What is the faster way of converting VMWare workstation VM's to ESXi?

Hi there,

Was curious what is the faster way to convert a VMWare workstation VM to an ESXi compatible VM. Is the VMWare converter standalone method at the following URL the faster method:

http://www.networkinghowtos.com/howto/convert-virtual-machine-vmware-workstation-esxi-vsphere/

Or is the method below faster? The method below mentions converter standalone is required for Workstation 8 VM's but does not mention if it is required for Workstation 8 AND HIGHER VM's (ie: workstation 9 and 10).

http://kb.vmware.com/selfservice/microsites/search.do?language=en_US&cmd=displayKC&externalId=1012258

My end goal is export to a USB drive and then import to the ESXi server rather than convert and copy across the Network. I figure exporting to my 3 TB USB would be faster than copying the VM across the Network. Thoughts?