I'm looking for a flash drive that would work with my keyboard's usb port. Does anybody know of some >8gb flash drives that work with this port?
iMac, Apple USB keyboard
The keyboard's USB port uses USB 1. You should use one of the USB 2 connection on your Mac, or use a powered USB hub.
Here is my list of flash drives that do and don't work with the keyboard's usb port.
Lexar JumpDrive 512 MB --- Works
Microcenter 8GB --- Doesn't work
PNY Attache 16 GB --- Doesn't work
People of the internet - please add to this list 🙂
Using the ports on the keyboard are so much more convenient than having to reach for the far side of the Mac.
Your call. The USB 1 port on the keyboard is intended for a mouse.
Get a short USB extension cable if you want convenience.
32 GB SanDisk Cruzer Glide --- Works
That may depend on the iMac version you have. The pre-2006 iMacs this forum covers often gave a low-power report when you plugged any flash drive into the keyboard. My mid-2010 Intel iMac with Apple wired keyboard seems happy with the five or six flash drives on my desk:
4GB PNY Attache
16GB SansDisk Glide
8GB Lexar side-swing model
1GB Datastick Pro
1GB "no name"
512MB "no name"
But I agree--I can't see why anyone thought putting USB ports on the back was a breakthough in human factors engineering.
• Using the ports on the keyboard are so much more convenient than having to reach for the far side of the Mac.
Right! And plugging your devices into a powered hub is even more convenient, since you can place the hub just about anywhere on a normal sized desk. And there is no danger of the computer complaining about excess power being drawn by a usb device.
Buying a usb hub --- $10 to $30.
Not having to go thru the trouble of finding a hub and instead using the usb ports that comes with the keyboard --- priceless.
I agree. At lease some usb ports should be more accessible and placed on the side of the computer. I know they did this in the past.
The design of the new iMac really disappoints me. Having a power button that is in the back and out of sight doesn't make sense. Its so anti-user-friendly.
The design of the new iMac really disappoints me. Having a power button that is in the back and out of sight doesn't make sense. Its so anti-user-friendly.
If you have an iMac made since 2006, you might want to use this forum next time:
At lease some usb ports should be more accessible and placed on the side of the computer. I know they did this in the past.
Yup, but if you read the Steve Jobs biography by Walter Isaacson, you will understand more about where some of these design decisions--good or bad--arose.
I was having the same problem, but I solved it, simply by switching the USB port in the back of the Mac to which the keyboard is connected. It appears that some USB ports in the back supply more power to the keyboard than others, and I can now plug in USB flash drive to the keyboard, when it didn't work before, because the keyboard is now connected to a different USB port.
EDIT: Sorry, I was wrong. It's not that some ports have more power than others, but that, when you unplug some other USB devices, then there's more power to the keyboard. So I can use the keyboard USB port if I unplug the DVD drive, etc.
Message was edited by: Lyn Murdock
It seems that some flash drives are supported via the port on a wired keyboard and some are not. Others have posted a list of what they found, and so let me extend that list with the testing I just did tonight:
Microcenter 8GB-- not supported (as reported by another Communities member)
Microcenter 16GB--- not supported, my iMac produced an error message saying I needed more power.
Microcenter 32GB--- began flashing, then was recognized on the same iMac's desktop as an USB disk
I'm glad that this flash drive (which I obtained today from the Microcenter store near me) worked--- I believe all other USB ports on the back of my computer are already in use. It would have been awkward to remove a device, insert the 16GB flash drive, then remove it after being done using it and replace with the more needed USB device previously occupying that port.
Depending on your Mac model, the extra USB port on the keyboard does not supply full (high) power. To ensure better compatibly, get a USB hub that is self-powered. Self-powered means it has its own power supply that plugs into a wall outlet, so it does not rely on the Mac's USB port for power (like the spare USB port on the keyboard). You can then place the USB hub closer to you, to make it more convenient to connect and disconnect devices. And you have a lot more ports available.
usb flash drive that work with keyboard port
