USB-Stick

07:51 Jan 8, 2013 

Comment by British Diana is very useful and is goes some way to explaing the stuff on the web about Sony brandname, Dengish, etc, in relation to 'USB stick'.

19:27 Jan 7, 2013 

There was a discussion on Pseudo-Anglicisms in the Cornelsen magazine What's New Autumn 2008 and Spring 2009 started by Michael Ferguson. First he said that USB stick was Denglish, the word was flash drive and Memory Stick was a Sony brand name. Second time round he admitted that USB stick is sometimes used in English, as well as flash drive, USB drive, jump drive, memory stick (in spite of it being a trademark) and memory key. So really it doesn't matter what you use.

17:32 Jan 7, 2013 

...the company is missing a marketing trick. It'd be appealing to call it the "catwalk drive" or something similar. I don't translate fashion or specialise in this sort of marketing, so you'd be better off asking someone else that does, if interested. Either way if they've missed the trick in the German they'll likely not appreciate it in the English. They could really sell it as something cool and innovative by giving it an interesting name and perhaps branding the item in some way. Ah well. :)

17:23 Jan 7, 2013 

...both mine and Phil's options are alright, and really, the difference is so small, based on what you believe the client will prefer (using knowledge that only you have - the rest of the source text), it is hard for any of us to really know what is the best term to use. USB stick was my first instinct, although USB flash drive also stuck out. A little online research revealed that USB flash drive is the preferred term, i.e., the term that will show the company is modern and embracing the new technology.

Why I posted USB flash drive if I myself thought USB stick was fine? The company is doing something a bit creative here, a bit different, sending out a collection on a USB. They are selling themselves as modern and business-like, following the trends. They could have sent it out via a link by email, or they could have given a postcard collection, etc. But, they chose something that says "we're classy and modern" - the gift of a not so cheap USB flash disk/stick to show off their designs. It says something about their target market. A target market that, to my mind, will appreciate the use of the "grown-up" word one sees on IT websites, too.

15:58 Jan 7, 2013 

is a "Memory Stick", and is not a USB device, but a proprietary memory format used my Sony for its camera memory cards.
See:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memory_Stick
USB sticks are frequently referred to (colloquially) as "flash drives" or "thumb drives".

15:13 Jan 7, 2013 

'Die Weitergabe dieses USB-Sticks mit einer perfekt aufbereiteten digitalen Präsentation.......'.
There's a lot of stuff on the net about 'USB stick' technically only referring to a Sony device used for cameras but I'm not sure how seriously this should be taken.

14:45 Jan 7, 2013 

14:35 Jan 7, 2013 

Can we take a look at the source please? Just in case there is an option to make your translation even better than the original...