Belkin this morning shook up its approach to its USB hub range with three models that put extra ports in unique locations. The Hub-To-Go is a rare convertible device that changes its role on the fly: while it includes a stable base with a tray for an MP3 player or other small devices, the 4-port hub detaches entirely to stow away for portable use. Its swiveling connector also lets it fit into notebooks and other systems without blocking nearby ports, Belkin says. The Hub-To-Go will sell in late August for $50 along with the Swivel Hub, which eliminates the base to lower the cost to $30.

A third hub, the Clip-On, is stationary and attaches to a desk or cable bundle to provide four USB ports without consuming valuable space. Two of these jacks are top-mounted to provide easier access for hot-swapped devices, Belkin says. The Clip-On joins the other hubs for the August release and sells for $30.

Netgear this morning officially shipped its Storage Central Turbo network storage device. Intended as much for the home and work, the device loads up to two desktop-sized Serial ATA drives of the user’s choice and shares them across up to a gigabit Ethernet network. This lets it handle even live HD video streams in real-time, Netgear says. Specialized storage area network techniques let users upgrade relatively easily by just adding more of the SCT devices to the network, while SmartSync software allows redundant backups between drives and to guard folders against public access or for individual users.

NetGear offers the Storage Central Turbo solely as an empty device, with drives to be added later; it arrives soon at online and physical resellers for $200 and works with virtually any operating system that can access network drives.

Tekkeon this afternoon revealed the myPower ALL Plus, a successor to its previous multi-purpose charger. The Plus (also known as the MP3450) adds a USB port to charge a handheld device such as a camera, cellphone, or iPod while simultaneously powering most notebooks. When committed solely to a notebook, the charger can extend the useful run time by as much as four hours, Tekkeon says. Estimates also have the average portable media player lasting for an additional 42 hours, while cameras typically see an extra 12 hours. Two batteries at once can be used for even more power, the company notes.

Several adapters ship with the power brick to accommodate most notebooks, including virtually all Windows notebooks, most pre-MagSafe Apple notebooks, and mini-USB devices. Tekkeon’s charger helps any device with up to a 19V current (and 64W of power) and has been released today for $160. A lower-power version, the MP3300, primarily charges handhelds alone (up to 14V) and sells for $100.

Texas Memory Systems, maker of the World’s Fastest Storage®, today announced a new Oracle Accelerator Kit - a product bundle designed to make it easier to accelerate Oracle database performance using supercomputer-class hardware. The Oracle Accelerator Kit includes Texas Memory Systems’ RamSan solid state disks, QLogic switches and QLogic host channel adaptors (HCAs) designed for InfiniBand-based Oracle grid computing environments.

The Texas Memory Systems Oracle Accelerator Kit can accelerate Oracle databases up to 2500%. Applications accelerated by solid state disks can support more concurrent users, more simultaneous transactions and demand less technical support. By using a pre-configured solution bundle, organizations benefit from extreme database performance and productivity gains, yet maintain an infrastructure that is scalable and easy to manage. The kits ensure fast and easy installation with assured compatibility of the components, all of which have been tested and certified by QLogic and Texas Memory Systems.

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Synchrotech has unveiled its MicroU2E USB 2.0 to USB 2.0 Mode ExpressCard 34 | 54 Host Adapter, offering USB 2.0 Mode ExpressCard device support on USB 2.0 ports. The adapter features a small footprint that is slightly larger than a book of matches, accepting USB 2.0-based ExpressCards in either 34 or 54 form factors. Supported USB mode ExpressCards include Novatel Wireless Merlin ExpressCards (XU870, EX720, V740), storage media ExpressCards like Datafab’s expSSD, RS-232 host adapters like Synchrotech’s EXP34-RS232-01, most ExpressCard to memory card media adapters like Synchrotech’s EXP34-ADP-CF2-01, and several others. The device does not work with any ExpressCard using the PCI Express (PCIe) portion of the ExpressCard standard, however, but allows the use of USB-based ExpressCards in the latest generation of 3G wireless devices on slotless MacBooks. The accessory is priced at $40.

Apple today was shown to have filed a US patent that may point towards the future of its desktop mice. Originally submitted in March 2006, the patent would use a variant of the multi-touch concept behind the iPhone and apply it to a hand controller. An optical sensor built inside the mouse would map the surface and recognize contact from the user’s hand based on changes in the image. Information would then be translated to a flat grid in software that the computer can use to recognize the user’s intent, the patent says.

