Best computer news

The Samsung Story is here looking more like a high-end home stereo component than a desktop peripheral. Don’t let its rigid looks fool you it’s actually meant to be a very user friendly 1.5TB backup device for all your favorite files. The machined aluminum casing houses a single 3.5″ SATA hard drive. Aluminum cases are notoriously good at dissipating heat which large fast drives generate in abundance. The Story is USB 2.0 enabled for fast transfers and speedy backups.

Backups and Data Storage are what this monster is really about. The Story comes with three extra features to solve your data storage needs. not just data storage and protection is the main focus of the software packages provided with the drive. Samsung provides a timed backup software package which can optionally include the backup sets with a password key that you supply. they also provide their own version of a Truecrypt type functionality. This program attaches an encrypted virtual drive to the host computer and all files stored within it are automatically encrypted. It’s available in 500GB, 1TB and the mammoth 1.5TB version but there’s no word yet on price but it should be available in May.
Permanent Link

Ennova Direct an IP company has been granted today a patent for an OLED lit fingerprint scanning thumbdrive. The flash Drive sports an OLED sensor screen capable of reading and storing fingerprints. Once the drive has been biometrically unlocked the OLED area can also be used as an interactive display. Consider it effectively an Optimus Micro if you will. The display will let you select which files you wish to unlock. The display to also be used to read out status information like remaining capacity or battery level. The clever flip cap hides and protects both the USB connector as well as the OLED screen.

Ennova Direct has been in business for five years now patenting device concepts. Their most recognizable patent is the retractable USB flash drive. Their concept picture looks strikingly similar to the Cruzer Contour flash drive. they also hold patents on Bluetooth audio devices, specifically for portable audio devices. Some other more pedestrian holdings aren’t as clever like their ‘flashlite’ flash drive plus rechargeable flash light, illuminated mouse pad and an illuminated mouse. I wonder how much money Brando has had to pay to these guys.
Permanent Link

Windows Vista and XP’s Autorun have become a hotbed for virus & malware activity, notably the Conficker worm spreading primarily via USB flash drives. To put a halt to the spread, Microsoft said it’s making a change to the default way of how Windows 7 handles USB drives. The first release candidate version of Windows 7 that will soon be released will stop any AutoRun tasks from tricking unsuspecting users into launching the apps.

CDs and DVDs as well as so-called “smart” drives (i.e. U3) that emulate a DVD drive will continue to use AutoRun. An old school way for all of us is perhaps to hold SHIFT key when plugging a drive or inserting an optical disc. Microsoft also intends to make this update available to Vista and XP users eventually.
Permanent Link

The Flip Video Mino Ultra HD still seems to be playing hide-and-seek in limited Best Buy stores but people are seeking it, with good reason. The latest from the Flip Video line but the first since the acquisition of the parent company by Cisco has doubled up on most of its specs added a few features but kept the price the same. That’s a nifty trick lately and one that’s hard to ignore. Supposedly found at $199 now its predecessor is still listed online for more.

This updated model boasts the same 720p high definition recording but twice the storage space fo the original. Enough room for 2 hours of capture. While the storage is fixed and not removable-card based like comparable models the power has been set free. The internal rechargeable lithium battery is removable and fits AA batteries for power extension on the go. Once you’re done filming you can use the HDMI output that’s been shoe-horned into this tiny package. As soon as they find a shelf tag big enough to host this thing’s entire name you should be able to pick one up. Let’s hope they come up with a better way to name the next one or we’re gonna run out of room for our titles.
Permanent Link

So you’re on a midnight stakeout, waiting to catch that cheating spouse/celebutant/drug smuggler in the act. You’ve got your best telephoto lens hooked up to your 25 mega-pixel, ultra low-light DSLR. Then, Uh-oh, your camera’s memory is full. Your car’s dark and you don’t want to switch on the interior lights. Fumbling with the camera in the dark is likely to cost you your camera or your shot may just pass you by. Then you remember, YES, you picked up the awesome, Thanko USB SD card-reader/flashlight. You quickly get the card out of your camera, move pictures off of it, reinsert the card and start snapping again. Bingo, got the money shot.

So that story may ring true for stalkers, P.I.’s and paparazzi but probably very few other people are really going to need a flashlight handy while they are moving files back and forth from flash memory. A niche device if ever there was one, this 3 LED mini flashlight which is powered by a rechargeable battery inside the card reader’s chassis challenges the imagination to find a good use for these 2 functions together. On the upside the 40mAh battery probably only takes about 30-45 minutes to fully charge and can probably run the LEDs for an hour. It is able to read SD, SDHC and any other card that is small enough that an SD adapter exists for. With that kind of flexibility and utility who wouldn’t shell out the $12.99 to have one of these handy for that next secret mission?
Permanent Link

What does an iPhone have anything to do with a USB Missile Launcher? These guys from Newo will tell you an iPhone (or iPod touch) can become a remote console for the rapid foam launcher with their new iLauncher app.

