Trade Show Season is Here!

For those of us who yearly participate in Trade Show events, this is the most hectic time of the year.  Not only are we in a race to finish up the year on a high note, but we are also working to finish the final touches on our upcoming Trade Show events.  At Qpromo we decided to kick off 2011 Trade Show season with the reinvention of our booth space.

We have been working diligently to design the most high end and friendly booth space for our distributors to walk.  I think we found exactly what we needed.

We invite everyone to visit us for the start of the 2011 show season in Las Vegas. We will be exhibiting at the PPAI Expo Show, booth 1978, Jan 12-14.   I promise that you will enjoy a great atmosphere, preview latest and greatest products and walk away with a memorable give away.

Igor
Qpromo.com

 

China Made VS U.S. Made Flash Drives

For many years the flash industry has been asking about U.S. Made USB Drives.   While this was available 5 to 6 years ago, over these years majority of production has been taken off shore to China and Taiwan.  As the industry developed it became harder to distinguish between U.S. Made and Off Shore Made drives.   However, in recent years as prices diminished so has the quality, particularly on the off shore drives.

Qpromo.com is now proud to introduce U.S. made flash drives.  These drives are 100% engineered, manufactured and assembled in the U.S.   Why is U.S. made so much better? Well, to demonstrate our point we made a visual presentation below.  Majority of the Flash manufactured overseas is recycled and downgraded.  While downgraded flash is not always a major concern, recycled memory is not always the best quality product.

Many of the off shore companies have resorted to recycled memory because of the demand for cheap flash drives.  Below you will see what recycled memory actually looks like.

Next time you are shopping for flash memory think of what the extra few pennies will buy you.

Igor K.

Qpromo.com

Hello world!

Welcome to WordPress.com. This is your first post. Edit or delete it and start blogging!

New Hot Product for Fall

Smart phones are a new hot trend in today’s market. With the growing demand for Smart phones, we are also seeing a growing demand for mobile accessories. One item I would like to feature is the Lithium Ion Mobile Charger. While this is a very simple product, it offers a lot of punch when you need the power. The charger is roughly 3×2 inches and can easily fit in the palm of your hand. The device can be charged at the same time as your Smart phone and is small enough to take along on your trips. It packs 1900mAh (3.7v) of portable power to allow you up to 300 hours of stand by time. It is simple to use and can work with virtually any Smartphone. It offers a mini USB in/out, and a standard USB output.

From a marketing perspective this item can be used as a corporate gift or give-away. While the retail value is roughly $20, it is surely an item you will never leave at home. You might not always have an outlet or your laptop at your disposal, but you can always reach into your pocket and get a quick jolt of energy with this device.

 

Igor K.

Qpromo.com

 

 

 

 

Custom Shape USB’s

A branded USB drive is still one of the best ways to promote your business. It’s environmentally friendly and is extremely effective. But as we progress in the USB industry Custom Shapes are starting to take over the market. While a quality printed USB is a great way to promote your business, a custom shape is just another way to kick it up a notch.

Over the year we worked on many different custom projects. Anything from a simple shapes to something completely out there, like the Voltron Robot. Here you will find a few of our most unique projects.

So, if you can think it, we can build it.

Igor K

Qpromo.com

 

Flash Memory Price, Ups and Downs

How long is this price good for? Why did the price go up this quick? Why is pricing not posted on your site? These are typical questions that come up when dealing with Flash Memory.  Many people don’t know, but flash memory is a commodity and pricing fluctuates on daily bases.   While some of the fluctuation is very minute, other price increases or decreases can be very significant. Just like majority of other commodities flash memory price is also based on supply and demand. Nevertheless, some of the factors that influence flash memory cost are not so easy to explain.

A perfect scenario where price is influenced by other factors was demonstrated a few years back when Apple released a new i-product. Because large manufacturers like apple rule the component market, they are able to be the first in line to receive the flash for the given year.  When flash manufacturers like Samsung or Toshiba are not able to meet all of the demand they hike up the prices on what’s left over. As they go through the year and flash memory supply starts to pile up, they start to lower prices to move inventory.

As you can see, while supply and demand are still part of the equation, there are still other unforeseen factors that we cannot control.  So next time you are shopping around for flash memory think of it in the following way.  The suppliers you are calling for pricing is a fine sea food restaurant, and the flash memory you are trying to purchase is a fresh lobster.  When asking for a quote always expect that is will be quoted based on daily market price.  It could change tomorrow or day after that. It is always recommended that distributors confirm pricing with suppliers before placing final order.

Hope this helps you sell more USB’s and other flash memory devices.

Igor K

Qpromo.com

Flash Memory 101

I think it’s time to reveal the truth behind flash memory and how to compare quality aspects of this product.  Being a Supplier in the promotional product industry, I have heard both Suppliers and Distributors use incorrect terminology and incorrect statements when discussing flash memory.  First of all, there is no such thing as Tier 1, Tier 2 , Tier Anything or Grade A/Grade B Chips.  These are all terms developed by Suppliers, Distributors and Overseas Vendors to help them establish different price points for the same product.  On one hand it helps to up sell the client, and on the other it helps destroy competition.

What is true about the USB Flash Memory market is it does offer something called downgraded flash.  I have to agree downgraded does not sound like a product your customer might want to buy.  So using Grade A/Grade B might be a better way to describe what you are selling; nevertheless, there is no difference in the quality of the flash or how it was manufactured. In reality, downgraded flash means exactly that.  The flash was manufactured for a higher capacity, but because of a few back sectors it can only be used for smaller capacities. Once again, the memory is exactly the same, just doesn’t utilize the back sectors.  So a 2gb drive that did not meet the 2gb manufacturing requirement can be downgraded to 1gb drive. It’s efficient and environmentally friendly.

Now keep in mind, downgraded flash is not the same as fake flash or bad sector flash. If your memory came out of the back door of a Chinese factory, because it did not pass the QC inspection, it’s still bad flash.  It doesn’t qualify for a Tier or a Grade.  It’s simply bad flash.  This is when you should expect high failure rates and missing data if you are the unlucky user.

At the end of the day its not the Tiers or Grades that matter, but the company that sold you the product. If the vendor you are dealing with is not blowing smoke in your face and throwing around words you don’t understand, and just tells you how it is.  You can rest assure you will get a quality product and a great service. If the buying process is confusing and the deal is too good to be true.  Well, it probably is too good.  The quality you will get will definitely be questionable.

So, next time you are shopping for flash memory, keep this in mind.  If the deal sounds like you are getting the product for free, then you most likely don’t want it.  There is a science behind flash memory and I can assure you miracles don’t happen.  I have been part of this industry for 8 years now, and I am still waiting for that miracle.

Igor K

Qpromo.com