We bought an iPhone, also making significant sacrifices in economic terms, perhaps aiming for the basic model to save a few euros? Well, one of the biggest problems for those who have an iPhone or an iPad lies precisely in the capacity in terms of memory of the device, which between photos and videos at very high quality and the various apps installed and updates, risks running out in a very short time. What to do? Do we make an additional expense for an iCloud subscription? No guys, the solution comes aftermarket, via the Vackiit dongle that uses the lightning port, but not only, offers a memory expansion with cuts of 128/256/512 GB in addition to a simple user experience without forced steps to the PC. The dongle is on sale on Amazon and now I'll tell you how immediate and efficient it is to use.
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On offer on Amazon
Vackiit Memory Stick: What It Is and How It's Made
We are essentially talking about a USB stick that we can connect to the computer like normal sticks, but also to smartphones/tablets equipped with a Type-C input and of course to our iPhones, with full compatibility starting from the 5S series, but also iPads equipped with a lightning input. In our case we tested the version with 128 GB of internal memory (real), but there are also versions with 256 or 512 GB. This stick offers the possibility of transferring files of any kind to it and in the case of use with iOS, we also have an accompanying application that offers some additional functions, which I will tell you about later in the review. I would like to underline that we have the MFI lightning certification.
As anticipated, the Vackiit flash drive has a lightning plug on one end, while on the other end we have a USB 3.0 connector that transforms into Type-C via the adapter provided in the package. The product is completely made of zinc alloy, even the adapter just mentioned, which provides extreme resistance to falls, impacts and scratches, preserving the components inside. We have a sort of swinging cap that covers the connector that we do not use and that at its end offers a notch to attach a lanyard or keychain.
The configuration offered by Vackiit allows you to easily exchange files between a computer and an iPhone or an iPad or from an iPhone to an Android smartphone, or rather the exchange can take place with any device equipped with memory and lightning, USB-A and Type-C input. In short, a real USB stick but with a triple connector. Compared to other memory sticks on the market, the solution we are telling you about is compact, convenient to always carry with us. Furthermore, the connectors fit perfectly even on devices protected by cases and above all it does not require any power other than that supplied by the device to which the Vackiit stick is connected.
Vackiit Memory Stick: How it Works
Getting it to work is very simple. The first thing to do is connect it to the iPhone/iPad or other smartphone/tablet but also PC. In the case of use with iOS devices you need to download the iExtend+ application that is used to read the contents of the iPhone/iPad, which we know does not offer a real file manager like on Android. At that point, once the app has been downloaded, we will have access to the contents of the Vackiit stick. By default, the company has created 4 macro areas: Internal Storage to read the contents of our phone, Contact to make a backup or restore of our address book, Photos for direct access to photos and videos stored in the phone's memory and finally External Storage which allows you to view the contents of the stick.
Among the noteworthy functions is the ability to take photos and videos, storing everything directly on the Vackiit stick, thus avoiding a step. Each file present in our memory stick can be manipulated or played directly. Note that the application plays natively and without the need for support from other programs files that we often would not be able to open with iPhone or iPad. Specifically, we find compatibility with files: MP3, WAV, M4A, AIFF, AC3, AAC, CAF, FLAC, APE but also AVI, DIVX, FLV, M4V, MKV, MOV, MP4, MPG, RM, RMVB, TS, VOB, WMV, 3GP and then also BMP, TIF, TIFF, JPG, PNG, JPEG, GIF, NEF, HEIC in addition to compatibility with DOC, DOCX, PPT, PPTX, XLS, XLSX, KEY, NUMBERS, PAGES, PDF, HTML, TXT, RTF files. For all files we have the opportunity to rename, zip one or more files but also to block access with a password or with Face ID.
We can encrypt documents and files in general. You can enable a password for unlocking which can also be done via Face ID. Finally, we can also view hidden files and change file extensions. We also have an integrated player for viewing video content.
The device, as mentioned, is a real “teleportation” system between iPhone, iPad and a computer. Thanks to the USB connector we can move any content from Mac and PC to iOS/Android systems and vice versa: just connect the Vackiit stick to the computer and it will be seen as a USB stick, and then load into it what we want to see on the iPhone or iPad. Then using the Lightning connector, we will connect it to the iPhone or iPad and that's it. At that point, provided that the file is compatible with one of the applications we will be able to see it, listen to it, read it, open it or modify it.
The file transfer speed is definitely appreciable, also counting on a compatibility with the USB 3.0 standard. Specifically, we are talking about these speeds:
- LIGHTNING CONNECTOR: reading 10-30 Mb/s | writing 10-15 Mb/s;
- USB 3.0 CONNECTOR: reading 30-80 Mb/s | writing 15-35 Mb/s;
Copying 30 GB of documents, as might be necessary if you want to move movies, could become boring but if you need to quickly transfer a movie of about 2 GB, in about 1 minute we would be able to do the task, ready to enjoy it. In case, prepare the popcorn first. In any case, the performance is much higher, at least in transfer, than what you would have with Wi-Fi.
On offer on Amazon
Conclusions and price
The Vackiit memory stick, in conclusion, is a really interesting product both for those who are constantly struggling for the available space on their iPhone, and for those who simply want to have a system to make a quick backup of the images they take with their iPhone and do not want to use WiFi or the cellular network. Also very useful for playing films and music, transferring documents from a Mac or a PC or vice versa. In all these situations, it is the ease of use that impresses, in short, a real USB stick for iPhone and iPad. All in all, the file transfer performance is also quite fast. You can buy it directly on Amazon starting from €39.99 but if you use the discount coupon DM4G64V you can get a small 5% discount, which never hurts.
