Microsoft has decided to allow USB flash storage to be used with the Xbox 360. You can use a USB stick to save games, profiles, and demos. The only limit is a storage cap of 16GB, which is much less than the hard drives themselves offer. The official partner for supplying Xbox 360 branded USB drives is SanDisk, and the company has now finally released an 8GB and 16GB model of the drive.

According to the official press release, “the new drive makes it easier than ever for gamers to take their gamertags, saved game progress, map packs, Arcade game downloads and bonus content with them for fast and convenient access on another Xbox 360 console.” The 8GB drive will cost $34.99, while the 16GB model sells for $69.99. However, gamers should take note that they do not have to purchase the drives from SanDisk in order to take advantage of the USB storage. Most USB flash drives can be used with your Xbox 360. Using a cheaper model will save you cash, but will cost you that Xbox 360 branding supplied on the official SanDisk model.

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You can download any number of programs to put on your favorite USB stick, computer or device from our software center. You don’t even need to use a certain brand to store what you buy.

Xbox 360 USB Drive Now Available

When I was troubleshooting my ReadyBoost issues with the PNY Attache 4GB USB 2.0 thumb drive, I got silly and purchased two 2GB SanDisk high-speed USB (2.0) memory sticks. For those of you keeping track, that’s two 2 twos I snagged. The Cruzer Micro was the only thing the store had on hand that was both high-speed and high-capacity. However, these SanDisk Cruzer Micro “thumb drives” also came with the dreaded U3 software – which I don’t want (and I don’t need). You can’t just go and reformat the entire USB key, mind you – you have to find the uninstaller first. Geeky Jock to the rescue! I downloaded the U3 remover utility from his site and now my Cruzer Micro USB flash memory sticks are 100% without annoyances. I laud SanDisk and U3 for doing something interesting, but you should at least give the user the *EASY* option to remove this so-called feature from a product they paid good money for. U3 isn’t necessarily bad – it’s just terribly annoying. Oh, and I wound up getting Vista to recognize the PNY Attache 4GB USB 2.0 memory key (after connecting and removing it a few times, per a Gnomie’s suggestion).

U3 Uninstaller