USB flash drive gets very hot when plugged in

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Level 1

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USB flash drive gets very hot when plugged in

I have a USB flash drive that I used to transfer files between my iMac and a Windows 7 PC. When I have the drive plugged into my iMac, after a few hours, the drive is crazy hot when I eject it. Not a big deal, as I thought this was normal until I realized when this same flash drive is plugged into my PC, it stays very cool, not even warm.

Here is the flash drive I noticed this on: http://www.amazon.com/Kingston-Digital-DataTraveler-DTSE9H-16GBZET/dp/B00DYQYITG

What is different between the iMac and PC that would cause this difference? Does the iMac's USB port supply a much higher power that causes it to heat up?

Just curious here.

Thanks for any information,

Chris

iMac (27-inch Mid 2011), OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.2)

Posted on Aug 1, 2014 1:01 PM

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Answer 1

K Shaffer

Level 8

36,100 points

Aug 1, 2014 2:32 PM in response to cejones

The file format may make a slight difference, in that Fat-32 works with both OS X & Windows;

but for Mac-only, the preferred format would not be Fat-32. It may run cooler with Mac-only

formatting, as it is more efficient.

But the kinds of files stored, retrieved, and written/read may have something to do with it.

Various flash drive products have a read-write speed, such as camera cards do; so perhaps

there is a difference in what the specs are, vs. the speed of the port the USB flash is used in.

Does the PC have USB2.0 and the Mac, USB3.0? It should not run hotter, but could if it

is forced to run faster with a faster USB spec port. In any event, I'd recommend trying a

different USB Flash drive, since these should not run hot. Make a duplicate of contents

in case it fails, and also make a duplicate to a different brand of higher spec USB flash.

Good luck & happy computing! 🙂

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