Picture of the PNY USB 16GB pen drive, front view close up.

PNY Attache 16GB Pen Drive Review

Bought the   PNY Attache 16GB pen drive at Wal Mart, to save user data from a laptop computer that we’re retiring. The device installed without hiccups, received copied data as quickly as other high speed USB storage drives we’ve tried, and is easy to locate, plug in, and use.  This Attache flash drive accepted over seven gigabytes of data with no errors.





Simplifies and provides a highly economical way of sharing data among friends, teachers, bosses, and so on.  The PNY Attache 16GB pen drive is almost as cheap as yesterday’s floppy disks. It’s way cheaper than yesteryear’s portable hard disk drives. You can load most any file type onto USB thumb drives like this one from PNY, such as music, pics / photo, video, documents, spread sheets, or any confidential data you wish. Then, you can courier the unit from place to place, just as those sneaker-wearing couriers did three decades ago with floppies (the infamous sneaker net).  This pen drive today costs around $8 US.

PNY Attache 16GB Pen Drive Benefits, Pros, Features, and Advantages

USB 2.0 for Faster File Transfers

Supports USB 2.0, for high speed data moving to and from.  We experienced data transfer speeds were as snappy quick as hoped for in a USB 2.0 storage device.

Popular Operating Systems Supported

Works with both Windows and Apple Mac based computers.

Pre Formatted

The PNY Attache 16GB pen drive comes pre-formatted with the FAT32 file system, for wide-spread compatibility across computers running most any version of Windows or Mac OS.  Also means that you do not have to spend any time formatting when you take this drive out of the package; can be a real time saver.

The PNY Attache 16GB Pen Drive has an Attached, Retractable Cover

This cover shields the USB connector somewhat when not in use. You won’t lose the cover.  Not an airtight seal however.  don’t count on this electronic device to be waterproof; it is not, even with the cover closed.

Cool to Lukewarm Operation

Produces very little heat; so that means very little wasted power.  Use this in your battery-powered laptop or notebook computers, without fear that it will significant increase the drain on your batteries.  Current draw is nearly non existent.





RoHS Compliant

Limited 1 Year Warranty

Given how quickly we outgrow data storage devices these days, it’s useful that PNY offers a limited warranty with this product, that seems to adequately the typical period of time that this thumb drive remains useful.

Free Technical Support of this PNY Attache 16GB Pen Drive

Call 1-800-234-4597 (USA only).

Requires No Special Software  

Windows based computers need no drivers to access the PNY Attache 16GB pen drive.

Truly Non Volatile Data Storage

Exposure to magnetic fields does not erase the data on this flash drive; unlike floppies or data tapes.

Physically Large and Easy to Find

It’s all too easy to misplace a thumb drive due to its small size.  But this PNY storage device features an opening in the connector cover. So you can hang it on a lanyard or keychain, to prevent loss.  Plus, it is bigger than SDHC memory cards. And it’s way larger than MicroSD memory chips. Indeed, to call these tiny storage units “cards” is a stretch.

The PNY Attache 16GB Pen Drive is Easy to Grasp 

Bigger than the SD (Secure Digital) family of memory cards, and so, is more difficult to lose.

Good for Long Term Data Storage

Though data transfer speeds may be more limited with this PNY Attache 16GB pen drive as compared with class 10 and higher SD cards, PNY flash drives work very well for archival data storage. Indeed they are plenty fast enough for streaming audio and most video.





Upgrade Friendly

Replace them with a bigger USB drive when you need more storage.  This is owing to the USB standard itself and the high degree of interoperability and interchanging of devices that conform to the USB standards.  For this reason et al, USB thumb drives have become nearly ubiquitous in so many Information Technology applications.

Picture of the PNY USB 2.0 Flash Drive 16 GB Back View of the original packaging.
Attache USB 2.0 flash drive PNY 16 GB back view. PNY Attache 16GB pen drive.

PNY Attache 16GB Pen Drive Problems, Cons, Disadvantages, and Limitations

No In-Use Light

Gives no indication when receiving or transmitting data.  We like to see such a lamp flickering, to reassure ourselves that long copy operations, for example, have not stalled or hung.

Sticks Way Out

The body of this PNY thumb drive spans significantly more than two inches, and when plugged in, protrudes from the USB port almost two inches.  So, take care not to move the host computer with this USB drive plugged in. Why?  Because  it would be easy to snap off or otherwise damage this drive or the USB port, if you pass too close by a wall or corner while carrying the computer.

No USB 3.0 Support

This particular model does not support USB 3.0 transfer speeds, although PNY  does offer flash drives that do, in their Turbo line of storage products.

Data Loss Not Covered by Warranty on the PNY Attache 16GB Pen Drive

Not unusual for any data storage manufacturer to limit liability in this way.  Few, if any, offer free protection against data mutilation.





Our Rating on the PNY Attache 16GB pen drive 

The PNY Attache 16GB pen drive is inexpensive, and is available at Best Buy, Staples, Amazon.com, and other brick and online retail outlets.  Price variability is large for this product across retailers in our experience, anything from $10.00 to $29.99.  So by all means, shop around.  With faster speeds, higher storage capacity, and notably superior durability, why would you not seek to replace your older disc storage mediums with portable solid state storage like this one from PNY?

Picture of the PNY Attache USB 16 GB pen drive, held in hand, removed from original packaging.
PNY Attache USB 16 GB thumb drive, held in hand.

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  3. Staples® USB 2.0 Stick Drive 64GB Review
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  5. SanDisk Cruzer Glide 32GB USB Flash Drive Review

References for this PNY Attache 16GB Pen Drive Review

  1. PNY USB Pen Drives   Product Page
  2. PNY  Web Site
  3. What is a   USB Pen Drive?   on Wikipedia
  4. Where to buy the   PNY Attache 16 GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive

Revision History

  • 2020-04-13: Added more tags.
  • 2019-03-08: Added key phrase targeting and more subheadings and tags.
  • 2017-02-26: Revised the tags list.
  • 2015-12-04: Added appropriate tags.
  • 2014-12-23: Originally published this piece.