SanDisk Cruzer: 4GB and U3

On a trip to Costco, I came across a really good deal for a SanDisk Cruzer® Micro 4GB. I have always been using two or sometimes three computers, so my data was always on the wrong computer. I am already a PortableApps user, so switching to U3 was easy.

I’ve linked directly to the item on SanDisk’s page for you to have a look at. I also managed to get it at a very good price, approximately $45.00.

It has 4GB of space, though in practice, with the programs installed it works out at a lot less. I added a number of U3 compatible programs for convenience, including Firefox, Thunderbird, and OpenOffice. There were a couple of neat features, including the internal links to the SanDisk download center and the internal browser that made installing a number of extra applications very simple.

cruzerbox

OK, when you connect your Cruzer, you get the loading information as usual, but then this little box appears on the bottom right of your desktop. Clicking on the screen loads the Cruzer Start Menu (very much like the regular Start Menu), in which you will find all the programs loaded on the USB drive.

u3start menu

In the drive below, you’ll see that I have loaded a number of popular programs onto my Cruzer, including Firefox, Thunderbird, Skype, and OpenOffice. All of these programs are available from the U3 website browser. To access this click on the words, “Add Programs” and you can be taken to the U3 store or download central, which I’m including below.

u3menu

There is just one thing missing in all of the programs that I can’t find, that’s a blogging client, apart form ScribeFire which runs in FF. Odd thing is, I’d have thought it would be one of the first things to be included.

I haven’t made much use of the device yet, as my PC at school ONLY is Windows 98SE, and I haven’t upgraded it. I can never find the time to do that! But I’d better…

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