I’m sure many of our readers have come across a situation where they’d have liked USB to carry a bit more power to their devices. Your phone or iPod, charging ever-so-slowly, or perhaps an external drive that only works on “powered” USB ports — or must be plugged into a wall socket. A wall socket, in this day and age! I ask you!

Fortunately, the SuperSpeed USB group (or whatever shadowy illuminatus it is that truly controls USB) has decreed that the next generation of the USB 3.0 standard (PDF) will include support for a shocking 100 watts of power. That’s enough to keep ten drives running, or an LCD, or even an entire laptop. And believe it or not, it uses the same cables and ports we’ve already got.

This really is rather a large jump from the 5 standard watts or 10 extended watts found in normal USB ports. Even the vaunted (and electrical-sounding) Thunderbolt only delivers 10W. With 5Gb/s and 100W of power, the USB spec could be entering a second spring here. The ability to power larger and more sophisticated devices, like printers, monitors, and speakers, could make it even more universal than it already is. It’s a real leg up on the Thunderbolt/Light Peak designs, which, while they can handle the data from ten external drives, likely couldn’t power more than two of them. The cables should be able to handle about 1.5 amps of current. It’s not clear how the power load division will be altered, but it seems reasonable to suppose they’ll be increasing the number of concurrent loads.

Now, despite the fact that this new spec would use existing cables, there are potential problems. Not all motherboards and power supplies are prepared for this kind of power transfer, and improperly managed, these high wattages could burn out components, tax the PSU, and cause overheating. Charge-carrying USB cables of poor quality already melt and catch fire. But it’s disingenuous of me to suggest this as a drawback when the power is carefully monitored by the USB controller and it should only use wattages and currents tested and known to be safe with given classes of USB devices. I’m more worried that few devices and computers will have the power overhead to support this, since they likely pick PSUs carefully tailored to the power draw requirements of the system.

Fears of outdated hardware bursting into flame aside, I think this is quite exciting. It’s a serious increase and could enable a completely different accessory ecosystem. Don’t expect to charge your devices ten times faster just yet, but after the design is finalized in early 2012 (it’ll be previewed at the Intel Developer Forum in September as well), you could reasonably expect some very interesting USB-powered devices.

[via Tech Report]

This is a bit silly, but OK. Tokyo-based accessory maker Thanko has developed a very special gadget that’s supposed to help you fight the summer heat: a necktie clip [JP] that’s attached to a mini fan, which is powered via USB.

The clip weighs 28g. You can cool off yourself by either connecting the device directly to a USB port of a computer (when you’re sitting at your desk) or by plugging it into a battery unit (see below).

Thanko is selling the USB necktie clip cooler in their Japanese online store for $35 (battery unit included). If you’re interested but live outside Japan, wait for the Japan Trend Shop to (maybe) list it – alternatively you can browse their store for other unique cooling gadgets.

Have you ever wanted to shoot video while you were out diving in the ocean? But using a waterproof video camera isn’t for you? Then you should consider Thanko‘s newest product, underwater video camera goggles [JP], which is waterproof to a depth of 5m.

The goggles feature a 2MP CMOS camera, 4MB internal memory, and a USB 2.0 port. It shoots video in 1280×960 resolution (AVI) and pictures in 2560×1920 (JPEG). The ring you can see on the picture enough is actually a “remote control” (which lets you turn the camera on/off when you’re underwater).

Thanko is selling the goggles on its Japanese website for $99 – ask specialized online stores like the Japan Trend Shop or Geek Stuff 4 U if you want to get a pair shipped to you.

We will see more of these devices coming in the next few years, I am sure: Panasonic today announced [JP] the BG-BL01, a portable and solar-powered LED light that doubles as a charger for USB gadgets. The device is sized at just 152×104×24mm, weighs 150g, can house two AA batteries and is splash proof.

Buyers basically get three LED lamps (0.12W×3) that – once charged – work continuously for about 10 hours when set to “high brightness” and 60 hours when set to “low brightness”. It takes about 15 hours to charge the device with solar energy and about 7 hours when using USB.

Panasonic plans to start selling the in Japan on August 26 (price:$75).

