Kicking around in technology since 2002. I like to write about technology products and ideas, but at the consumer level understanding. Some tech, but not too techie.
From all accounts it appears Aleratec closed their doors and out of business from sometime starting in February, 2022.
GetUSB.info has called the corporate office multiple times searching for comment, but no answer. In addition, it appears Google removed Aleratec from their search results as their domain www.aleratec.com has been off-line for well over 30 days. We are posting this information in the event end-users are looking for support or warranty information related to the company.
Aleratec, Inc. was a family-owned, California-based company with two decades’ experience in designing, developing and marketing products acclaimed for high performance, reliability and ease of use.
Greg Morris, CEO of Nexcopy Inc, a similar company profile and also based in Southern California commented today after request, “I’ve known about Perry Solomon, the CEO, well over twenty years and he was always a good person to speak with regarding industry trends and business practices. Extremely friendly and approachable. Perry was focused on bring a solution to the market which brought true value to the end-user. I wish him the best of luck with his next business adventure.”
Aeratec sold PC based and standalone flash memory duplicators, CD and DVD duplicators, hard drive duplicators and hard drive demolishers. Aleratec also provided a “charge and guard” cabinet for charging portable devices like tablets. Schools found the charge and guard cabinet particularly beneficial.
At the time of this posting some products can still be found on-line, but most models seem to be listed as out of stock or on back order.
If Aleratec would like to comment or provide information for post sales support and parts, please reach out at: gmo @ getusb dot info and we can post the information in this article
Below are a list of the ten most common questions about a disk signature collision along with the related answer. The bottom of this article includes a video for some of the diskpart steps, which is needed when investigating a disk signature collision.
When two (or more) storage devices have the same hexadecimal value for their disk ID (also known as disk signature). Windows does not like to see multiple storage devices with the same signature, so it will take all but one offline so the user gains access to only one device. The signature collision is most often found when binary copies of a master have been made to target devices.
#2 – Why does Windows create a disk signature collision?
Our understanding of why Microsoft did this was to prevent malware from spoofing the OS by presenting an identical seeming drive with bad intent. Bear in mind this MBR stuff was developed when dinosaurs still ruled the earth. Malware was but a dream in some teenage miscreants mind. So little effort was expended in that direction, much to the chagrin of todays Microsoft. The bible says something about this, “The sins of a father shall be visited upon their sons” or words to that effect.
USB4 is the USB-C form factor for connecting; fully supports Thunderbolt 3 specification, all wrapped up using the USB 3.2 specification.
USB4 has four benefits over prior versions of USB.
Maximum Speed of 40Gbps. Using two-lane cables or a set of cables, devices may operate at up to 40 Gbps, the same speed as Thunderbolt 3. Keep in mind there is a big difference between Mb and MB. Mb is megabits, not Megabytes (MB). So for example 8Mb is about 1MB of data. As a reference, a typical MP3 audio file is about 3MB (megabytes). 5,000 MB/second is the theoretical maximum speed of USB4.
USB 4 supports DisplayPort 2.0. DisplayPort 2.0 cables feature 80Gbps bandwidth, making it possible to display ultra-high resolutions at previously impossible refresh rates. DisplayPort 2.0 can handle up to two 4K screens at 144Hz simultaneously, or an 8K display at up to 85Hz natively, with no form of image compression. This is true because USB4 uses all eight data lanes at once time.
Compatible with Thunderbolt 3 devices. USB4 is a protocol which supports all the specifications of Thunderbolt 3; however, Thunderbolt 3 is capable of 100Watts of bi-directional power delivery and not all manufacturers who support USB4 will not include the [full] power implementation of Thunderbolt 3.
Most efficient resource allocation scheme. USB4 devices use a process called “protocol tunneling” which optimizes the use of DisplayPort, PCIe and USB packets at the same time while allocating bandwidth to optimize efficiency. This scheme will create better performance across multiple devices with a collection of protocols.
