Oh! Gizmo

By Luke Anderson

I’ve never really understood what the fascination it is that women have with little mirrors. It seems that they need to whip one out to make sure their face is still attached every so often. I suppose that since they always carry one, perhaps some geeky girls might like this USB Mirror Card Reader.

Basically someone has designed one of those compact mirrors to have a small card reader inside. This way if you’re snapping pictures and want to download them to a PC somewhere, you can. Since it is enclosed, you can also keep the memory cards stored inside as well. It’s cheap too, just $15 bucks.

[ Gadget4All ] VIA [ Pocket Lint ]

By Luke Anderson

How many gadgets would you say you owned that recharge via USB? I’ve got probably half a dozen just within arm’s reach of my desk. Granted, most have standard wall chargers as well, but when you’re on the road, you really don’t want to carry around all of those bulky cords. This simple device dubbed the Eneplug (does anyone else think that name sounds just a little dirty?) might make your load a little lighter when traveling.

The device looks like someone chopped off the end of a power cord and shoved in a female USB port. Actually, that’s basically what it is. Just plug this into your power outlet and plug in your USB device and it’ll start pumping it full of power. Too bad these are only available in Japan.

[ GreenHouse ] VIA [ Crave ]

By Luke Anderson

I have a lot of devices that run on AA batteries. Namely my mouse and gaming controllers, but there are others around here that need them as well. This of course means that I have a few different chargers throughout my house to ensure I’ve always got a fresh pair somewhere. If you also need rechargeable batteries on the go, I might recommend tossing this Freeloader Battery ChargerPop into your bag.

It claims to be the smallest and lightest battery charger in the world, which is always nice for a laptop bag. It will charge either two AA or AAA batteries to 75% of a full charge in three to four hours via your PC’s USB port. For $25, it probably wouldn’t be a bad addition to your gadget bag, provided your gadgets actually use AA batteries.

[ Gizoo ] VIA [ GeekAlerts ]

By Luke Anderson

Is it just me, or are people turning everything into USB devices? Seriously, who needs a calculator that is also a USB hub? Better yet, who needs a basic calculator such as this sitting next to their keyboard and mouse. Honestly I thought that the calculator built into Windows or OSX coupled with the numberpad on your keyboard was more than enough to take care of things. Not only is this gadget all but useless, it seems a bit overpriced at $23.99.

[ GizFever ] VIA [ GeekAlerts ]

By Andrew Liszewski

If you’re copying a few hundred JPEG photos you took at a birthday party to your PC, then speed is probably not a big concern. However if you’re copying hundreds of RAW files to your laptop with a looming print deadline then yeah, speed is probably an issue. Lexar’s UDMA dual-slot USB reader promises the fastest transfer speeds you can find as long as you’re using it with a high-speed UDMA memory card.

The dual slots are compatible with UDMA CF cards, standard CF cards, SDHC SD cards and regular SD cards and it even folds closed to keep out unwanted materials like dust and debris when it’s not in use. You can get it directly from the Lexar online store for $34.99.

[ Lexar Professional UDMA Dual-Slot USB Reader ] VIA [ Fareastgizmos ]

By Luke Anderson

How many times have you been traveling across a few states, only to find that one of your gadgets is in serious need of a charge? This has happened to me on more than one occasion, and since I don’t always bring my handy power inverter, I’m usually out of luck. However, since many of my gadgets can recharge via USB, this gadget would have come in handy.

This 4-Port USB Car Charger is as simple as it looks. Just plug it into your cigarette adapter and you’ve got four USB ports for recharging just about anything. For $12 I think I’ll have to pick one up.

[ Gadget4All ] VIA [ UberGizmo ]

By Andrew Liszewski

I’ve never tried ‘canned shapes’ before but if they’re half as tasty as this can shaped memory card reader is useful, I’ll start stocking my pantry. But Y3K preparation aside, Brando has once again managed to stick another piece of everyday technology into an unusual package. This time it’s an SD, SDHC, MMC, XD, CF and MicroSD friendly card reader crammed into what appears to be a short aluminum can. It connects to your PC via USB 2.0 and even includes 3 extra USB ports lining the base of the can. A clever design unless you work in an office where the cleaning crew will probably toss it in the recycling bin.

You can get it on Brando’s website for $20.

[ Canned Shape Card Reader & USB Hub ] VIA [ Tech Digest ]

By Luke Anderson

Have you ever had a flash drive that you needed duplicated onto another drive or two? I’m sure that it’s happened once or twice, but since most computers have a plethora of ports, it really isn’t an issue to copy the data. However, if you’re working for a company that needs a few dozen or more such drives, that can be a whole different issue.

This device makes it simple to copy information over to 20 different USB devices at the same time. All you need to do is plug it in and go, it’ll take care of the rest. I’m sure that this would save a lot of time and effort, were you someone that made a lot of copies. The average Joe probably won’t get much use out of it, especially for $1299.

[ NexCopy ] VIA [ Gearfuse ]

By Luke Anderson

How many of you are married out there? How many of you proposed (or were proposed to) with a ring that could be plugged into your computer? I’m going to go out on a limb here and guess that none of you are raising your hands right now. I’ll also advise that any of you thinking about popping the question should seer away from this USB Engagement Ring.

My wife is a pretty geeky girl, however, I can guarantee she’d have laughed in my face if I’d brought this in a box. She loves her tech just as much as the next girl, but she says that this one crosses a line. Sure, it’s novel that these two rings (yes, there’s one for the guy) fit together and can transfer data, but I don’t anyone that would actually wear these as wedding rings.

These appear to only be concept pieces for an art show. Hopefully we won’t actually see these on the market anytime soon.

[ Nexus404 ] VIA [ EverythingUSB ]

By Luke Anderson

I have a habit of losing small things. Keys, flash drives, you name it. Unfortunately that makes being a tech geek so much harder because everything is just getting smaller. Take this new USB Bluetooth Dongle, which has to be the smallest I’ve ever seen.

It is being touted as the World’s slimmest USB Bluetooth Dongle, and I’d believe it. Aside from being tiny, it’s just your average ordinary Bluetooth adapter. My advice is to plug this thing into your PC and don’t take it out again. You won’t even notice it is there. Pick one up for just $14.99.

[ USBFever ] VIA [ GeekAlerts ]