The standard that we have been hearing about for the last 2 years may actually be on its way to the market later this year.
As of yesterday manufacturers can have their products tested and if they receive SuperSpeed USB certification from the USB Implementers Forum they will get the new logo slapped on.
I previously talked about USB 3.0 when I got word of the new Asus P6X58 motherboard that was utilizing USB 3.0 ports. In case you are totally clueless the current standard is USB 2.0 which is rated at 480Mbps while USB 3.0 is rated at 4.8Gbps.
Like technology from an outdated sci-fi movie the color picker concept pen designed by Jinsu Park can scan the color of an object in the real world and reproduce it using a mixture of Red, Green and Blue.
Why they thought to go with RGB instead of CMYK is beyond me. It could be that Jinsu is more used to digital design where RGB is better suited instead of printed design where CMYK is better. One way or another it is still impressive that the technology is there that can scan an object and automatically mix together the correct levels of ink in order to produce a match. All it needs now is a USB connector so you can scan the color of something and use it on your computer or push a color from your computer to the pen.
External hard drives are pretty nifty but if you really want some decent external storage you have to carry around the hard drive, USB cable and power adapter. That was the case until now. Western Digital’s My Passport Essential SE is now available in 1TB and 750GB models that get their power via USB doing away with the need for a power plug and additional cord.
The 1TB version is going to cost you $300 or–if you can do without the extra 250GB of storage–you can get the 750GB model for just under $200.
What you are looking at is actually two different storage devices. The one on the left you will probably recognize as a MicroSD card. It is plugged in to the incredibly small Buffalo USB MicroSD card reader which is suppose to be available at the end of this month. This is perfect for laptops that only have an SD card slot.
This puppy is is going for ¥ 2,100.00 or a little over $21 USD. You can also buy them in an assortment of packages including one with a 16GB MicroSD card for $160 USD.
They will be available in white and black so be careful if you drop it in the grass, you may never find it again.
Another void in our lives has been filled with the release of the 20 device iPod and iPhone dock by Parasync. Now you have the ability to connect 20 of your toys to your computer using only 1 USB port.
Not to worry those of you who don’t think 20 will be enough. There are two USB ports on this dock which allows you to daisy chain additional iPods and iPhones.
The Parasync dock is compatible with the iPod Classic, Nano G4, iPod Touch and iPhone. It is about the size of a package of printer paper measuring roughly 12 x 10 x 2.
Plug in all of your devices and pull up iTunes to view and manage all 20 of your devices.
With USB 3.0 on the way I don’t know who would want to buy a 256GB USB thumb drive. On Kingston’s website it doesn’t specifically say that it is going to be USB 2.0 but I would assume since it is currently on their site that it is.
On the site it boasts the ability to store 10 Blu-ray discs, 54 DVDs or 365 CDs. With USB 2.0 it would almost not even be worth it. Yes right now there are external USB hard drives that are larger than that and there are many uses for them but with USB 3.0 right around the corner I think it would have been smart for Kingston to wait to release this then.
One way or another having 256 GB of storage on your key ring is still pretty awesome but if the rumors of the price being around $900 I think I may hold off.
From the Kingston website:
Features/Specifications:
Capacity — 256 GB
Speed— Data transfer rates of up to 20MB/sec. read and 10MB/sec. write
Safeguarded — includes Password Traveler security software for Windows
Convenient — does not require Administrator rights to access the Privacy Zone
Dimensions — 2.78″ x 0.88″ x 0.65″ (70.68 mm x 22.37 mm x 16.45 mm)
Operating Temperature — 32° to 140° F (0° to 60° C)
Storage Temperature — -4° to 185° F (-20° to 85° C)
Simple — just plug into a any 1.1 or 2.0 USB port
Practical — durable, capless design
Guaranteed — five-year warranty
Enhanced — for Windows ReadyBoost™ on Vista-based systems
USB 3.0 was announced around a year ago. We were told it would be late 2009 before we actually saw ‘SuperSpeed’ USB 3.0 on the market and it looks like that estimate was pretty accurate. The Asus P6X58 motherboard boasts 3 USB 2.0 ports and 2 USB 3.0 ports. What is the difference? USB 3.0 ports are blue.
Pretty earthshattering huh? Well there–fortunately–is much more to it than that. Current USB 2.0 is rated at speeds of as high as 480Mbps. Real world you will see speeds as high as about 320Mbps. USB 3.0 is rated at 4.8Gbps! We will have to see how much of that we are actually able to utilize. To put this in perspective right now the fastest consumer level hard drive is rated at 3.0Gbps but most you see in retail stores are still 1.5Gbps.
What does this mean to you? Currently to drag over a 27GB HD movie via USB 2.0 you are looking at 15-20 minutes at least. With USB 3.0 you are going to be able to do that in less than 70 seconds. Can’t beat that. This opens up a whole new world of opportunities. For instance Red Box could just give everyone a USB drive instead of a DVD. You go to the Red Box, make your selection, plug in your thumb drive and boom in 10 seconds you have the 4GB DVD on your thumb drive with a 24 hour self destruct.
Or instead of buying PCs with hard drives everyone will just have a portable hard drive that is on their key chain or is simply their smartphone. When you go to work you just dock your thumb drive or iPhone and boot up. You leave for the day and go home and dock again and you can pick up where you left off.
This would not only be convenient but safe. You wouldn’t have to worry about someone getting onto your computer when you weren’t around because you would have all of the data with you. If we see this manifest itself in the future I want my commission.
Samsung has announced its 22″ LD220 DisplayLink LCD. Using display link software you no longer need an available VGA or DVI port. In order to add a 2nd, 3rd or 7th much needed LCD monitor all you need is an available USB 2.0 port. You won’t even need to have 6 available USB ports to add your 6 additional monitors. Each monitor has a USB hub with at least 2 USB ports and you can daisy chain your monitors off of them.
This is a great solution forApple users who want to get around all of the annoying video adapters or laptop and netbook users who are limited to one display port.
1.2GHz processor, 512Mb DDR2 RAM, Gigabit Ethernet and USB 2.0 now fit in a box smaller than the power adapter for some electronics! Plenty to run a small server for a website, email or media sharing.
In the picture above you see the wall plug, Gigabit Ethernet, USB 2.0, miniUSB port and SDIO slot.
Connect hard drives, webcams, etc to your USB 2.0 port and let the sharing begin! There are many different flavors of this device from several different companies. You can buy it pre-configured from most or buy a developer kit that you can toy with yourself.
The only thing that this micro computer is lacking is video out but maybe a DisplayLink device would work?
Out of usable USB ports on your PC or want a more convenient place to plug in your USB goodies? Not looking for a USB hub that looks like Elvis or dispenses candy? Then the Elecom USB Wall Socket is for you!
Despite the misleading product title these don’t plug into an actual wall socket. They plug into one of your computers existing USB ports and runs off of your computers BUS.
These slim wall sockets have magnetic backing–don’t attach to your external hard drive–and also have optional screw mounts to attach this to your desk or wall.
While these are some of the more simple, attractive USB hubs they are not as cheap as we would have hoped. Pick yours up from AudioCubes for $39.99 with ~$11 shipping worldwide.
With USB 3.0 on the way I don’t know who would want to buy a 256GB USB thumb drive. On 
USB 3.0 was announced around a year ago. We were told it would be late 2009 before we actually saw ‘SuperSpeed’ USB 3.0 on the market and it looks like that estimate was pretty accurate. The Asus P6X58 motherboard boasts 3 USB 2.0 ports and 2 USB 3.0 ports. What is the difference? USB 3.0 ports are blue.
