What is a Flash Drive?
A flash drive, also known as a USB flash drive, USB drive, or thumb drive, is a data storage device that includes flash memory and an integrated USB interface. Flash drives are typically small, lightweight and portable. They are plugged into a computer’s USB port and allow you to easily transfer files between devices.
Flash drives were first invented in the late 1990s, though there is some debate around who exactly invented the first one. According to The History of USB Flash Drives, an Israeli company named M-Systems led by engineer Dov Moran developed the first flash drive, which was brought to market in late 2000. Other companies like IBM and Trek Technology also developed early versions of the flash drive around this time.
There are a few different types of flash drives available today. USB 2.0 drives offer standard transfer speeds, while USB 3.0 drives feature faster transfer rates. There are also rugged, waterproof drives designed for durability, and drives with security features like encryption and password protection. Flash drives come in a wide range of storage capacities, from just a few gigabytes up to multiple terabytes.
Measuring Digital Storage
When it comes to digital storage, there are a few key units of measurement to understand – gigabytes (GB), megabytes (MB), and kilobytes (KB).
GB stands for gigabytes and is equal to 1,000 megabytes (MB). MB stands for megabytes and is equal to 1,000 kilobytes (KB). KB stands for kilobytes and is equal to 1,000 bytes.
So the units get progressively larger from bytes to kilobytes to megabytes to gigabytes. The prefixes are based on powers of 1,000 because computer storage uses binary units, meaning each successive unit is 1,024 times the previous one. But in casual usage, KB, MB, and GB are rounded to nice even numbers.
To summarize the key differences:
- 1 GB = 1,000 MB
- 1 MB = 1,000 KB
- 1 KB = 1,000 bytes
Understanding the distinctions between GB, MB, and KB allows you to properly understand file sizes and storage capacity when it comes to your computer’s hard drive, USB flash drives, memory cards, and other digital storage media.
Source: https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-difference-between-Kb-and-KB
1 Terabyte Explained
A terabyte (TB) is a unit of digital data storage that represents approximately 1 trillion bytes, or 1,000 gigabytes. It is one of the largest standard units of computer storage used today.
To understand the size of a terabyte, it helps to first look at the units smaller than it. A kilobyte (KB) is approximately 1,000 bytes, a megabyte (MB) is approximately 1,000 kilobytes, and a gigabyte (GB) is approximately 1,000 megabytes. So a terabyte is the next level up, at approximately 1,000 gigabytes. Some key facts:
- 1 TB = 1,000 GB
- 1 TB = 1,000,000 MB
- 1 TB = 1,000,000,000 KB
- 1 TB = 1,000,000,000,000 bytes
To put the size of a terabyte in perspective, it has the storage capacity of:
- Approximately 250,000 photos taken with a 10 megapixel camera
- Around 500 hours of standard definition video
- Around 1,000 hours of high quality music
- Over 500 hours of high definition video
So in summary, a terabyte is a very large unit of digital information that is approximately 1,000 gigabytes in size. It allows you to store immense amounts of data and media.
Source: https://www.techtarget.com/searchstorage/answer/TB-vs-GB-Is-a-terabyte-bigger-than-a-gigabyte
Average File Sizes
When estimating how many files can fit on a 1TB flash drive, it’s helpful to know the average file sizes for common file types. According to research, here are some typical average file sizes:
Photos: Average File Sizes reports the average size for JPG images is 2-4 MB. PNG images are around 2-4 KB on average.
Songs: An MP3 formatted audio file is approximately 4-6 MB on average, depending on bit rate, according to What is the average file size for a song when it is in an MP3 format? Typical MP3 bit rates and their average file sizes are: 128Kbps – 4 MB, 160Kbps – 5 MB, 192Kbps – 6 MB.
Videos: The average size for a 5 minute video in 720p format is around 500 MB according to some sources. Higher resolution 1080p videos are around 1 GB on average for a 5 minute clip.
Documents: An average Microsoft Word DOCX file is 4-8 KB according to Average File Sizes. PDF documents are a bit larger at around 18-20 KB on average.
