LaCie introduced their CurrenKey earlier this week which is a silver or copper USB key in the shape of brushed metal coinage. The design is definitely eye catching, but not all that practical.
Dealing with USB sticks day in an day out, having an odd shaped USB stick is the last thing anyone will want…or at least ultimately realize. With the CurrenKey the round shape eliminates the use of other USB ports on the left or right. Also, with many laptops these days the USB port is vertical, not horizontal, making the round shape impossible to connect unless you lift up your laptop or stack something underneath it.
LaCie did a great job in design work with the metal die-cast construction, but lacks in overall design of usable shape.
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The Pentagon announced last week the ban of USB sticks within it’s organizations. As part of the ban, the Pentagon is collecting all USB drives purchased or provided to department workers. The motivating factor was a global virus the Pentagon was exposed to.
Not much information was collected about what type of virus or the extent to damage, but must be bad enough to initiate a global ban.
Military leaders have consistently warned of potential threats from a variety of sources including other countries – such as China – along with other self-styled cyber-vigilantes and terrorists.
The issue has also been of concern at the Department of Homeland Security. A September audit by the DHS Inspector General recommended that the agency implement greater procedures to ensure that only authorized computer flash drives or other storage devices can be connected to the network there and that an inventory of those devices be set up.
Finally, the Pentagon was quick to point their government agency isn’t the only institution having problems, but many companies and corporations are concerned about the potential security risks of USB drives, their data load size and their small size. It’s a feed ground for malice opportunity.
Source:Â Associated Press.
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We stumbled upon this Snake Coffin USB drive when writing about the Han Solo Carbonite USB stick, neither of which make a great USB promotional drive, but definitely a unique looking device.
For the select few who would enjoy this wondrous USB Snake Drive, you can grab a 2GB version for only $25 bucks. The custom snake casket is a limited edition drive and only available while supplies last.
Jason is the creator of this device and many other gadgets. He resides in Bolivia North Carolina and will ship anywhere in the world.
Product page.
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Now that SuperSpeed USB is out what does the physical connector look like? Well, GetUSB isn’t 100% sure but we’ve seen some images popping up on the internet.
First, lets take a look at the USB connector we reported about in Januarary of 08:
Now we have a new image coming up from UberGizmo which might be a more developed connector of the SuperSpeed USB connector:
Once we get word on the official socket / jack we’ll report back.
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On Monday the USB Implementers Forum released the official documents for SuperSpeed USB 3.0. We’ve been reporting on the SuperSpeed for about 6 months and it’s finally come to fruition. The logo to the right might be the USB-IF official logo as we pulled it directly off their press release material.
What we have today is the specification outline, meaning we don’t have products yet, but now developers and chip manfucaturers have an official outline of how to build USB host controllers, hubs and other logic devices to manage the super speed of USB 3.0.
The new specification claims transfer speeds of 4.8Gbps [Gigabits per second] rate which translates to a data transfer rate of approximately 600MB per second.
So what next? Well, between now and the next year, manufacturers will be in a mad rush to get
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Nanovision is aptly named because their product line is compiled of mini LCD monitors which connect via USB. The monitors are designed to be a single use screen for dedicated applications such as IM windows, stock quote streamers, toolbars for programs like Photoshop and calendars.
Nanovision is introducing 4 models of the mini LCD size with their technology backed by DisplayLink. The MIMO USB Monitor starts at a 7″ display with a 800×400 resolution, with higher end models including webcams, speakers and even touch screen capability.
Nanovision didn’t comment on availability in the states but the currency conversion gives the MIMO USB Monitors a price tag of just under $130.
Source:Â EverythingUSB.
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Are you addicted to creating PodCasting content? Need a mobile studio for those on-location interviews or content recording? Well the all new Belkin GoStudio is worth a look.
The GoStudio is compact, portable, and sturdy enough to stand up to the rigors of a mobile digital lifestyle. Designed GoStudio for a wide range of users from podcasters to students, teachers to journalists its shape offers easy access to the controls and simplifies the audio recording process.
Features include a built in microphone for immediate recording or use [up to] two connectors for dynamic mics. Controls include ability to adjust the sound level and gain, limiter and low cut filter to help you maintain the quality of the recording.
What’s so ideal about this Belkin package is the solid dock station for your iPod. You can see the full configuration here:
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Western Digital released a hard drive compliment to their USB Passport hard drive, the WD TV HD Media Player. What they’ve done is develop a high resolution real time streaming device capable of recording up to 1080p to your USB hard drive or super sized USB stick.
