Concerns with Flashtrax

[MTalley]

Rather than bump up a previous topic on this issue, forgive me for starting a new one. I ordered a Flashtrax 40GB unit from Dell the end of last week and it arrived today with a dead display backlight out of the box.

I've already applied to return it to Dell as a defective item. Here's my dilemma. The unit seems nice enough, and I'm sure Dell would have no problem shipping me another one in exchange for this defective one.

However, before making that choice (getting a replacement one as opposed to getting a refund), I'd really like to get some more feedback from users that have owned this unit for a while. The flip-up cover does seem just a tad flimsy, but other than that, it seems pretty durable.

I know that one bad unit doesn't imply that they all are, I'm just a little gun-shy until I get some more positive feedback. I'll probably need to make a decision soon, once Dell processes my RMA request, so fire away!

[the.digital.guy]

I am sure you have just gotten a "Bad" one.
Are you using this for storage or is the Display important to you?
I have the Epson P-2000 and the LCD is just Awesome!
The build quality of the Epson is also better than the Flashtrax;but you do pay for it.
Good Luck in your decision.

[MTalley]

Mainly for storage, but the display is important, too. Obviously, I'd like to at least verify that my card copied, and such.

I'd love the Epson, but right now the only place I've got purchase room is on my Dell account, thus I'm stuck with what they carry (which is a great variety of everything except the Epson).

I fired off a return request to Dell within an hour of receiving the unit (Monday afternoon) and followed up with SmartDisk a few minutes later, just to make sure. SmartDisk has already responded to my inquiry (first thing this morning) and I'm still waiting on Dell to send me an RMA and further instructions.

Figures the one time I pay extra for 2nd day shipping (it got here in one business day), I now have to wait, send it back, then wait for another to arrive.

[Inactive member 51]

If display is important at all forget about the Flashtrax. You will only be buying a Ebson in the near future. I would sell my 40 g Flashtrax if someone is not interested in the viewfinder. The storage is the only thing that gets a thumbs up. I even called factory and questioned them about the quality of the screen and they had "no comment" when asked to compare them with the Epson.
Hope this helps please feel free to contact me for more info.

[MTalley]

Actually, after going around with Dell's Customer Service this evening, I'm returning the FlashTrax for a refund and waiting for a while before buying something else (from somewhere else).

[CleanShot]

I have the FlashTrax 40GB, and I find that it is painfully slow when uploading images directly from the CF Card. When I upload a full 4GB CF card directly from a USB card reader to my PowerBook G4, it takes about 20 minutes. It is about double that when uploading from the CF card to the FlashTrax. Also, if you edit the photos after expanding them in Photoshop, the files go from about 6MB to 40MB. The processor in the FlazhTrax is so slow, it will get bogged down. I have not had the patience to wait for the uncompressed tiff image to show, so I don't know how long it will take to view, if it will at all. I have not tried to view a jpeg on it yet either.

Mason McGowin - Atlanta, GA
Canon EOS 1D Mark II, Canon USM 16-35mm, Canon USM 24-70mm

[KennyG]

Just so you are aware folks, a lot of sports an wildlife pros use the FlashTrax because it is so reliable. Mine has been used to transfer somewhere in the region of 350,000 RAW images in the most adverse conditions. It will be in use this weekend to transfer another 4,000 or so. Having pretty pictures on the screen isn't important to me, reliable storage is.

[MTalley]

I'm with you, KennyG. Dell got on the ball and overnighted a replacement Flashtrax to me and it arrived this afternoon. Looking forward to using it during a weekend shoot. Yeah, the interface is clunky, slow and seemingly erratic. On the other hand, the reliability I've read about more than makes up for that.

I'd rather have a workhorse than a pretty face. Sure, the Epson will probably be reliable. OTOH, I can't find one to buy anywhere right now, so the FlashTrax will do me for now (and hopefully for years to come).