Targus is one of those increasingly indispensable brands as today's notebooks come with fewer ports and narrower wired connectivity to favor slimness. At the 2024 International CES, the company showed off its latest MiraLogic Workspace Intelligence products. These are smart power strips designed to be located at various regions of your desk (such as under, behind the monitor, etc), and instantly power up your thin-and-light to various desktop peripherals. The Dock750 is a feature-packed dual-host docking solution that connects a multitude of downstream peripherals to as many as two upstream PCs (like a KVM), while sharing some common devices between the two, such as its integrated 1 GbE wired network. two USB-C powered ports, USB3 SuperSpeed ports, and stereo audio.

We also spied the EcoSmart ergonomic wireless mouse. This thing splits horizontally into two halves, with the upper half that has the palm grip, main two buttons, and the scrollwheel, while the bottom half has the sensor, feet, and a thumb rest. You can change the mouse between left- and right oriented by simply detaching and rotating the upper half, so the thumb rest and its adjoining buttons fall within reach of your preferred hand's thumb. The upper half contains the mouse's battery. Connectivity options include RF and Bluetooth.

The USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) has announced a few changes to the various logos that are tied to the USB standard. This is said to be done to simplify the plethora of logos that are currently being used and to make it easier for consumers to know what they're buying. At the same time, the old SuperSpeed USB logo is being retired and the branding will not appear on new products at all. Instead, the logos that were developed for the USB4 standard and USB PD 3.1, will be adapted across the board. The new changes will come into effect this quarter and could appear on new products before the end of the year.

The new logos that will replace the SuperSpeed logo are pretty straightforward, with a 5 and 10 Gbps logo being added to the 20 and 40 Gbps logos that we've already seen. These logos will be used for packaging, on cable connectors and even on some devices. The new 5 and 10 Gbps logos can also be combined with the 60 W and 240 W charging logos when used with USB-C cables. All of this should make it easier as a consumer to know what kind of cable you're buying, but keep in mind that these logos only apply to certified products and not all USB cables are certified. Still, it's an improvement overall and should make life easier when shopping for cables, assuming the new logos are being used properly.

SmartAVLink, a world-leading active optical cables (AOC) manufacturer, today announced the release of their next-generation USB type C Active Optical Cable available in a maximum length of 10 meters (33 feet).

With no external power needed, its built-in active circuitry is powered by both ends of the cable, eliminating external power supply costs. With power delivery of up to 60 watts, the next-gen AOC supports various voltage profiles up to 20 Volts at 3 Amps and is thus able to charge a wide range of devices. With a strong zinc alloy metal shell, the attractive gold-plated contacts maintain a long-lasting, reliable electrical connection. The next-gen cable is conveniently backwards compatible with previous USB standards and also works with Thunderbolt devices (With DP Alt Mode) and is available in 3-, 5-, 7.5-, and 10-meter (33 feet) lengths, with support available for extra customization.

VIA Labs, Inc. (VLI), a leading supplier of SuperSpeed USB, USB Power Delivery Controllers, and now USB4 controllers today unveiled the VIA Labs VL830 USB4 Endpoint Device. USB4 is a major update to the USB architecture, enabling multiple simultaneous data and display protocols to share a single high-speed link with support for a maximum aggregate bandwidth of 40 Gbps. VL830 offers both USB and DisplayPort functionality and operates at full performance when used with Thunderbolt 4 or USB4 systems, and is also backward compatible with previous-generation devices such as laptops, tablets, and phones that support DisplayPort Alternate Mode over USB Type-C.

"VIA Labs VL830 represents a culmination of our experience in developing USB Type-C, USB Power Delivery, and USB 3.2 products, an industry leader in time to market, and contribution and participation in standards development," said Terrance Shih, Business Development Director, VIA Labs, Inc. "USB4 is based on Thunderbolt technology and we are very excited to deliver these capabilities at new price points."

Underscoring its mission to enable the world to solve its biggest data challenges by building a data infrastructure with next-gen security, Western Digital (NASDAQ: WDC) today introduced the ArmorLock Security Platform. A data encryption platform that rethinks how data security should be done, the ArmorLock Security Platform was created to help with the diverse security demands of data-centric and content-critical storage use cases in industries as varied as finance, government, healthcare, IT enterprise, legal, and media and entertainment. As data security concerns continue to rise in visibility, Western Digital plans to apply the platform across a range of storage solutions.

The first product to leverage this advanced technology, the new G-Technology ArmorLock encrypted NVMe SSD, is designed to deliver an easy-to-use, high-performance, high-grade security storage solution for creators in the media and entertainment industry. Facing the threat of hijacked media files and leaked films, studios, agencies, and especially investors are demanding a better way to protect critical content. While much of the industry's focus has been on cloud security, data often remains vulnerable on the portable storage devices holding critical commercial content.

The Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) today announced that it has released version 2.0 of the DisplayPort (DP) audio/video standard. DP 2.0 is the first major update to the DisplayPort standard since March 2016, and provides up to a 3X increase in data bandwidth performance compared to the previous version of DisplayPort (DP 1.4a), as well as new capabilities to address the future performance requirements of traditional displays. These include beyond 8K resolutions, higher refresh rates and high dynamic range (HDR) support at higher resolutions, improved support for multiple display configurations, as well as improved user experience with augmented/virtual reality (AR/VR) displays, including support for 4K-and-beyond VR resolutions.

The advantages of DP 2.0 are enjoyed across both the native DP connector as well as the USB Type-C connector, which carries the DP audio/video signal through DisplayPort Alt Mode. DP 2.0 is backward compatible with previous versions of DisplayPort and incorporates all of the key features of DP 1.4a, including support for visually lossless Display Stream Compression (DSC) with Forward Error Correction (FEC), HDR metadata transport, and other advanced features. The increased video bandwidth performance of DP 2.0 carried over the USB-C connector enables simultaneous higher-speed USB data transfer without compromising display performance. DP 2.0 leverages the Thunderbolt 3 physical interface (PHY) layer while maintaining the flexibility of DP protocol in order to boost the data bandwidth and promote convergence across industry-leading IO standards.

You would have thought that the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) would have learned their lesson the first time around with the rebranding of USB standards; however, that doesn't seem to be the case. At MWC 2019, they announced that the USB 3.2 standard would include the previous USB 3.0 and 3.1 specifications, but with a twist. USB 3.0, which has a data rate of 5Gbps, had already been rebranded as USB 3.1 Gen 1, will now once again be rebranded as USB 3.2 Gen 1. Meanwhile, USB 3.1 Gen 2 with a data rate of 10Gbps will be renamed USB 3.2 Gen 2. Finally, the new kid on the block which has a data rate of 20Gbps will be officially named USB 3.2 Gen 2x2.

While there is a reason for these names, the fact remains that it doesn't do consumers any favors. USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 gets its name from the two high-speed 10Gbps channels it uses to achieve the new data rate. Keep in mind that previous USB standards only allowed for one channel, and only USB Type-C connectors allow for dual channels. This, as you may have guessed by now, means USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 is only usable via USB Type-C connectors. To try and reduce confusion, USB-IF has suggested that vendors use marketing terms on top of the current naming scheme to help consumers understand what is what in the world of USB. <s>USB 3.0</s> <s>USB 3.1 Gen 1</s> USB 3.2 Gen 1 will be marketed as SuperSpeed USB, and USB 3.2 Gen 2 will be marketed as SuperSpeed USB 10Gbps as per our sources. Finally, the newest standard will use SuperSpeed USB 20Gbps as its marketing term, not that it will do much if implementation of the new standard will take as long as it took for USB 3.2 Gen 2 and the Type-C connector.

Lexar, a leading global brand of flash memory products, today announced the Lexar Professional XQD 2.0 USB 3.0 Reader, which is designed to aid professionals in quickly transferring files from XQD 2.0 cards to computers. The reader leverages SuperSpeed USB 3.0 technology to improve the workflow of photographers and videographers. With its compact, portable design, professionals are encouraged to travel with the Lexar Professional XQD 2.0 USB 3.0 Reader. It can easily slip into a pocket or bag, and offers a simple plug-and-play design with a USB 3.0 connector so content can be securely transferred on the go. For versatility, the reader is backwards compatible with USB 2.0 devices at USB 2.0 speeds.

"Given the rapid growth and widespread appeal of 4K video, we realised it was essential to create a reader for XQD 2.0 cards that provided professionals with a way to transfer great video and photo content without the wait time," said Steffi Ho, product marketing manager, Lexar. "The Lexar Professional XQD 2.0 USB 3.0 Reader supercharges post-production content transfer, no matter what you're shooting."

Netgear, a global networking company that delivers innovative products to consumers, businesses and service providers, today introduced a WiFi router for your home that sets a new standard for speed, features and performance. The latest addition to the company's premium Nighthawk product line of WiFi routers, Nighthawk X8 AC5300 Smart WiFi Router (R8500) delivers astonishing Internet performance with combined WiFi speeds up to a blistering 5.3 Gbps (1000 Mbps + 2166 Mbps + 2166 Mbps), a new record for a home router. This quad-stream, tri-band router provides more Internet bandwidth for all the devices in your home, so everyone in the family can stream movies and music, download files, surf the web, share photos, and enjoy online gaming - simultaneously and without lag.

Engineered from the ground up with a stylish modern design, the Nighthawk X8 is performance perfected with the new Wave 2 AC WiFi. It is powered by an extremely powerful 1.4GHz dual core processor for faster connections; the industry's first, patent-pending Active Antennas to boost range; and three WiFi bands with quad-streams, 1024 QAM, and MU-MIMO capable for the fastest WiFi speeds. It also supports more wired connections with six Gigabit Ethernet ports including two that can be aggregated for faster file transfers. All told, the Nighthawk X8 pushes wireless performance and range to an extreme that is required for enabling your increasingly always-on networked life.