Via AV Watch [JP]

Do you like your beverages cool in the summer and warm in the winter? Are you one of those computer users who think it’s too cumbersome to walk to the fridge whenever you’re in need for a drink? Then the so-called USB Hot Cool Box [JP] from Thanko might be the right thing for you.

What the Tokyo-based USB accessory specialist is selling here is essentially some sort of mini fridge that doubles as a heater: just place your drink into it, plug the box into a USB port and push a button (one side activates the cooler function, the other is for the heater function). In other words, you’ll never have to walk to the fridge or try to keep your coffee warm with something else again.

Thanko is selling the USB Hot Cool box in its Japanese online store for $37. Ask Geek Stuff 4 U if they can get one shipped to you if you’re interested.

Temperatures neared the 40 degree Celsius mark around Tokyo over the weekend – reason enough for Thanko to start selling the so-called USB Hinyari Cushion Ver. 2 [JP], which essentially is a USB-powered cooler/cushion for your butt. The Tokyo-based crap gadget maker has offered a very similar item last summer, and apparently that cushion sold well enough to be updated this year.

The new version is “more compact” (395×500×30mm) but still works the same way: just plug it into your computer’s USB port, sit on it, and let it cool your behind through the built-in fan.

In Japan, Thanko is selling the USB Hinyari Cushion Ver. 2  for $16. If you’re seriously interested, ask import/export specialist (and Thanko partner) Geek Stuff 4 U to get one for you.

It’s nice to have a few hundred gigabytes in your bag and when the first guys to the wireless hard drive party, Seagate, released the Satellite, they piqued my interest by allowing those gigabytes to be streamed onto iOS devices as well as almost any laptop or cellphone. Now, however, Hitachi seems to have hit the sweet spot with their wireless drive with built-in access point and, interestingly, no battery.

The $199 500GB drive can run off of USB power or any external source. It allows up to five devices to stream content to multiple devices and it includes iOS apps for the iPad and iPhone. It is also DNLA-complaint so it will show up on your network as a media playback device and it also serves music up as a share iTunes drive.

The best part? The drive features public and private folders so you won’t have to share all of your deepest, darkest secrets with your friends and family. The drive will ship in July.

These are actually quite cool and they’re presumably hand-made by Etsy user Boardaments so you’re getting quality. And what stylish man doesn’t love quality?

via Etsy via OhGizmo

Tokyo-based USB accessory maker Thanko has updated one of its coolest spy gadgets, the so-called Slim Video Pen HD [JP]. As the name suggests, it’s a pen that houses a micro camera to shoot video in HD, namely in 1,280×960 resolution (and at 30fps).

And in contrast to a similar pen Thanko introduced last year, this new one starts recording automatically when it detects motion (Thanko doesn’t specify from how far away).

The video is stored in the AVI format on microSD cards (32GB max.) and can later be transferred to a computer via mini USB 2.0. Thanko says the built-in battery lasts for about 75 minutes and that 1GB is enough to store 30 minutes of material.

The company is already selling the spy pen on its Japanese website [JP] for $61. Ask Geek Stuff 4U if you live outside Japan and are interested in getting one.

Intel now says it will support both its Thunderbolt interface, which first appeared on the recent MacBook Pro revision, and USB 3.0 sometime in 2012. Presumably if it supports USB 3.0 then it will support all previous versions of USB.

Intel made the announcement at a developer conference in Beijing, calling the technologies (ThunderBolt and USB) “complementary.” This won’t be HD DVD vs. Blu-ray all over again.

This comes only one day after AMD made a big splash by announcing that at least two of its upcoming APUs will support USB 3.0 right out of the box, meaning motherboard manufactures won’t have to add a separate USB controller to offer USB support. Helps keep costs down.

The addition of USB 3.0 support to its Ivy Bridge platform—you’ll recall that Sandy Bridge was recently launched—means peripheral makers won’t have to fret over the increased adoption of USB 3.0. In other words, if you’re Company A and you make Device 1, which connects via USB 3.0, you know there will already be a potentially big userbase to work with.

Thanko says video will be shot in 640×480 resolution at 30fps and stored on the 4GB internal flash memory (1GB is enough for 30 minutes of video, according to the company). The camera is powered by a button battery, and needless to say (this is a Thanko product, after all), there’s a USB port, too.

