U3 Software: XnView a Free Graphics Editor and Viewer

Matt Laboff April 13, 2007 Software, U3 Related

XnView is now available for U3 enabled flash drives. XnView is a powerful graphics tool for viewing and converting files from one format to another.

I would recommend this software if you’re a blogger, but have a job where there is no graphic editor software like Photoshop. Load up your U3 flash drive and edit anywhere, on any PC. I particularly like the slide show feature XnView offers. The list of features is insane long so here’s the cut-n-paste: Continue Reading

Kingston Charging Ahead Despite their Break Up with U3

Matt Laboff April 12, 2007 Kingston, U3 Related, USB News

Kingston DataTraveler Mini Migo Software

As I reported back in March about Kingston giving U3 the axe, they continue to charge forward with UFD platform software. Migo Software now comes bundled with Kingston flash drives and most recent entry is the Kingston Data Traveler Mini. The following summary of Migo software will sound very familiar: Continue Reading

Disposable USB Digital Video Camera

Matt Laboff April 11, 2007 Video

More often then not design ideas never get past the prototype stage. Case in point, Greg Schramek created this concept of a disposable digital video camera where the simple shell is intuitive enough anyone could use.

Once the footage is recorded you connect the disposable video camera to a processing station via USB for conversion to DVD. Nice idea, but Greg calls for the conversion process to take place at grocery stores, and pharmacies. From personal experience, getting that distribution channel squared away is a much bigger task then creating the product. Besides, the video quality and features of a cell phone are probably just as good. BUT, Greg, if you’re read this, don’t get me wrong – we all love dreamers. And nice graphic design skills. Continue Reading

Give the Stamp of Approval via USB

Matt Laboff April 10, 2007 Flash Storage, Useless Novelty

I’m on the fence about this one. Solid Alliance came out with a UFD which also incorporates a stamp. It’s called the USB Stamp. Use one end to store data and the other to graffiti up whatever is with-in arms reach. The problem I see with this is the time it takes to eject the USB drive from your OS you could easily have grabbed 3 stamps to do your business.

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I’m sure this concept was the request of a customer, but kudos to SolidAlliance for thinking outside the ~~sponge~~ box. Continue Reading

Apple TV Hack: RSS Reader Plugin

Matt Laboff April 8, 2007 Apple / iPod, USB Hacks, USB Tutorials, Video

The buzz about Apple TV remains strong, especially with new hacks and plugins. The most recent is an RSS reader plugin which is fully functioning with RSS1.x and 2.x. You can grab this plugin from the folks who cranked it out, twenty08. Only downer is the lack of support from ATOM feeds, but that group is a minority these days. Continue Reading

The $6,000 USB Victorinox Swiss Army Knife

Matt Laboff April 6, 2007 Flash Storage, USB News

Swiss Army has an complete army of high-end USB flash drives. The Swiss Army Bonfort line has three designs of their 1GB “Prestige SwissMemory” product. Here is the top-shelf model, the Yellow Gold & Diamond Line. Priced at just $6,000 . The 18 ct. shell is lined with hand placed diamonds by the world’s best craftsmen. No word on diamond size and quality – I for one, would need to know that info before dropping Six Gs.

The other two designs are “Cross” and “Croco” which you can see below. The Swiss Cross design is available in yellow gold or white gold at $3,200 for either model, while the Croco is available for $800 (sl) or $3,200 (gold).

All versions of the USB Swiss knife include 1GB of memory, blade, nail file with screwdriver, scissors and key ring. But, no on-line ordering which is unfortunate as I had my wallet out and everything. Continue Reading

Home Brew Aluminum USB Flash Case

Matt Laboff April 13, 2007 Flash Storage, USB Hacks, USB News

So here’s a guy who took geekness to the next level. After the enclosure broke off Russell’s 1GB UFD Voyager, he decided to up the durability factor by a Thousand.

Russell home brewed an aluminum UFD case to insure breakage never happened again. I’d probably do the same if I had access to this equipment.

Using 1/4″ aluminum stock and some hex head screws he created one master piece enclosure even the indestructible guys would be proud of. Continue Reading

Hand Crank USB Lego Charger

Matt Laboff April 12, 2007 Power for USB, USB Hacks, USB Tutorials, YouTube Video

So here is a simple project to groom your child into the geek parent you are. Over at Hacked Gadgets Alan pointed out a “how-to” on creating your own USB charger from Lego’s.

The charger uses a Lego motor to generate current which passes through a voltage regulator and off to the USB port. If you don’t already have the Lego motor you can pick them up at target and the voltage regulator at Radio Shack. When all done, rather then sending your kid to time-out, have them hand-crank and recharge your favorite MP3 player. Here is a picture of the hand crank with electronics already installed. Continue Reading

Review: Pinnacle USB TV Flash Stick

Matt Laboff April 11, 2007 USB News, USB Reviews, USB T.V., Video

The Pinnacle PCTV DVB-T Flash Stick is one of the many TV receiver solutions out in the market these days. Dave Carter from Gadget Centre did a detailed review I’ll share with you. First off, the Pinnacle USB tuner is a step above the rest in that it’s true plug-n-play. There is no loading of software, simply plug in via USB and you’re set-up. This is a big bonus as taking the TV tuner from PC to PC is a snap. Continue Reading

U3 Software: Beef Up Your Kids IQ with USB Math Software

Matt Laboff April 9, 2007 Software, U3 Related

The latest addition to U3 is the Junior edition of MathOwns software. Yep, now it’s possible to drill your kids via USB in their math abilities. For the competitive parent this is an ideal tool to sharpen skills based off pre-reselected criteria and math levels. Forget flash cards as the MathOwns software auto-generates exercises and provides email or PDF notification options upon completion of drills.

Sarcasm set aside, anything to make kids learn more and make it more interactive and fun is definitely a plus. I have first hand seen the interest kids have when working on computers and to have math lessons and exercises loaded on their Spongebob flash drive is a nice benefit. Continue Reading

USB KVM Extender Goes the Distance via CAT5

Matt Laboff April 7, 2007 USB Input Device

This is definitely a product which is more commercial, but there are a few home users who could get excited about this. Network Tech Inc introduced a KVM box that connects via USB and through CAT5 can expand the Keyboard, Video and Mouse another 300 feet.

For the gamer, this means you can put your water-cooled, dual processor kick a$$ PC off in the remote bedroom closet while game without a hint of PC noise. Although at $385 it might be a tough sale. Don’t kid yourself, the ST-C5USBV-300 Xtendex gives a crisp clear 1920×1440 resolution at 300 feet. Continue Reading

USB Storage Access on Nintendo Wii

Matt Laboff April 5, 2007 Gaming, USB News

We’ve been waiting to report on the USB storage abilities of the Nintendo Wii, today it finally came. The USB port you’ve so longed to use as extra storage will eventually see the light of day. Today Nintendo partnered with a USB embedded software vendor eSOL to use their USB stack code for file management on the Wii.

True, the Wii has an SD memory slot but that taps out at 2GBs, this new partnership means a potential storage size of 32GBs, or for the common folk, 2-8GBs of storage. Although no official Nintendo announcement came about the news of this development, the writing is on the wall. Continue Reading