By Andrew Liszewski

If you’re looking for a way to backup photos from your memory-hungry DSLR while away from a PC, there’s a nice assortment of devices to choose from. But it’s not quite the same situation if you’re looking to backup the videos captured by those compact camcorders that are all the rage right now. In fact, the new HDPN-U500/V external hard drive from I-O Data could be one of the first.

The unique bulge you see on one side is supposed to make it look like a Windows file folder icon, where you know, you store your files, but it thankfully serves double duty as a place to clip and store the included USB cable when not in use. It of course functions as a regular old external hard drive when connected to a PC, but it can also be used to backup video files from a Sanyo Xacti, JVC Everio or Sony Handycam without the assistance of a computer. Perfect for freeing up space on your camcorder when traveling. And the videos on the drive can also be enjoyed on a TV when using your camcorder as the AV interface. The I-O Data HDPN-U500/V will be available in Japan by the end of September for ~$190. (¥16,000)

[ I-O Data HDPN-U500/V External Hard Drive ] VIA [ Akihabara News ]

By Andrew Liszewski

There’s no sign of them on the Verbatim website just yet, but apparently you’ll soon be able to carry hundreds of thousands of receipts and family photos in your back pocket with their new wallet drives. They’re basically just a hard drive wrapped in brown or dark brown leather (stamped with the Verbatim logo) that come with a small suite of Nero software on board, and whenever they are available you’ll be able to pick one up in 320GB or 500GB capacities. Pricing TBD.

[ ChipChick - Verbatim Wallet Drive Resembles a Leather Wallet, Sans Money ]

By Andrew Liszewski

If you’re a fan of classic gaming, particularly from Nintendo, you’re either going to love or cringe at the site of these cartridges that have been converted into hard drives and USB flash drives. They were created by Etsy seller 8-Bit Memory, and the prices seem to range from about $39.99 for a GBA cart 4GB flash drive, to upwards of $179.99 for a 1TB NES cart external drive. Custom orders are also welcome, if your cart of choice hasn’t already been converted.

[ Etsy - 8-Bit Memory - NES, SNES & GBA Cart Hard Drives & Flash Drives ] VIA [ Newlaunches ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Awwww, showing that sharing when it comes to technology can still be a good thing, the Buffalo Dualie portable hard drive and dock comes with an extra slot that’s just waiting for your iPhone to cozy up and sync. (Or your iPod Touch or regular iPod thanks to a set of included adapters.) The 500GB hard drive comes equipped with USB 2.0 and FireWire 800 ports and a brushed aluminum two-tone finish so it doesn’t clash with your other Apple gear. Very important. Oddly enough the dock itself only appears to come with USB 2.0 ports, so if you want to take advantage of those FireWire 800 speeds, you’ll have to hook up the hard drive on its own. The cheapest online price seems to be about $150 which isn’t actually that cheap for a 500GB drive these days, but who wants to cheap out and risk using a drive that doesn’t match their iMac or MacBook?

[ Buffalo Dualie Portable Hard Drive And Dock ] VIA [ GadgetReview ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Apple’s iPad Camera Connection Kit lets you directly connect a digital camera, or an SD memory card, to your magical device, saving you the hassle of having to sync to iTunes to view your photos on its large display. But what if your camera doesn’t use SD cards? And what if its USB cable went missing eons ago? Well in that case Lexar’s got your back since their new Multi-Card 24-in-1 USB card reader works with the iPad’s USB adapter. So instead of just SD cards, you can now access photos from a wide variety of memory card formats* directly from the iPad. It of course also works on a PC and has an ‘innovative’ pop-up design to protect the card slots when not in use. All that for just $29.99, though if you do intend to use it with your iPad, you’ll also have to shell out another $29 for the aforementioned Apple Connection Kit.

And if for some reason you don’t believe that such technological sorcery is even possible, I’ve included a video after the jump of Jeff Cable (Lexar’s Director of Marketing) demoing the reader with an iPad on location at a photoshoot.