USB4 will only operate through a USB-C type physical connector. USB4 peripherals will most likely not see older standard USB type A ports because the connection speeds and power delivery mechanisms will not be available. Although USB4 is 100% backward compatible with all other USB protocols, it doesn’t mean the older standard will get the improved benefits. If connecting, for example, a Type-A, 5 Gbps USB 3 port by using an adapter, the speed and power will drop to the lowest common denominator.
Some notable comments:
Device and host manufacturers will not [be required] to pay Intel royalties when implementing USB4 technology. This implies a better chance of mass adoption of USB4; however, there is a catch between manufacturing USB4 devices and making said products [fully] USB4 compliant. Specifically, the Thunderbolt compatibility specification may become a part of the product when developing and manufacturing a USB4 product which can use the USB4 logo. This issue means a consumer could buy a laptop with USB4 and find that it doesn’t work with a Thunderbolt 3 peripheral.
It is important to know Thunderbolt 3 and Thunderbolt 4 are logo certified programs from Intel which cost manufacturers time and money. So, while a USB4 powered computer could work with 40 Gbps devices or even those labeled as Thunderbolt, it may not be obvious because the product didn’t go through a certification process. Or the opposite of this would be a USB4 device does not support Thunderbolt because of the expense required to get the certificate.
USB4 has two speeds. As with Thunderbolt the paradox a USB4 product may not support the full 40Gbps specification. 40Gbps is the theoretical maximum speed, but many devices will use the lower 20Gbps standard because the manufacturing cost will be lower, thus creating a lower target price for consumers. If speed is the number one priority be sure and check the specifications of the USB4 product before purchase. At the time of this writing most USB4 products which support 40Gbps are cables and PCIe adapter cards.
Why the USB4 name?
An online article that summarized an interview with Brad Saunders the CEO of the USB Implementers Forum [USB.org or USB-IF] indicated the lack of space between “USB” and “4” is to focus away from USB version numbers and focus more on brand. This branding concept for USB is a good change, but afraid the history of all the USB versions of the past will continue to haunt them.
Mini Portrait Display Monitor – Mini in Size, Large on Coolness
With the everlasting newsfeeds from Twitter and never-ending social media feeds a portrait style display is the ideal monitor keeping you connected while not eating up real-estate on your main monitor. We understand not one display size will fit all needs, but this mini portrait display stands tall amongst other sizes we’ve seen. The cool factor for this product is off the charts and wouldn’t you love to be the first in your office to have this setup?
Resolution is 1280 x 400 with a physical size of 70mm (x) 208mm (x) 16mm so for you Americans on the Imperial measuring system that is 8″ inches tall by 3″ inches wide. The monitor size is just under 8″ inches.
The mini portrait display uses an HDMI cable for video and micro-USB for power.
The display isn’t fully supported on the Mac so user experience will vary when paired with that OS, but the mini portrait display monitor will run as expected on a Windows machine. The unit is (about) $95 USD after the conversion from Yen. The company marketing this display is Sanko and product is not yet available.
Are you interested in this product? GetUSB.info is planning to bring in 50 units… get on the list to buy. Send an email to gmo (at) getusb.info to make a request.
Maybe you want the USB flash drive to be read-only (write protected)
Maybe you want the USB to act like a CD-ROM drive
Maybe you need to copy protect files on the drive – meaning people can view the files but they cannot print them, save them, screen capture, share, etc. The files can only be viewed.
These USB flash drives use an activity light and also provide the other cool functions mentioned above. The landing website offers six different body styles and an unlimited number of body colors along with free printing / branding if required.
Many small and portable flash drives do not have an activity light and we don’t like those types of drives. They don’t give the visual feedback we want to see.
The people who write for this blog prefer a USB flash drive with an activity light. The USB manufacturers have different settings for the LED activity light. Here is a screen shot of the mass production software tool used when making a flash drive.
There are two main settings for a USB activity light:
On or Off setting for the LED on when device is ready
Blink or not when flash memory is being accessed (this is for either read or write)
In our experience any USB flash drive with an activity light will have both of the above settings to On. Meaning the LED will be a solid color when connected and ready, and will blink as the device is being accessed for either a read or write request.
