com one of their original, limited edition drives featuring Han Solo. I remember thinking how cool it was, but that it was way too expensive - priced at $70 for the 1gb version. The current line run about $30 for the 4 Gb version - which is far more approachable for your average consumer.
Of course my problem with USB drives of any sort is, that while I love them, I constantly lose them, which means I don’t want to spend a ton of money on them.
My current favorite is a SanDisk Ultra 16 GB. It has a keyring on it (so it’s attached to my keys, which I hope I don’t lose!) and the USB connector retracts, so there’s no cap to misplace. I chose it for these features and because it was on clearance for about $25. So while I think these Mimobots look amazing, I’m not sure how much use I’d get from one before it went the way of so many of its predecessors and disappeared into that great junk drawer in the sky.
Granted you can get a “hoodie” case with a clip on it for your Mimeobot ($5.95 on their site) which would allow you to you clip it to your bag or key chain or whatever, but then you have to take it at least part way out of the case to use it. And you still have that cap to lose.
But then there’s the fact that they look great sitting amongst the other toys that litter my desk at work. And many people will want them because of that fact alone - the pure cool factor of having a cool USB drive with an awesome design – and for that I can’t fault Mimoco.
What do you look for in a USB drive, and how important is style in that decision? Of course, the better question might be – if it looks cool, and it reflects a passion – how important is its actual function?