At $2.99, iLauncher breathes new life into rather dated USB weaponry by letting you fire harmless foams at unsuspecting colleagues as long as you are connected to the same WiFi network as the PC that is controlling the infamous Missile Launcher. Unfortunately, this will only work with PC (Mac and Linux community will have to wait).
Permanent Link

No matter how great a backup solution is, hardly anyone will use it (regularly) unless it’s extremely easy to use even if it can his or her life. Nearly every external drive whether it is a portable or desktop unit ships with sophisticated backup software, yet it is not often put to good use especially for those of us who are just plain lazy. People want a “set it and forget it (until disaster strikes)” backup solution. This is where Seagate Replica may come in handy.

Available in 250GB single-user version for $130 and 500GB multi-PC for $200, the USB-powered Replica is built around Rebit 500 backup drive. Upon installation on any 32- and 64-bit XP or Vista machines, the aptly-named Replica will likely take a couple of hours to backup all partitions, including everything from OS to applications and user data. It comes with a system recovery disc that will bring your PC back to its previous healthy state when Vista dies on you. The Seagate Replica will also continuously backup all file changes as long as you keep it connected. So retrieving deleted data from several days ago should be only be a few clicks away. However, beware it only works with NTFS.
Permanent Link

The Leyio UWB file sharing device was released in London this week and the chaps over at eWeek Europe got a chance to give it a once-over. This long-awaited device has finally made it to distribution writing the first implementation of UWB technology to the consumer in a mobile format. The only other notable devices making use of ultra-wideband technology are high definition video signal transmitters. We’re happy to see the Leyio come and hope many more devices make use of the high-bandwidth UWB standard. This application however doesn’t have to do Certified Wireless USB, which lets peripherals to a PC wirelessly even though WUSB uses the same UWB radio platform.

The Leyio is designed to be a mobile data sharing device which can partner and transfer files with other Leyio owners. When the two of you meet up, you perform a kind of secret digital handshake involving the fingerprint scanner and accelerometer. Then whatever files you have chosen to share will start jumping across the airwaves at up to 80 Mbps. The Leyio holds up to 16GB of data and can be replenished by a 2GB USB drive that they call “The Shuttle” or via USB cable. now while you can move all manner of files the Leyio only has the ability to display images. It cannot display documents nor play music files at all. Hopefully later versions will at least have the ability to play MP3 files because at more than $200 it will have a hard time catching on otherwise.
Permanent Link

Kensington may have finally given accountants a reason to rejoice. In what has to be the closest thing to a USB adding machine ever created, Kensington has unveiled a Keypad/Calculator which is sure to be quickly adopted by any and all number crunchers. This USB peripheral which comes in the form of a standalone numeric keypad also carries with it 19-key financial calculator functions. The display is a run of the mill single line LCD screen. While they’re actually quite a few calculator keypads out there this is the first we’ve seen that actually integrates the two functions by the use of a “send key” which could send calculator results to the PC.

The keypad also sports a two port USB hub that will allow you to daisy chain other devices through it. since it doesn’t include its own power supply he will likely run into power problems connecting devices like extremely large hard drives or web cams. Low-power devices like mice, keyboards and flash drives should be just fine. The keypad should be plug-and-play on both Windows and Apple computers and can be had $30 and is available now.
Permanent Link

Draft 2.0 802.11n hardware is now making the rounds and is finally given many people reason to upgrade. As the new standard makes it onto more and more routers many people are seeing enough gain to upgrade their individual PCs with new wireless network cards. If you’re still suffering with the range and speed of an 802.11b wireless device and have been putting off upgrading because of high prices, Digitus may have something to help you take the leap.

Their new wireless LAN adapter has just been released and supports the draft 2.0 N standard. It also supports the very user friendly WPS security mode for quick push-button connectivity. While slightly larger than most USB WiFi adapters, 90% percent of its body is actually a 3dBi antenna. This is funny since Buffalo has a tiny 802.11n adapter whose USB connector makes up for large part of the dongle. Anyway, this integrated antenna should allow you to get the most out of wireless-N’s greatly improved range. The adapter also supports all of the new security standards like WEP, WPA, WPA2. it can be found for about $45 and should be hitting major retailers soon.
Permanent Link