Photos
The number of photos that can be stored on a 1TB flash drive depends on the resolution and size of the images. According to the Memory Card Calculator, a 1TB drive can hold:
- Up to 500,000 photos at a 2MB file size
- Up to 250,000 photos at a 4MB file size
- Up to 125,000 photos at an 8MB file size
Higher resolution images like those from DSLR cameras tend to have larger file sizes, while lower resolution images from phone cameras have smaller files sizes. The File Space Calculator estimates that a 1TB drive can hold:
- 167,000 24MP DSLR images
- 500,000 12MP phone camera images
So the number of photos able to be stored can vary greatly depending on the camera and resolution, but a 1TB flash drive offers ample space for storing hundreds of thousands of pictures.
Songs
One important use of flash drives is to store music files like MP3s. The number of songs you can store on a 1TB flash drive depends on the size of each song file. MP3 files are compressed audio files that take up less space than CD quality or lossless audio like WAV or FLAC.
According to the Music Storage Calculator, 1TB can hold approximately 250,000 MP3s at 4MB per song. The Song Capacity Calculator estimates you could fit 230,850 MP3 songs on 1TB at 4.3MB per song. This means you can store thousands of albums in lossy MP3 format on a 1TB flash drive.
Higher quality lossless WAV audio files take up significantly more space at ~50MB each. So 1TB would only hold around 20,000 WAV format songs. For large lossless music collections, more storage may be required. But MP3 provides a nice balance of quality and capacity for portable use cases.
Videos
Video files tend to take up a significant amount of storage space compared to other types of files. The amount of storage space a video file requires depends on factors like the video resolution, length, and compression format.
For example, a 5 minute 1080p video encoded in the H.264 format at 5 Mbps will be around 150 MB in size. This means a 1 TB flash drive could store around 6,800 videos of this length and resolution (Digital Rebellion).
Here are some estimates for the number of videos of various lengths and resolutions that can be stored on a 1 TB flash drive:
- 720p videos (~2 Mbps):
- 5 min: around 27,000 videos
- 15 min: around 9,000 videos
- 60 min: around 2,250 videos
- 1080p videos (~5 Mbps):
- 5 min: around 10,800 videos
- 15 min: around 3,600 videos
- 60 min: around 900 videos
- 4K videos (~20 Mbps):
- 5 min: around 2,700 videos
- 15 min: around 900 videos
- 60 min: around 225 videos
Higher video resolutions and longer runtimes require exponentially more storage space. But modern video compression standards like H.264 and H.265 can help maximize the video storage capacity of a 1 TB flash drive.
Documents
Office documents like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files take up very little storage space. According to the File Size Calculator (https://www.file-sizes.com/), the average Word document is about 100KB. The average Excel spreadsheet is around 50KB, and the average PowerPoint presentation is about 30MB.
PDF files take up a bit more space since they are image files. The File Size Calculator states that the average PDF file size is about 3MB. However, PDF files can range dramatically in size depending on image quality and length.
Let’s do some math for a 1TB flash drive. There are 1,048,576MB in 1TB. That means a 1TB flash drive could hold:
- 10,485,760 100KB Word documents
- 20,971,520 50KB Excel spreadsheets
- 34,952 PowerPoint presentations
- 349,525 3MB PDF files
As you can see, the large storage capacity of a 1TB flash drive means you can store an enormous number of office documents, PDFs, and other files.
Other Uses
A 1 TB flash drive has enough space to store a variety of other file types commonly used on a computer.
For gaming, 1 TB can hold between 10-20 average sized modern games depending on their file size. Most games range from 20-100 GB, so 1 TB allows for a decent gaming library. However, some very large games like Call of Duty can exceed 100 GB. Source
In terms of software, productivity suites like Microsoft Office may take up about 5-15 GB. Creative programs like Adobe Photoshop or video editing software can take up 20-50 GB each. The remaining space on a 1 TB drive would allow you to install other everyday programs and tools. Source
Overall, 1 TB gives you flexibility to store all types of files from games and software to media, documents, and more. It provides ample space for an average user’s needs.
Summary
To recap, a 1 TB flash drive can hold:
- Around 250,000 photos taken with a 12MP camera
- Around 285,000 MP3 songs
- Around 230 movies encoded in 1080p format
- Hundreds of thousands of typical document files like PDFs, Word docs, spreadsheets, etc.
So in summary, a 1 TB flash drive has immense storage capacity. It can hold entire libraries of media files like photos, songs, and videos for most average consumers. Documents also take up very little space, so a 1 TB drive can store vast document archives. There are few limits to what you can store and backup with a 1TB portable flash drive.