The most common LED color of a flash drive is red. However, we have seen green and blue LED lights on occasion. Most flash drives can be customized with specific LED colors if required. Lead times and pricing might fluctuate depending on what is required.
Using very simple and inexpensive items, create a USB power hub station for all gadgets like headphones, chargers, GPS units, GoPro camera’s and more.
In addition to a very organized solution, the DIY USB power hub station is out of the way, yet easily accessible. No more taking up valuable kitchen counter space with cluttered gadgets and a birds nest of cables.
The solution is ultra-easy. For the DIY USB power hub station all you need is a shoe rack for the closet, a USB hub and your cables.
In less than 10 minutes you can be organized, powered and out of sight. This DIY project was less than $35 dollars.
Next, grab a USB hub that only runs power (less expensive) and I found a matching 10 socket version for my 10 slot shoe rack for $20.
The only thing left to possibly buy are cables. However, you probably already have the powering USB cables required for your devices. I do think getting cables that have a combo Apple Lightening cable and microUSB cable allow things to be a bit more flexible when connecting various devices.
Once your items arrive the assembly is literally two minutes. There is a good chance it will take longer to clean out your closet than assemble the DIY USB power hub station.
The best location would be in the closet under your stairs. This is true because the space most likely has a power outlet.
Step 1 – Cut a small piece of fabric in the back of each shoe rack slot
Step 2 – Place USB powered hub in the bottom shoe rack slot
Step 3 – Lay out the shoe rack and thread each power cable from the USB hub to each shoe rack slot
Step 4 – Place devices in shoe rack slots and connect
Step 5 – Hang USB power hub charging station in your closet
This how to tutorial describes a simple way to check for bad sectors on a USB flash drive. The instructions below will also fix any bad sectors, if possible, during the scanning process.
A bad sector on a flash drive is a portion of memory on the flash drive which cannot be accessed, written to, or read from and therefore cannot be used. A bad sector on a flash drive sounds easy enough to diagnose, but it’s important to know there are two types of bad sectors: hard and soft.
Physical damage to a USB flash drive will create a hard bad sector. A hard bad sector cannot be repaired or fixed and is typically induced from physical abuse. A good example: leaving a flash drive in your pocket and it went through the wash, or the device was dropped and hit the ground is such a way, physical damage happened to the memory.
A soft bad sector on a flash drive are memory logic problems. A soft bad sector can occur from a software or data error during the write process. In lower quality flash drives, it is possible the incorrect firmware was written into the USB controller ROM and thus creates instability via soft bad sectors.
Bad sectors cannot be repaired; however soft bad sectors can be repaired.
The soft bad sectors can be fixed by using the CHKDSK utility in the Windows operating system. This same utility will also flag any hard bad sectors not to be used again, and of course not repaired.
Some signs of a bad sector on a flash drive include:
Cannot read a file on the flash drive
A file location is no longer available
Unable to format the USB flash drive
A disk read error occurs during operation
In our opinion, run the check disk one time to see if your issue is resolved, but if subsequent scans are required, we recommend discarding the flash drive to avoid further issues.
Running the chkdsk scan is really easy:
Insert flash drive to computer
Using Windows Explorer navigate to the drive letter
In the Explorer window type cmd and press enter
Once inside the command line utility type chkdsk d: /f /r /x and click Enter. NOTE: *The letter d represents the drive letter of the flash drive.
The /f parameter tells CHKDSK to fix any errors it finds.
The /r parameter tells Windows to repair/restore bad sectors (if possible).
The /x parameter unmounts any “handles” to the drive or said another way, this step will not allow any other resource to access the flash drive during the scan.
Alles-Omoton is offering their three level aluminum laptop riser unit for only $16.62. They have a 99% positive feedback so little risk considering the company’s Amazon rating. If you are not a Prime member, orders that exceed $25 will qualify for free shipping. A recent price drop in addition to an on-page coupon reduces the total price 33% from list price. With room for any modern MacBook, this aluminum stand is also able to uphold a majority of PCs and Chromebooks, as well. This unique offering wields an adjustable design that’s uncommon among this style of laptop stand. Owners can choose between a 5.7-, 6.3-, or 6.8-inch height. This will undoubtedly lead to improved ergonomics and perhaps even a better arrangement for multi-monitor setups. Rated 4.7/5 stars.
