Make the most of your iPhone’s limited storage with this clever flash drive

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AmazonMost critics agree that the iPhone 6s is another quality iteration of the popular phone series, but if there’s one common complaint, it’s that it’s too stingy with storage.

More specifically, the most affordable 6s — which, at $650, still isn’t cheap — has 16GB of space by default. That’s perfectly usable for some, but if you want to take advantage of that excellent camera or iOS’s massive app and game library, it’s going to run dry sooner than a high-end device should.

You can turn to something like Dropbox or iCloud to stash pics and videos, but those are still a company’s servers, and going back and forth between them can feel slow. Lots of people are recommending to just buy the 6s model with 64GB of space, but that adds another $100 to an already lofty price tag.

Instead, just like with Android, you can give your iPhone more room to breathe with a flash drive. For that, we recommend the Leef iBridge.

We’ve highlighted it before, but as a reminder, the iBridge is a J-shaped stick with both USB and Lightning connectors. It’s funny-looking, but that clever design lets it slide easily around the iPhone (or iPad) — case or no case — then transfer whatever videos, photos, and files you want to move on or off your device.

All that stuff will load directly from the iBridge whenever it’s hooked in, and you can make it so any photos are directly saved to the drive as well. And of course, the built-in USB plug — which uses the slower 2.0 standard, unfortunately — makes it easy to move your data to a Mac or PC.

This being the iPhone, the iBridge isn’t as cheap as similar devices for Android. A 16GB model sets you back $60, a 32GB one goes for $80, and higher-capacity options are in the triple figures. Such is life in the world of Apple.

Still, it’s cheaper than buying a new model altogether, and the iBridge is nothing but smooth once it’s connected. If you’re a new (or old) iDevice owner hurting for storage, it’s a quick fix.

Leef iBridge Mobile Memory iOS USB Flash Drive (16GB), $59.89, available at Amazon.
Leef iBridge Mobile Memory iOS USB Flash Drive (32GB), $79.88, available at Amazon.