Even though 8x media is still hard if not impossible to come by here in the States, Lacie’s new d2 external burner will be ready for it when it’s here. It’s $US450, available now.
We’ll laugh at this equipment in a few years, but Buffalo has updated their external LinkStation Mini drive with ultra-premium storage and nearly silent operation. And for the time being, it’s pretty freakin’ uber-worthy.
Clearly one to take a good idea and run with it, Brando has just come up with this new cartridge-style HDD dock that also acts as a media player. So via its s-video and composite sockets you can stream audio, pictures, and video (including divx, with subtitles) to TV and it even has a remote. It takes 2.5-inch or 3.5-inch SATA HDDs (and SD cards too) and connects via USB 2.0. Hmm: a largish rectangular “cartridge” which you plug in to a socket to play movies on TV, why’s that sound familiar? Available now for US$84. [Brando]
Previously it was double slots and eSATA, now the cartridge-style HDD dock gets a one-touch backup button. Makes it ideal for backing up your main drive to an old HDD you’ve got spare, and then bunging the backup in a cupboard until you need it. It’s got eSATA and USB 2 connectivity and even comes with an internal SATA to external eSATA conversion bracket for your desktop PC. Takes both 2.5-inch and 3.5-inch drives, but though it plays nicely with PCs and Macs, the one-touch button only works with PCs. Available now for US$53. [Brando]
First there was the strangely Nintendo cartridge-like USB HDD dock, then there was the USB hub version. Now the strange external drive dock has got two slots for either 3.5- or 2.5-inch SATA drives, and also connects to your PC via eSata. There’s one connection for each, mind you, so you’d better have a few slots free—though you can fall back on the USB option. Available soon for US$107.56. [GeekStuff4U via Akihabaranews]
Asus’s ROG XG, the “world’s first VGA and multimedia docking station” for notebooks has just been revealed in full. The “Republic of Gamer” XG comes bundled with a EN8600GT/HTDP/256M graphics card, has a built-in express card interface, Dolby sound technology which can simulate 5.1 sound through two speakers, and a four-port USB hub. And still looks neat: it’s even earned an honourable mention in this years Red Dot design awards. More info in the press release.
Seagate is taking their first crack at external DVR storage with the Showcase line of HDDs. The Showcase drives range in size from 250GB to 1TB, work with both eSATA and USB connections, and can record a whopping 12 HD streams simultaneously. For now, Motorola cable boxes are the only ones compatible with the Showcase, so TiVo owners and others should hold off until we hear more. They’ll be on sale this fall, full release after the jump. [Seagate]
Fujitsu is set to launch an external graphics card solution dubbed the “AMILO GraphicBooster” sometime in the “next few weeks.” Unfortunately, this information was leaked from a presentation, so there isn’t a whole lot in the way of details—but we do know that the GraphicBooster is based on ATI XGP technology, it will allow users to connect up to three external displays to their notebook, DVI-D and HDMI connections are included, and it can reportedly deliver a 4.7X performance improvement over the graphics of a small form factor AMILO notebook.
This Hardbox enclosure from Korean company Sarotech looks even more book-like than the Western Digital MyBook drives that have been around for a few years. There are two status indicator lights on the front, behind which sits 3.5-inch SATA drives that connect to your PC via USB. It’s great for hiding the fact that you don’t have any books but have loads of external hard drives. That is, until someone looks closer and realises you’ve read a book called Hardbox. Maybe Hardbox means something different in Korean. [Sarotech via AVING via Oh Gizmo]