OMOTON 3-Level Aluminum Laptop Riser features:
The laptop riser offers 3 height choices (5.7/6.3/6.8 inch) to meet your different needs. It provides optimal viewing angles.
This laptop stand for desk helps to relieve neck and shoulder pain. It also creates more space under your PC, which helps you to organize your desk.
The laptop holder is made of reinforced aluminum alloy. It can support up to 11lbs of weight. The soft silicone pads protect your laptop from scratches.
It’s been reported for over four years Apple is trying to solve the non-invasive way to test for blood glucose levels, yet continue to run into problems.
The problems have not been disclosed by Apple during the development process, but it is almost certain the reason is from inconsistent test readings. Meaning, Apple’s method or technique for reading a body glucose level is not consistent enough to submit for governmental approval.
Hey Apple! If you want to solve your glucose testing issues… listen up, here’s how:
It is well documented the level of glucose in the blood has a direct correlation to the viscosity or fluidity of the blood itself.
We feel the sensor technique from Apple is not accurate enough to determine the viscosity and therefore cannot get accurate glucose readings.
To us this makes sense because whatever sensor the Apple watch is using, is trying to determine levels through a part of skin which is too thick. The wrist.
Forget using the Apple watch as your source for testing. What Apple needs to create is a mouth piece that communicates with the Apple watch and scan the lingual frenulum skin for opacity which in turn indicates viscosity of the blood. The lingual frenulum is the thinnest piece of skin on the human body which gives you the ability to more clearly scan for blood viscosity by determining the level of opaqueness of blood circulating through the lingual frenulum.
A mouth piece would need to be developed to sit under the tongue with a sensor pointed towards the lingual frenulum which would scan the blood circulation or flow and based on color feedback it can be determined the level of sugar in the blood stream at that time.
The “under tongue” mouth piece would be used only when a reading is required by the user. In our estimates the reading would last no longer than 5 seconds.
To get the reading, the mouth piece would be designed to read from the left and right side of the lingual frenulum to determine the opaqueness of the blood. The heavier the viscosity the darker or dense the blood is and therefore more opaque. Blood is lighter when the glucose level is lower and less opaque. Blood is darker when the glucose level is higher.
The “under tongue” mouth piece would communicate wirelessly to the Apple watch to report the reading.
It goes without saying, the above solution is not a finished product. Development and testing of the mouth guard would need to be designed by the Apple HealthCare team. But this hot tip points you in the right direction.
If someone at Apple reads this article, I hope they have enough moral fiber and respect of OUR idea to reach out and contact us. gmo (at) getub.info
This is a brilliant solution which after viewing the video you will say: “this should have come out years ago!”
This is the least expensive, yet most secure way to hold a USB flash drive in a DVD case.
The era of CD and DVD is coming to a close with USB flash drives taking its place. Yet many CD and DVD duplication facilities have shelves and shelves of DVD jewel cases which they need to put to good use. This DVD-to-USB-Insert card is the quick, easy and cheap solution. The insert allows users to keep their DVD case and related jewel case artwork to remain the same, but now secure a USB flash drive inside the DVD case, rather than an optical disc.
So many businesses enjoy the DVD case because the DVD case is a great storage box. The case is a good size with a thick spin to print what the contents in the DVD case are.
Continue this same “library” methodology with the DVD-to-USB-Insert card.
In case you can’t see, or didn’t see, the video posted above the solution will hold two USB flash drives in a DVD case. The DVD-to-USB-Insert is a thick 0.65mm clear plastic which is the same diameter as a DVD. However, the clear plastic has two rectangles which are inverted to hold just about any sized USB flash drive. This solution will fit two USB flash drives into a single DVD case. The two rectangles are the same size and as said, will fit darn nearly all USB sticks with a size that is 3″ long by 3/4″ wide and a depth of 3/8″ ( for you metric folks, that is 76mm long, 21mm wide and 9.5mm deep).
