Most USB flash drives are the same, but PNY wanted to make its latest Duo Link V3 different. With an all-metal build, data transfer speeds nearing 1GB/s, and a budget-friendly price, this just became my favorite flash drive yet.

Price and Availability

The PNY Duo Link V3 flash drive comes in 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, and 2TB storage sizes. Pricing starts at $31 for the 256GB model and goes up to $162 for the 2TB version. It’s available at Amazon, PNY, and B&H Photo.

The Build Quality Blew Me Away

Patrick Campanale / How-To Geek

When the PNY Duo Link V3 first arrived, I was expecting a normal flash drive. Some cheap metal housing on the inside with a plastic outer housing. That’s not what this flash drive is at all.

Instead of plastic, PNY opted for an all-metal design here. The metal feels extremely sturdy and premium, especially compared to the plastic build of most flash drives.

I was also surprised with the mechanism that PNY chose for the rotation of this drive. I’ve had rotating flash drives in the past, and they always felt flimsy and like after enough rotations the mechanism would wear down—which I’ve had happen in the past.

Instead of nubs and notches, PNY went with a magnetic system for the rotational mechanism. It’s smooth, satisfying, and almost like a fidget toy in a sense. I’m really impressed with the mechanism and I feel like it’ll hold up well even with heavy use.

Fast Enough for Most People

The PNY Duo Link V3 is USB 3.2 Gen 2 at 10Gb/s. This allows for transfer speeds up to 1GB/s, which I was able to see when testing the drive.

In fact, when doing benchmarks on the drive with 1GB files, I saw read speeds of 950MB/s and write speeds of 978MB/s. Doing a larger 8GB file resulted in 947MB/s read and 806MB/s write.

While there are definitely faster SSDs on the market, I honestly don’t think a flash drive needs to be any faster for most people. Being able to transfer 1GB files in a single second (at peak speeds) is already fast enough. That’ll move 50GB of files in less than a minute.

Really, with the speeds that this drive has, I would have no problem storing my photo library on it if I needed more space than my MacBook had available at the time. In fact, I’d even edit a 4K video off the drive connected to my MacBook without worry thanks to its speed.

The Versatile Form-Factor Is What Sells This Drive

Patrick Campanale / How-To Geek

I love how well-built this flash drive is, and I really do enjoy the speed, but, if I’m being honest, the dual USB-C and USB-A form-factor is what makes this drive desirable. PNY hit it out of the park with the dual USB-C and A connectors, both of which hit the 1GB/s transfer speeds.

I also love that there’s a lanyard connector on the outer case. That makes it easy to connect this drive to a set of keys, your backpack, or anything else.

Flash drives with both USB-A and USB-C have become a necessity for me in my daily life. My MacBook Pro and most of my other laptops around the house are all USB-C, including my iPhone and iPad. While everything I have is USB-C at home, when I’m not at home, USB-A still rules the roost for data transfer.

There have been numerous times when I’ve needed to print a file over USB at church or a friend’s house and there was no USB-C in sight. That’s why I love dual USB-C/A flash drives so much. I can use the USB-C side to move the file from my MacBook or iPhone to another device that’s USB-A only without having to carry a bunch of cables around.

Should You Buy the PNY Duo Link V3 Flash Drive?

Patrick Campanale / How-To Geek

I think that the PNY Duo Link V3 flash drive should be top of the list for anyone buying a flash drive today. At right around $30 for 256GB of fast, compact, and versatile storage, it’s hard to deny the value that PNY has here.

For comparison, SanDisk’s 256GB USB-A UltraFit flash drive is $20 with 400MB/s speeds. The Amazon Basics 256GB USB-A flash drive with just 130MB/s speeds is $25. Both of these drives pale in comparison to the speeds of the PNY Duo Link V3, and neither offer the dual USB-C/A design.

So, if you’re in the market for a flash drive, the PNY Duo Link V3 should be your first choice.