Courtesy Hitachi

And that mini gadget hagiography doesn’t even consider the integrated USB cable that retracts into the unit itself, and ruggedized case designed to withstand 10-foot drops. Heck, if somehow the hard disk controller gives out, you can just pull out the internal hard disk, place it in a 2.5″ enclosure and start anew!

The SimpleTOUGH’s portability and durability can only be speculated at best, given the lack of a review unit to play with, but everything look goods on paper. Especially when you consider the very reasonable prices; $140 for this 500GB variant, $100 for the lower capacity 250GB version. That means gigabyte/dollar ratios of $3.57 and $2.5 respectively, ladies and gents.

The only missing factor in the equation? An apparent lack of links to direct online shopping product pages from the product page.

Source

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Slightly bigger than its predecessor the S1, the Mini S2 takes advantage of the increasingly roomy 2.5″ hard disk platform, offering capacities of up to 500GB. Keeping with the feminine theme, the casing is designed to not look out of place in a handbag, as the pic below illustrates:

The Samsung Mini S2. Courtesy Samsung

No word yet on pricing, but the S2 should be available throughout only South Korea by the end of this month. I wonder if this product was inspired by this old external hard disk design concept?

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Consumers: Go Samsung

That leaves Samsung, Seagate and Western Digital. Performance differences clearly shouldn’t dictate your purchasing decision here. All three offer backup and encryption paired with great style. Samsung clearly focuses on consumers, while Seagate and WD also support synchronization and go after real enthusiasts.

Enthusiasts: Pick Seagate or Western Digital

Seagate has the optional drive dock that increases usability; WD offers a capacity gauge and better data management features. Both are equipped with LEDs and a power management feature. Seagate’s LEDs light up the Seagate curl on the aluminum cover, while Western Digital utilizes LEDs to drive the capacity gauge.

A bit close to my previous assertion: if you’re looking for a great USB 2.0 hard drive, you can do no better than the Western Digital Passport Essential (the consumer variant of the Passport Elite reviewed by Tom’s Hardware). Available in various capacities, the gigabyte-per-dollar ratio increases as you approach 500GB.

(Image courtesy of Western Digital)

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Courtesy of TopTech Products

It’s also easy to imagine self-styled internet celebrities handing out their own data business cards, containing a personal profile and CV. Let’s also not forget the portable browser configured to load said celebrity’s main website.

Just like most flash drives, the Slim Data USB Card works with Windows, Macintosh, and Linux. The press release I received mentions 1GB and 4GB variants being available in clear, gray, orange, red, and blue. Though we only saw the 4GB version (priced at $25) on TopTech’s website.

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That’s what Finn Jerry Jalava has done, and he plans to add more functionality to his artificial digit. How does an RFID chip and additional storage sound? I can imagine the former would be really useful for those who use that technology on a daily basis (like say, office access doors and subway turnstile readers.

While you’re at it Jalava, why not add time-keeping capability, as suggested by Everything USB? What other tech can fit within a fake finger and be extremely useful?

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• Is similar in size to a deck of playing cards
• Features shock-mounts that protect from daily wear and tear somewhat
• Weighs only 3.7 ounces
• …and connects to computers through an integrated 1-meter cable that can neatly wrap around the unit itself?

USB and FireWire variants are available. According to CrunchGear: “$149, $189 and $269 for the 80GB, 120GB and 240GB, respectively. The FireWire models go for $10 more than their USB counterparts.” Full details to follow if and when we get our grabby hands on a review unit.

(Image from Apricorn)

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Whoever came up with the USB tampon deserves some credit. He (or she) didn’t only just cram flash drive electronics into an everyday object. Marketing wording was coined to complement the setup! Instead of simply listing “capacities”, meninos lists “data flows”. How witty!

(Image from meninos, thanks Geekologie!)

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The 1.5GB Seagate FreeAgent USB drive runs at 7,200rpm and plugs in via USB 2.0. Take note! It only works on Windows XP and later (no Mac support out of the box), and some customers regret their buy. Thanks CNET!

(image from Seagate)

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Complete with a ball chain and a tag to remind you that, yes, you’re using a USB gadget, these heart-shaped peripherals is totally impractical. Those who really really want it will have to pay ¥3,450.00 ($37.50), pay some more for delivery from Japan, and wait least 10 business days. But, as Geeksugar reports: “all I see is the pretty, pretty heart. Sigh.”

(image from Geek Stuff 4 U)

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The chances of damaging a thumb drive seem pretty small. But not for Damjan Stankovic! His new design, currently a figment of his imagination and not in production, solves the apparently common problem of bending flash drives by granting the classic form factor some flexibility. Stankovic has done away with all that long and stiff plastic, visualizing a design where the components fit into a shape reminiscent of a bee’s thorax (hence the name?). All your data is stored at one end, while the USB connector at the other is free to twist and bend all over, thanks to the USBee’s thin neck.

As mentioned above, the USBee isn’t currently available. But will any manufacturer be game enough to make Stankovic’s dream a reality? Is this even worth making? (gizmosforgeeks.com)

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