The clear plastic has a hole in the center the same size as a DVD disc and will snap into the “holder” of the DVD case. Using any DVD case on the market you can easily hold a USB flash drive inside a DVD case. The video shows how secure the USB flash drive is when inside the DVD case. The flash drive will not fall out during shipping or transit.
To be clear, the DVD-to-USB-Insert is only the clear plastic that holds the USB flash drive using the nipple snap that holds the DVD. The DVD case itself is not sold with this solution because the assumption is you (the user) already have stock or inventory of the DVD case itself.
This solution to hold a USB flash drive in a DVD case does not infringe on any patents from other manufacturers who use alternate solutions to secure a flash drive inside a DVD type case.
Please contact USB Copier for more details. This is a USB duplication service company.
There are two popular methods to get large videos off your iPhone.
The most common problem is having a large video on your iPhone which you need on your computer. Email programs usually limit a file size at 20MBs, so if the file is larger, what can you do?
There are two popular options which come to mind: Use QuickTime or Use a USB flash drive.
Option #1
Use QuickTime. Macs already have QuickTime built into the OS, but Windows users must install it. Before deciding this as your best route to get large videos off your iPhone here is a list of things to consider:
You must backup your iPhone on QuickTime before you access the video
You need your computer (an authoized computer) to perform the backup
Windows user smust download and install QT
QuickTime is an invasive program which most Windows users will not like
Not a “portable” way to get the videos off your iPhone
However, this is a free solution!
Option #2
Use a flash drive.
Yes, you need to buy a specific flash drive, but after this investment it’s infinitely easier to get videos off your iPhone. Some advantages worth considering:
Get large videos off your phone without a PC
Share the videos immediately to another user’s PC
External storage device for backups of those videos
Point number one is really the value in all this {wink}.
Yes, you need to make a purchase of a product so you won’t be able to make the transfer ‘right now’ but will be able to once you have the USB device.
Specific USB drives have software which work with the iOS allowing the download of files from the phone to the drive. The one tested is the SanDisk iXpand flash drive at 128GB capacity and will cost about $40ish dollars.
Seagate offers a 40TB expansion solution which is plug-n-play. At first glance, the 40TB solution might seem like a bit much, but when broken down to more specific user experiences and demands, it might not be all that much.
To make the point, we are going to use a family of 4. Two parents and two young kids, say 2 and 5 years old.
Having two children at this age means video recording is happening on a daily bases. If it isn’t, those parents are missing out on precious moments which could be caught on film.
Using an iPhone with a video setting of 4K at 24FPS (Frames Per Second) a one minute video will eat up about 270MBs of space. If the parent takes a 4 minute video once a day for a year, that is 360GBs of data. About 1/3 of a single Terabyte of storage.
Before we continue along with how a family can easily take up 40TBs of data, also consider the Seagate solution comes with software that will automatically sync your mobile devices with the storage device. These large videos are hard to get off your iPhone unless a streaming backup service is available. Seagate provides that. We also did an article about downloading them manually with a SanDisk USB iXpand product.
Given the age of these kids, a 4 minute video is probably a bit short for whatever crazy or funny thing the kids are doing. So rounding up to 10 minutes’ worth of video per day, per parent puts the data storage consumption at about 5.5GBs per day.
Of course you can reduce the resolution from 4K down to H264, but who wants to do that? You need to edit the higher resolution video or consider that 4K in like five years from now will be low resolution.
As the kids get older, they will start adding their video to the Seagate storage solution. The example could drag on and on, but the point is this: With technology getting better each year, the storage required to save the digital content we create will expand equally.
As a closing thought; keep in mind how difficult and time consuming the process is to move data from one storage device to another, newer storage device. The 40TB expansion is a big purchase now, but the upgrade to a bigger storage device will not happen for as quickly as needed if a smaller storage device is bought.