*Supported flash card formats: CompactFlash® Type I and Type II, SD™, SDHC™, miniSD™, miniSDHC™, MMC™, MMCplus™, RS-MMC™, microSD™, microSDHC™, M2™, Memory Stick™, Memory Stick (with MagicGate™), Memory Stick PRO™, Memory Stick PRO Duo™, Memory Stick Duo (with MagicGate), Memory Stick PRO Duo Mark 2, Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo™, Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo “HX”, xD-Picture Card™, xD-Picture Card Type-M, xD-Picture Card Type-M+, and xD-Picture Card Type-H.

[ Lexar Multi-Card 24-in-1 USB Reader ] VIA [ SlashGear ]

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By Andrew Liszewski

Today Hitachi-LG Data Storage Inc. officially announced their new HyDrives, designed for laptops and compact PCs, which incorporate a 32GB or 64GB SSD into a CD/DVD optical drive. The obvious benefit to such a setup is that you can have a dual drive configuration in a mid-sized laptop, with the fast SSD for your OS and applications, and a large regular hard drive for media and other content. Now according to Engadget, the first generation of the HyDrives, which should be available come August, will actually be 12.7mm thick which means they won’t fit in most laptops, relegating them for use in compact desktop PCs and HTPCs. But the second generation, which will hopefully be available by March of next year, will have a smaller 9.5mm form factor making them usable in a wide range of laptops, as well as increased capacities of up to 256GB.

Specific pricing info wasn’t announced today, probably because the drives will only be available to OEMs at launch, but a ~$200 premium was quoted for systems featuring one of the new HyDrives.

[ Engadget - Hitachi-LG goes official with HyDrive: SSD-equipped optical drives landing in August ]

By Andrew Liszewski

For the well-dressed IT guy or BOFH (are there any who aren’t?) comes this stylish set of engravable cufflinks from Ravi Ratan that each feature a concealed 2GB USB flash drive. So for $195 you essentially get 4GB of storage, sleeve cuffs that aren’t flapping in the wind and a mystery metal. I want to assume they’re made of silver, but CuffLinks.com makes no mention that they are. Though gold plated versions are also available for the same price.

[ 2GB USB Flash Drive Cufflinks ] VIA [ GeekAlerts ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Like their larger counterparts, ioSafe’s Squadron line of disaster proof hard drives keeps your data safe through all but the worst of calamities. They’re fireproof to 1400° F for up to 15 minutes, but also feature a reflective heat shield that deflects over 98% of the radiant heat from a fire, prolonging the life of the drive. They can also survive being submerged under 5 feet of fresh or salt water for 24 hours. And since the drives feature a considerable amount of additional padding and extra material surrounding them, the company’s ‘Air Flow Cooling’ vent system keeps the drive running at normal temperatures during day-to-day use and can immediately seal shut in the event of an emergency.

But unlike the massive external drives offered by ioSafe, the Squadron drives can actually be installed in a standard drive bay on your desktop PC. The only downside to the extra protection is the Squadron’s price and capacity. The largest SATA version currently available is just 320GB in size, which will cost you $309.99 when they start shipping on May 17.

[ ioSafe Squadron Hard Drives ] VIA [ GadgetGrid ]

By Andrew Liszewski

If you’ve got a memory hungry DSLR and an extra $500 burning a hole in your pocket, Lexar wants you to know that their 600X 32GB compact flash card should now be available at various retailers. The card has a guaranteed minimum sustained write speed capability of 90MB/s when used with an UDMA 6-enabled device, though the press release doesn’t mention what the max or burst write speeds might be. And if the 600X is too rich for your blood, Lexar also announced a 300X version of their 32GB CF card with sustained write speeds of 45MB/s and a slightly more reasonable price tag of $250.

[ PR - Lexar Professional 600x and 300x 32GB CompactFlash Cards and Professional ExpressCard CF Reader Now Available ] VIA [ Mobile Magazine ]