The gadget is already available in Thanko’s Japanese online store (for $120). Ask specialized shopping services like the Japan Trend Shop or Geek Stuff 4 U if you’re interested but live outside Japan.

Today, Toshiba put out a new portable USB-powered monitor. It’s a pretty cool to be able to carry around a second monitor that runs purely on USB power; that’s like a blogger’s dream. The carrying case even unfolds into a stand.

The specs are:

• 14-inch LCD
• 1366 X 768 pixels
• 2.8 pounds
• 220 nits brightness (with optional AC adapter)
• 400:1 contrast ratio
• 16 millisecond response
• Support for Windows XP and up
• Video through USB, no VGA/DVI/HDMI video cable required
• Price is $199.99

[via Engadget]

Powerline may be one of the most underrated wireless technologies available for the home. Basically, it’s a home networking setup that uses the electrical wiring in your house to connect different devices. And now, Devolo is expanding its line of Powerline AV to include a USB extender, a world’s first.

The dLan 200 AV USB extender allows you to connect a USB device to any home network supporting Powerline. So, in one room you could connect your computer to it and in another have the USB cable go to a printer for wireless printing, without all the network setup. Great for the not so tech-savvy. Also, the extenders work up to 300 m, saving a big wiring hassel.

Price is about $160 for the entire kit, and for those who already have other Powerline AV products, a standalone USB unit can be had for about $110.

[via pocketlint]

We haven’t covered anything coming from Tokyo-based crazy accessory maker Thanko in a while. But yesterday, the company started selling its newest super-silly USB gadget: an allergy mask [JP] that not only will make the wearer look like a “cat” (well, kind of) but also comes with a built-in mini fan (see picture below).

The fan is supposed to make you breathe easier (?) and is powered by USB (I guess you need to figure out a way to hide the USB cable and stay connected to a computer when using the thing).

Thanko sells the mask in their Japanese online store (price: $25). Ask Thanko partner Geek Stuff 4 U if you really need to get one shipped outside Japan.

Are you suffering from cold hands while using your computer? You don’t think heated, USB-powered gloves are a dumb idea? Then Thanko’s so-called “Ninja Gloves” [JP] might be the right solution for you.

These are not the first USB gloves the Tokyo-based crap gadget maker has on sale, but maybe the coolest. Just plug them into your computer’s USB port and push the “ON” button to warm your hands.

The Ninja Gloves are available on Thanko’s website or on Geek Stuff 4 U for everybody living outside Japan (price: $32.43).

Japan-based accessory specialist Sanwa Supply started selling the so-called USB Hub Robot [JP] yesterday. As the name suggests, it’s a USB hub (with two ports) that’s shaped like a cute robot robot.

The little guy’s LED eyes start to light up when you connect him to your computer, he can walk around your desk when you wind him up, and he can also hold a pen in his arms for you (see below). In other words, the thing is adorable (video on the top right of this page).

The USB Hub Robot is Japan only, but Geek Stuff 4 U already has it listed for everyone living outside this country (price: $57.12).

What you see here is part of an art project called Dead Drops. USB drives are stuck into walls around New York City and users are encouraged to connect and upload and download whatever they want. Knowing New York these things will soon either be coated in slime or filled with chork porn it’s definitely a fun project.

The devices are at the following places:

87 3rd Avenue, Brooklyn, NY (Makerbot)
Empire Fulton Ferry Park, Brooklyn, NY (Dumbo)
235 Bowery, NY (New Museum)
Union Square, NY (Subway Station 14th St)
West 21st Street, NY (Eyebeam)

Each drive contains a readme explaining the project and there are will be updates on the project website. My favorite is this shot of our buddy Bre Pettis getting his drop on.

via Giz

The Quirky Contort is basically a four port USB hub with a trick: it also acts as a cable organizer so after you plug in all your goodies you can keep them all wrapped up and neat. The device costs $29.99 for pre-order ($35 when it comes out).

Product Page

via Eng

Ainex says its self-powered hub also supports “larger devices” such as HDDs or web cameras. It’s compatible with Windows XP/Vista and 7 machines.

The HUB-03 will go on sale on August 26 with an open price model and is Japan-only.