Mine seem to last for ever - like five years plus. I keep them in the airing cupboard, warm and dry, so no corrosion.
But some computers simply don't respond. XP all seem ok and android never fails, but Windoze 7 will ignore a usb stick and go on ignoring it. You can poke it into all the orifices front and back, eventually one may work, but never the same one as last time. Try it in your phone via a known good otg adaptor.