Everything USB... We Mean Everything!

One of the most common threads between many notebook and desktop computers using on-board sound is that the sound quality is typically not good. Creative has announced a new product that should fix the problem with poor sound quality on most computers. The product is called the Sound Blaster X-Fi Go! and the dongle uses X-Fi Xtreme Fidelity technology.

The sound card plugs into the USB port of a computer and has 1GB of built-in flash memory. The software needed to install and run the X-Fi Go! is stored on the internal storage, which incorporates read/write switch protecting important gaming profiles from being accidentally deleted. Other features include 360-degree X-Fi Headphone surround, EAX Advanced HD 4.0 (host-based), OpenAL and CMSS-3D. VoiceFX Technology is built-in to morph the user's voice during voice chat sessions. Other software includes the Creative Karaoke Player and Creative WaveStudio. The X-Fi USB dongle will go on sale this month at $79. Creative also has extended the X-Fi brand to other USB audio, including the HS-1200 headset and USB X-Fi Surround 5.1.

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Samsung maybe hard at work bringing out the next best cellphone, but that doesn't mean the Koreans have stopped thinking about MP3 player. Planning to be unveiled at IFA, Samsung YP-Q1 has received a little design overhaul. It appears to be a mid-range DAP, and will use physical controls unlike the P2. The vertically-oriented Q1 accompanied by a 2.4" screen has a diamond-shaped control that is reportedly touch-sensitive. The GUI is reminiscent of that of the P2 also.

The YP-Q1 will come in 4, 8 and 16GB with some excellent audio codec support, including the usual ones plus OGG and FLAC. We decide not to comment on the video playback capability as Samsung past DAPs are quite stubborn when it comes to bit-rate, resolution and supported wrapper. Battery life is rated at 30 hours for music and 4 hours for video. If the YP-Q1 skips with Bluetooth, it will go head to head with Sony E430-series Walkman, which has a better color variety.

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Displaylink and Intel must be working towards on a long term goal to persuade more people to adopt multi-monitor setup. A joint press release said the duo has been working on optimizing Displaylink's USB video technology for Intel 4 Series Express chipset family. This should be interesting as corporate PCs and low-end home PCs aren't as expandable and are limited to an on-board graphics card providing a single DVI or VGA interface. A USB monitor like the Samsung 940UX provides the extra desktop estate with ease. Of course, laptops inherently have a second display port, but Displaylink argues you'll need a third or a fourth monitor down the road. You may as well jump on the multi-monitor bandwagon sooner than later.

Displaylink's USB video is a self-contained solution that works on all modern computers, so we reckon the optimization is reportedly on the driver level, and the benefits are lower CPU utilization (unbelievably high even on a duo core machine) and less screen lag (smoother video playback presumably). Intel Series 4 chipset-based users will enjoy a 20% performance improvement after the driver upgrade that is to be distributed via Windows Update.

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While Beijing Olympics was over, Lenovo - gold sponsor of the multi-sport event - still has a boatload of commemorative gadgets left over. Among those are of course all the different Olympics USB thumbdrives and now a quintet of wired USB mice that are named after each of the Fuwa mascots: Beibei, Jingjing, Huanhuan, Yingying and NiNi. The mouse asymmetrical design reportedly took six months to complete, after no less than two hundred modifications. The 1000 dpi optical mice are elevated, providing sufficient palm support for prolonged use. Last but not least, the Fuwas are also UV painted for protection against scratches. Still want it? Each Fuwa mascot mouse retails for 138 RMB ($20), and they are apparently available in China (and Hong Kong) only as far as we can tell. Close-up pics after the jump.

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Every time we turn around there seems to be some new Star Wars themed gear for computers. Most of the stuff is rather goofy if you ask me - like the Star Wars Mimobots. Despite the goofy factor, the latest Star Wars USB gadget is sort of cool. The gadget is called the Star Wars Desktop USB Lightsabre Lamp.

The little lightsabre charges via your USB port and when turned on it works as one really cool desklamp any geek would be proud to own. The device stand keeps the lightsabre lamp upright in all its phallic glory. A bronze button on the hilt turns the light on and it can be removed from the dock and used as a toy. The device measures 22 x 6 cm. For some reason a pair of these lamps remind me of chopsticks. We're frankly surprised there aren't lightsabre chopsticks yet. You can get your own geektastic lightsabre lamp for about $47.

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1.8" hard drive capacity hasn't quite caught up with that of 2.5", but at least Samsung has broken through the 100GB barrier with the its SpinPoint N2. Besides begging Apple to buy a million of these for future iPod classic and MacBook Air, Sammy is also pushing the drive in Chinese market. It doesn't appear there's an official name for the 120GB USB drive in a glossy black enclosure with the size of a credit card.

What we do know it's incredible power saver with impressive performance. The 4200-rpm USB drive only draws less than 1.4W and needs just 300mA from a 500mA USB port. Its power consumption is only one-fourth that of a 2.5" drive. Disk benchmark shows the 4,200-rpm read speed is rated at 27MB/s and write at 23MB/s, which are on par with high-end flash drives. Affordability is a question, not just for the Chinese. The 40GB version retails for 1099 RMB ($161); 60GB for 1299 RMB ($191); and 80GB for 1599 RMB ($235). The 120GB model should go for about 1999 RMB ($293... ouch). In comparison, a 320GB USB 2.5" drive now drops below $120, but it will obviously never fit in your wallet.

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KVM switches traditionally take multiple USB and DVI/VGA cables and connect them to the PCs which you can control from a single set of keyword, video monitor and mouse (hence the acronym KVM). Therefore, for every additional PC sharing on the KVM, there are two additional cables (USB & video). IOGear's new USB Laptop KVM Switch however goes with a different approach in that the same USB cable is used to carry video data as well, saving you from lugging a VGA cable around. It does seem like it's more of a software-driven product, like PCAnywhere, except the IOGear runs over a USB connection and displays the controlled PC's desktop in a temporary window on a laptop. Resolution scaling is available if needed for fitting the PC's desktop on a notebook's screen.

In addition to soft-KVM, the IOGear will double as a data cable allowing you to transfer files between two computers. A new drive letter will appear on your laptop for convenient drag an drops. The controlling notebook will also have direct access to the integrated USB port on the IOGear for printer, external hard drive or speaker connectivity. IOGear USB Laptop KVM Switch stretches a total of nine feet. For $130, it isn't cheap when the cable isn't yet cross-platform supported.

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Here comes another practical WUSB application (and "native" peripheral) that follows Kensington Wireless USB Dock Station. The IOGear Wireless USB to VGA Kit is touted as an alternate in-room display adapter that can stream HD (720p) within a 30-foot range wirelessly. You could say this is another niche multimedia product for connecting your PC (XP 32-bit, Vista 32-/64-bit) to a projector or a LCD TV. However, when you come across wiring obstacles such as marble and fireplaces, cutting this cord is something that maybe worth $229.95 (MSRP) - street price will dive near Christmas.

The IOGear WUSB to VGA Kit is among the first to be certified by USB-IF, which guarantees the VGA dongle will work with future PCs (or maybe Macs) with native WUSB host. There's one caveat though: the IOGear (likely powered by DisplayLink) doesn't support HDCP so while you can playback any 720p ripped movies or movie trailers, Blu-ray playback is out of the question.

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