It’s clear to me Western Digital will begin developing products to complement or enhance the need of their core business products – hard drives and storage.
The WD TV HD Media Player has a memory buffer inside but uses two USB ports on the backside where you can plug in USB sticks or USB hard drives, like the Passport, to store the digital stream.
The WD TV HD is competatively prices at $129.99 and has HDMI composite outputs.
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Press Release:Â Cryptzone, the Nordics leading Data Leak Prevention provider, today announced the release of their new USB flash drive encryption software, Secured eUSB 4.0.
Secured eUSB 4.0 is the first product to be integrated in the new version of Cryptzone´s centrally managed security platform, the Simple Encryption Platform (SEP) 4.0.
Providing security to USB drives is a growing problem for many companies but with Cryptzone’s solution, companies can now take control of this problem. Secured eUSB can convert any existing USB flash drive into a secure means of transporting sensitive data.
The new version of Secured eUSB, version 4.0, will enable users to encrypt, decrypt, compress and password-protect personal files – even entire folders – stored on USB drives. Operating on the Windows platform
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We saw this post a couple days ago over at Engadget and I’ve been meaning to write about it. Apparently there is new technology which allows you to eavesdrop through USB cables, Ethernet cables and the like.
The idea is using electromagnetic radiation shot off by USB cables to decrypt the information flowing over them to crack your security and privacy. The crew at Security and Cryptography Lab at Switzerland’s EPFL have managed to eavesdrop wired keyboards and track keystrokes made by the user.
What gets really crazy, is the electromagnetic eavesdropping, or cracking, can be administered up to 65 feet away. It’s clear that no one is safe.
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Tektronix just announced test tools for the USB 3.0 SuperSpeed specification. This means those uber geeks – and we don’t mean that in a derogatory way – will have the tools to prove their devices meet the new USB 3.0 specification.
It is estimated that initial SuperSpeed USB interface ICs and consumer products should appear in early 2010, with widespread adoption continuing throughout 2010. The first SuperSpeed USB products will likely include data-storage devices such as flash drives, external hard drives, digital music players, and digital cameras.
“SuperSpeed USB is a giant leap forward in data transfer rates for many devices and consequently requires much more sophisticated testing,” said Ian Valentine, general manager, Technology Solutions Group, Tektronix. “SuperSpeed USB will operate at 5 Gb/s, more than 10 times greater than the existing high-speed USB standard. This speed will require comprehensive signal testing for transmitters, interconnects, and receivers. Customers will be able to fully test the physical layers of their SuperSpeed USB devices using the latest test solution from Tektronix.”
The Tektronix test solution for USB 3.0 includes:
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The floppy diskette was an icon of portable storage. For years, this was the de facto standard for moving information from one location to another. Heck, an entire industry was made for duplicating floppy diskettes. Today things are a bit different. We still have the specialized duplicator equipment, but the media has changed. Now, the de facto standard are USB flash drives.
Well, this commercialized floppy has the look and feel of the old days, but all the flare and space of modern USB sticks. Check out this USB floppy drive.
The Pentagon announced last week the ban of USB sticks within it’s organizations. As part of the ban, the Pentagon is collecting all USB drives purchased or provided to department workers. The motivating factor was a global virus the Pentagon was exposed to.
Not much information was collected about what type of virus or the extent to damage, but must be bad enough to initiate a global ban.
On Monday the USB Implementers Forum released the official documents for SuperSpeed USB 3.0. We’ve been reporting on the SuperSpeed for about 6 months and it’s finally come to fruition. The logo to the right might be the USB-IF official logo as we pulled it directly off their press release material.
What we have today is the specification outline, meaning we don’t have products yet, but now developers and chip manfucaturers have an official outline of how to build USB host controllers, hubs and other logic devices to manage the super speed of USB 3.0.
The new specification claims transfer speeds of 4.8Gbps [Gigabits per second] rate which translates to a data transfer rate of approximately 600MB per second.
So what next? Well, between now and the next year, manufacturers will be in a mad rush to get
Continue Reading
Tektronix just announced test tools for the USB 3.0 SuperSpeed specification. This means those uber geeks – and we don’t mean that in a derogatory way – will have the tools to prove their devices meet the new USB 3.0 specification.
It is estimated that initial SuperSpeed USB interface ICs and consumer products should appear in early 2010, with widespread adoption continuing throughout 2010. The first SuperSpeed USB products will likely include data-storage devices such as flash drives, external hard drives, digital music players, and digital cameras.