Using an image-based system would eliminate the problems of most mice with touch-sensitivity, Apple says. Instead of limiting touch to a specific area of the mouse and usually limiting input to a single point, the optical sensor could potentially cover the entire mouse surface and recognize multiple fingers. This adaptation would allow the mouse both to recognize common mouse functions such as left- or right-clicking but also gestures, such as a pinching motion for zoom (similar to the iPhone), swiping movements for scrolling, or circular movements for rotation.

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Take monitor calibration to the next level with the PANTONE hueyPRO. Designed for photographers, creative professionals and enthusiasts looking to increase their colour control, the hueyPRO combines the innovative form and ease of use of the award-winning PANTONE huey with increased levels of functionality. In addition to automated calibration, the hueyPRO offers users greater control over brightness and contrast, with separate menu choices for the selection of gamma and white point settings.

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Fabrik today added to its drive options today with a 250GB version of its SimpleDrive mobile drive. Sharing the same Pininfarina-designed shell as the original, the USB 2.0 external disk is useful for carrying as much as 19 hours of HD video or 63,000 songs, by the company’s estimates. It ships with StorageSync for quicker incremental backups and access to a 2GB MyFabrik online account for extra backups and sharing files with others.

The upgraded drive ships this month for $199 in a charcoal gray color and should work with any Mac or PC that supports the current USB standard. The drive is also supported by existing drives that range from a $99 80GB sapphire model to 160GB in an automotive-inspired red.

Space-Time Associates today released TinyBooks 5.0.0, a major update to the bookkeeping software that includes numerous improvements to the Professional Invoice Printer as well as the Monthly Transaction Windows and Enter Transaction Dialogs. TinyBooks is designed as a simple, flexible, non-bloated, single-entry bookkeeping and accounting system for the Mac. The software enables users to enter expenses and income, automatically displaying current as well as year-to-date totals. Automatic bar-charting of all expense and income accounts enable users to determine monthly trends, and a Reports window offers easy standard as well as custom reporting/searching functionality. TinyBooks is priced at $50, and requires Mac OS X 8.6 or later.

Tekkeon has launched a new power adapter which may greatly simplify charging for users with multiple portable devices. By itself the myCharger is a normal AC plug with a USB port, but in tandem with the company’s numerous adapter tips, it can charge phones by LG, Nokia, Blackberry, Motorola, Samsung and Sony Ericsson. Crucially, it can also charge iPods and iPhones without a special tip, since Apple’s own power cords connect directly to USB. Tips exist for other 5V electronics as well, including Bluetooth sets, digital cameras and handheld game consoles. The LG, Nokia, Samsung, Sony Ericsson and mini-USB tips come bundled with the myCharger, which is now on sale for $25.

Birdstep Technology (OSE: BIRD) today announced the latest version of its RDM Embedded database management system. This new version includes data replication designed to meet market demand for applications requiring a 99.999% uptime guarantee and 24/7 data availability.

RDM Embedded has, over time, found itself embedded in over 20 million applications and appliances in all major markets serving high performance and critical needs. Over the past 20 years RDM Embedded has been used by over 20,000 developers in business critical applications spanning all major verticals.

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Puget Custom Computers successfully shipped its first batch of DDR3-integrated systems today, marking its first foray into the new specification and the first integrator to announce customizable systems utilizing the technology. The systems were built using Kingston’s low latency HyperX 1375Mhz modules and Asus’ P5K3 motherboards. The combination was rigorously tested and certified using Puget’s standard 47 point build process.
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What is a chumby?

The chumby is a compact device that displays useful and en

tertaining information from the web: news, photos, music, celebrity gossip, weather, box scores, blogs — using your wireless internet connection. Always on, it shows — nonstop — what’s online that matters to you.

Why would I want one?

It’s just pure 24/7 gratification to be able to have th

e Internet on tap. Sure, you can get the same information on your computer, but why be stuck

behind a keyboard to enjoy your internet addictions?

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Tinbu, the world’s leading provider of multilingual interactive lottery and horoscope data for web and wireless use, is pleased to announce they have launched in interactive video chat platform in partnership with CC Media.. The interactive model chat platform allows online audiences to chat live, with video and audio, with 1000s of single females from around the world in many different languages. The model chat platform can be viewed online at www.ModelChatLive.com . Video chat room categories include friends and family, dating and marriage, make new friends, and models. Users of the video chat service will not need a web camera to utlize the video chat platform.

