Kingston Mini Dragon (128 GB) Flash Drive Review

In for review is Kingston’s Mini Dragon flash drive for the year 2023. This is a limited edition USB 3.2 Gen 1 USB flash drive with a 128 GB of capacity. Price is at ₱1,190.00 PHP – totally not bad for a rare model.

Disclosure: Kingston sent the Mini Dragon for the purpose of this review. The company did not ask me to say anything particular about it.

Technical Specifications

Storage
Capacity	128 GB
Cache	N/A
Flash Controller	N/A
Flash Memory	N/A
Form Factor	USB
Interface	USB 3.2 Gen 1
Sequential Read	200 MB/s
Sequential Write	60 MB/s
Random Read	N/A
Random Write	N/A
Endurance
MTBF	N/A
TBW	N/A
Dimensions
Length	31.77 mm
Width	33.63 mm
Height	40.24 mm
Weight	19.2 grams

Packaging and Accessories

The Mini Dragon comes in an egg-shaped packaging which is fitting to theme of the flash drive.

Scope of delivery are as follows:

• Kingston Mini Dragon
• Ball chain

There’s nothing much to say about the packaging and accessories considering that everything is already laid out in front of you. However, I would like to note that the clear part of the shell is press-fitted so it is not recommended to use as sassy keychain to store the drive when travelling.

Design, Build and Connectivity

The Mini Dragon is a different beast compared to its older brother which is the Fortune Dragon from 2012. This one is definitely cuter, following the recent or rather, the yearly tradition of their Mini Collection designs.

The Mini Dragon is actually made out of two parts. The bulk of the design is made out of silicon while the crown is made out of metal – housing the flash drive itself. It is also press-fitted but I am confident to strap the included ball chain to the drive housing’s chain compared to the shell. This is a shock proof drive with at least 5 years of warranty.

While the last dragon symbolizes fortune and royalty with its red and yellow colorway, the Mini Dragon emphasizes health and wealth. This colorway is a blend of spring and summer which is also fitting to the start of the Chinese calendar and the seasons succeeding it.

Throughput

Kingston is rather conservative with their speed rating for the Mini Dragon as it has been tested to reach 243.576 MB/s read and 103.124 write at CrystalDiskMark.

IOPS

While the IOPS figures below are embarrassing for an SSD, it is not that bad for a flash drive since they are no task masters.

Access Time

The high response time is no surprise given that the Mini Dragon comes with low IOPS results.

File Copy

File copy performance is rather weak especially when it is copying small bits of data. Definitely not the best but I have seen worst – from a flash drive, of course.

Results above translates to 36.18, 117.57and 67.84 seconds respectively.

Compression

Compression benchmark result is consistent for the read but is erratic for the write. The drive is being written from an SSD, that’s why it could reach speeds of up to 140 MB/s.

Cache

Cache is non-existent. Good news is that performance is consistent throughout the test.

Temperature

Thermal output is acceptable for its size and lack of an actual cooling solution.

Final Thoughts

The Kingston Mini Dragon flash drive offers a unique and aesthetically pleasing design, characterized by its egg-shaped packaging along with a cute shock-proof silicon cradling the drive itself when not in use. The colorway adds a thematic touch, aligning with the Chinese calendar and the passing of seasons.

Performance-wise, the Mini Dragon demonstrates reasonable throughput with a tested speed of 243.576 MB/s read and 103.124 MB/s write. IOPS figures on the other hand are acceptable for a flash drive along with high access times – expected given the lower IOPS results.

File copy performance, particularly with small bits of data, is notably weak, though not the worst seen in any flash drive around its designated price point. Compression benchmarks show consistency in read results but has some variability in write – most like due to how I ran the test.

Now, thermal output is deemed acceptable for the Mini Dragon’s size and the lack of a dedicated cooling solution.

Despite its performance limitations in certain aspects, the Kingston Mini Dragon flash drive stands out for its design, limited edition appeal, and reasonable pricing. It is a viable option for collectors who prioritize uniqueness and aesthetics alongside its decent storage capacity and 5 year warranty.