USB

Crypteks is bringing out our inner Robert Langdon with the new physically lockable USB flash drive. Featuring a sleek all-metal solid-aluminum alloy construction, the Crypteks USB storage is physically locked inside its housing encrypted with a user-created password that is input by twisting five rings displaying all 26 letters of the alphabet. And if that's still not secure enough, it also offers 256-bit AES Hardware Encryption. Read More

MimoMonitors.com has announced a new addition to its secondary monitors lineup. Billed as the world's first USB-powered capacitive touchscreen display, the Mimo Magic Touch features a 10.1-inch screen running at 1024 x 600 resolution. It can be used either with its dock/base, or simply held in the hand as a sort of tethered tablet. Read More

Norwegian startup company FXI has demoed a clever USB/HDMI stick designed to add Android-based smart capabilities to any HDMI or USB-equipped device. Codenamed Cotton Candy, the inconspicuous USB flash drive-shaped dongle packs quite powerful hardware, including a 1.2GHz ARM Cortex-A9 CPU and a quad-core GPU that handles 1080p video. Think of it as perhaps the world's smallest screenless computer. Read More

For those of us who want a little more oomph out of our computers’ sound systems, USB-powered speakers certainly offer a simple solution, although they tend to be less powerful than speakers that incorporate the more traditional 3.5mm jack. Well, today XtremeMac unveiled its Tango Bar – a 10-watt USB sound bar for Macs or PCs, that reportedly delivers twice the output of most of its competitors. Read More

The nature of the Apple ecosystem means that many MacBook owners will also carry around an iPhone or iPad - or both. To cut down on the clutter of white Apple chargers vying for an electrical outlet in this situation, TwelveSouth has released its PlugBug accessory that piggybacks on a standard MacBook power adapter to provide an additional USB charge port to charge an aforementioned iDevice and a MacBook at the same time. Read More

With the proliferation of battery-hungry mobile devices that people now carry on their person when biking, we've seen a number of solutions designed to keep said devices charged up while on the go - from solar charging clothing and backpacks to add-on dynamo kits that allow devices to be charged via USB using power captured by the rider's pedaling. German bicycle maker Silverback has seen the need here and addressed it with its Starke 1 and 2 models, both of which feature a USB port powered by a dynamo hub. Read More

Aimed at heavy combat gaming, AZiO's new Levetron Mech4 is a modular keyboard design that enables the numeric keypad and macro D-pad with six programmable keys to be configured to suit your style. Mech4 also has comes special seals and drainage gutters that prevent spills from ending your virtual battle and the keyboard's life. Read More

LaCie has unveiled a local network-based bridge unit called the LaPlug, that allows users to share any USB-powered storage drive over a local network. It also enables the sharing of private files outside the LAN through an external address, and the wireless streaming of files to UPnP/DLNA-certified products such as gaming consoles, LaCinema Classic HD, or any other compatible equipment. Read More

Perhaps you’ve encountered a travel scenario like this before ... you arrive at your hotel room and go to plug in your mobile phone, only to discover that the bedside lamp and clock radio are already occupying both plug-ins of the most conveniently-located AC wall outlet. While there might be room on another outlet, it could involve your having to squeeze in behind the TV, or leaving your phone someplace where you might forget it. If you had a Flipit USB charger, however, you could draw power from that first outlet, while still leaving the light and the radio plugged in. Read More