Infinite USB is a concept which dates back five years. The concept is brilliantly simple. The USB cable design allows multiple devices to be charge from an extending USB plug, and at the same time, allow data transfer through that one original USB port.
Today, Infinite USB has released a new version for the Mac computer. One which supports Apple’s Type C connector. This is a really smart move on Infinite USB’s part because the Mac computer only has one USB port. So additional sockets is very important.
Like the original design from years back, the connection is simple and straight forward.
Using the original USB port of the computer, the Infinite USB creates a pass through, or extended USB port. They do this so that once the Infinite USB cable is connected, you still have access to the data transfer ability of that original Mac USB port. However, Infinite USB was ultra-clever and created a design to steam off some power form the USB buss so you can charge additional devices.
The USB connector builds upon this concept with module cables and connectors so you may continue to high-jack power off the original USB socket, while still having the original USB port with data transfer capabilities.
To be perfectly clear, the Infinite USB will only transfer data to one USB device… it will not transfer data to all the devices connected. It is important to understand the Infinity USB concepts is a creative charging station, not a USB hub.
The product can be found on Kickstarter for $20. There is only one day left at the time of this writing, after that you can order product through the company website.
Brando, a USB gadget distributor located in Hong Kong, now has available a massive USB charging station.
The 60 port charging station can charge sixty devices at 1A or charge 30 devices at 2A. It is not clear if the 2A charge would require a USB Y-Cable. The box does not support data transfer capability so don’t purchase the unit if you are looking to sync your digital device or USB data load a bunch of flash drives.
At $199 USD this is worth considering.
Imagine what kind of bird’s nest would be created with all those cables!
Do you see something odd about this picture? Maybe the fact an LED is illuminating from a USB connector with no PC in site? Ya that’s it. Good job Sherlock.
So what we have here is a How To or USB Hack on running an LED from a Super-capacitor. If you are non-technical, then we basically mean a very short lived battery to run the LED. A super-capacitor has the ability to store energy for longer periods of time over traditional capacitors – yet still not long enough as with batteries.The concept of this tutorial is to wire a super-capacitor to a USB socket whereby your computer can charge up the capacitor and when disconnected you’ll get about 10 minutes of LED illumination.
Granted there isn’t much day-to-day use with this USB hack, but just a fun little project if you have the time.
Over on the Instructables website there is an updated USB tutorial which includes
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Yesterday we spoke about Elcom introducing a USB power strip and today we have USB Fever with a solar powered USB hub. We where very excited to hear about this product - as it seems to be a step up from the introduction from yesterday, and it’s got some great features, but unfortunately, the solar power charging system isn’t for the USB devices which are connected, but rather the built-in LED torch light [insert sad face here].
I understand it would take a fairly big solar panel to correctly power 4-5 devices connected to a USB hub, but it would be nice to see a trickle charge feature for anything connected. Like I said yesterday, in our house we have 3 iPhones, a Flip Video camera, two blue-tooth headsets and some other stuff, so a solar powered trickle charging USB hub would be nice.
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HyperMac updated their power blocks to include support for the iPad product line. There are a couple models to chose from, but the high end, $500 unit, will give you 99 hours of iPad life. More then enough for that weekend get-away.
For a bit less, the $200 battery pack will get you the 60 watt version capable of powering your beloved Apple product for 34 hours. For this price, at least they include USB ports to power those USB gadgets you have in every corner of your office.
The HyperMac power bricks are not yet available, but will be within a couple of weeks. Just in time to be received with your long delayed iPad order.
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USBFever has a 5 port USB wall charger for those a bit light on USB ports, yet need something to charge those iPhones, iPods and PDAs.
The USB SuperTravel has 4 standard USB ports and one miniUSB port. It’s no longer required to haul around your laptop just to power up your gadgets while on the go.
The kit includes world voltage acceptance with plugs that cover you in US, UK, AU and EU. The charger will auto detect the voltage and adjust accordingly so no mess with figuring out which fuse or setting is needed in different countries.
USBFever is offering the USB wall charger for $26.
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IOGear releases their version of the USB battery, with the GearJuice Rescue charger. What IOGear has done differently from other battery shaped USB solution, is make a miniUSB connector for cell phones, PDAs and other handhelds rather than the traditional full sized USB connector.
The unit is just larger than a double A battery and will provide your device with an extra 15 minutes of performance. Just enough time to call the bails-bondsman after getting the late night lock down because of too much party’in.
IOGear GearJuice Rescue Charger product page.
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