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iXsystems recently unveiled the most rack-dense storage solution in the Nearline Storage Class: the Colossus SAN RAID Storage Device. The Colossus is a high-performance, energy-efficient, tiered storage solution, ideal for use in expanding data environments, and provides greater storage density (in terms of GB per rack unit) than any other storage product currently available. With more than 2x the storage capacity, up to 2x the throughput, and data transfer rates up to 100 MB/s (~15%) faster than the nearest competitor, the iXsystems Colossus addresses and exceeds the increasing demand for storage systems capable of managing and maintaining vast amounts of business-critical data.

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Newer Technology has released the miniStack v3 ‘Quad Interface’ powered hub storage solution with up to 1.0TB of storage capacity. It features an integrated powered hub with four interfaces: FireWire 800/400, USB 2.0, and eSATA. Specifically, the hub has one eSATA, two FireWire 800, one FireWire 400, and three USB 2.0 ports, The miniStack v3 utilizes the Oxford 924 bridge chipset, purportedly delivering up to 150MB per second. The drive mechanism is available with up to 32MB of data cache. Other features include external AutoSwitching 100~240v 50/60Hz 3 amp UL listed power adapter, auto-Power on/off automatically with computer, thermal monitoring for minimal fan power consumption and Whisper Quiet operation and a Kensington Security Slot. miniStack v3 is available in seven pre-configured 7200RPM solutions, from 160GB to 1.0TB (1,000GB), priced starting at $170.

Solving the frequent problem of grime on mice, Belkin on Wednesday took the unusual step of releasing the Washable Mouse. A watertight body and materials add enough water resistance to the design that it can be run under a faucet, scrubbing free the bacteria and dirt that accumulates over time. The technology underneath is also more advanced than some rugged mice, Belkin says: it uses a touch-sensitive pad for horizontal and vertical scrolling as well as a 1200 DPI optical sensor that provides better-than-average tracking, especially on unorthodox mousing surfaces such as upholstery. The Washable Mouse is driven by USB and should work with Macs and Windows PCs alike when it ships in August for $30.

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Sigma Corporation selected Analog Devices’ Blackfin processor for its SD14 digital single lens reflex (SLR) camera. Powered by the unique direct-image capabilities of the Foveon X3 sensor and a Blackfin ADSP-BF561 processor, the SD14 can reproduce high-definition images rich in gradation and three-dimensional detail, because the SD14 directly captures red, green and blue data for every pixel in an image, without loss or distortion.
Analog Devices, Inc. (NYSE: ADI) today announced that Sigma Corporation selected Analog Devices’ Blackfin processor for its SD14 digital single lens reflex (SLR) camera. Powered by the unique direct-image capabilities of the Foveon X3 sensor and a Blackfin ADSP-BF561 processor, the SD14 can reproduce high-definition images rich in gradation and three-dimensional detail, because the SD14 directly captures red, green and blue data for every pixel in an image, without loss or distortion.

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The first public previous of the HELIOS Unbreakable Server, HELIOS UB+, has been released, giving curious companies a chance to test drive the anticipated solution before its full release later this year.
Free to download,  is a cross-platform solution that includes HELIOS WebShare UB+, a file server for web clients that the company claims offers “the highest security and performance” for enterprises, government, universities and prepress sites.
The solution takes advantage of Web 2.0 technology and features customisable user interfaces, extensive access controls with audit trail, and extremely fast file searching. Next to these features, the company says that WebShare’s action scripts enable custom processing of files and integration with HELIOS ImageServer, PDF HandShake and PrintPreview for remote image conversion, PDF preflighting, and print job proofing.
“WebShare UB+ offers a completely new approach to file sharing,” said Dr. Martin Reinders, head of development at HELIOS. “WebShare UB+ now offers customer branding, custom action scripts, and a new preview and proofing mode… [enabling] companies of every type to increase service to customers while increasing profits.”
“UB+ continues the success of HELIOS Software’s fast, reliable, and secure server software,” said Helmut Tschemernjak, president of HELIOS Software GmbH. “By providing a public preview of UB+, we invite everyone to explore the great new features and to provide feedback.”
The preview will run on all major server platforms, including Mac OS X, Linux, Sun Solaris, IBM AIX, HP-UNIX and Windows Server.

VMWare has released VMWare Fusion Beta 4.1, bringing USB support to Santa Rosa-based MacBook Pros and all Intel-based Macs running Mac OS X 10.4.10 and later. VMWare Fusion is a desktop application enabling users to create and run virtual machines inside an Intel-based Mac. The software supports running Microsoft Windows applications right alongside Mac OS X on a virtual Windows system without rebooting, and now includes experimental support for running VMware Fusion on Mac OS X Leopard hosts. The update also fixes various issues with installation, launch, and networking. VMWare Fusion is available for pre-order for $40.