Silicon Power, the world's leading provider of memory storage solutions, today launches the ultra-rugged USB 3.0 portable hard drive for Mac users－Armor A65M. Maximizing the shockproof and waterproof specifications of the Armor Series, the Armor A65M is specifically designed for Mac users with all-inclusive safety shields fighting against various threats that may occur during daily operations, and it also complies with the U.S. military-grade drop test and the IP67 standard.

The Armor A65M pioneers data protection measures with its exclusive cup-shaped design for optimizing its waterproof and dustproof functions, which makes the Armor A65M the first portable hard drive that meets the IP67 standard in the industry. In addition, the Armor A65M is especially rigid with its three-layer construction including two layers of rubber and one unibody frame in the middle, altogether promising great protection to withstand drops and shocks. Incorporating complete inside-out protection, the Armor A65M is guaranteed to keep your data safe under all sorts of conditions and is ideal for Mac users on the go. Furthermore, the Armor A65M enables easy plug-and-play use for it is already formatted in HFS+ format and supports Time Machine.

A fusion between PC hardware giant ASUS' Republic of Gamers (ROG) brand, and Valve's Steam Machines, was bound to happen. With the new ROG GR8S, ASUS has taken a plunge into the exciting new gaming platform that bridges living room gaming consoles, and full-blown gaming PCs, backed by Steam. The ROG GR8S is roughly as big as a modern console such as Xbox One, but features ASUS' signature red and black ROG product design.

The ROG GR8S is peppered with a lot more wired connectivity than a console, offering two USB 2.0 (for controllers, keyboards, mice), four USB 3.0 SuperSpeed ports, DisplayPort 1.2, HDMI 2.0 - both of support 4K Ultra HD at 60 Hz; gigabit Ethernet (Intel controller), digital and analog multi-channel audio connectivity. Under the hood, ASUS offers Intel Core i5 or Core i7 processors (options), GeForce GTX 900 "Maxwell" graphics (options), between 4 GB and 16 GB of DDR3 system RAM (options), either 500 GB to 1 TB HDD or 128 GB to 512 GB SSD storage, and an 802.11 ac WLAN controller with Miracast receiver.

TRENDnet, a best-in-class wired and wireless networking hardware brand, today announces the AC3200 Tri Band Wireless Router, model TEW-828DRU, a next generation WiFi router featuring three concurrent wireless networks -- two separate ultra-performance 1,300 Mbps WiFi AC networks and a 600 Mbps WiFi N network.

The average North American home has almost 10 WiFi-networked devices. Globally, there are currently 16 billion WiFi devices connected to the internet and that number is projected to more than double by 2020. TRENDnet's TEW-828DRU is designed to effortlessly and intelligently manage the tremendous growth of WiFi devices in the home.

ASUSTOR Inc., a leading innovator and provider of network storage solutions, has announced the launch of its 50T and 51T series NAS devices consisting of four new comprehensive high performance NAS models. These new models include the AS5002T, AS5004T, AS5102T and AS5104T. The models come equipped with the latest Intel Celeron 2.41 GHz dual-core processors and Intel Celeron 2.00 GHz quad-core processors respectively, along with 1 GB and 2 GB of SO-DIMM DDR3L memory which is expandable to a maximum of 8 GB.

All new devices come with a wealth of powerful features including an automatic burst function that allows the CPU to increase its frequency for additional power when needed and a CPU floating-point unit for added computing power. Additionally, 50T and 51T series devices feature the quickest memory installation and expansion in the industry along with one-click installation for multimedia Apps, smart fans that automatically regulate the system temperature for stable operation and ASUSTOR's exclusive automatic smart system sleep mode (S3) and instant wake.

ADATA Technology, a leading manufacturer of high-performance DRAM memory modules and NAND Flash applications, is pleased to announce the arrival of its HV100 External Hard Drive featuring a sandblasted smudge-free finish and a SuperSpeed USB 3.0 interface for ultra-fast file transfers. The HV100 arrives feature-packed with G Shock Sensor Protection to help protect your data, and a bright blue/red LED indicator to show data transfer status. Available in 500GB, 1TB or 2TB sizes, you can also enjoy free OStoGO and HDDtoGO software, all backed by ADATA's 3 year warranty.

VisionTek Products LLC, a leading manufacturer of award-winning, high-performance upgrades and accessories for PCs and Macs, today announced its new line of high power USB charging hubs that enable charging up to seven Apple iPad, iPhone, Android and Windows tablets, and other USB chargeable mobile devices as fast as the factory power adapter.

The use of multiple mobile devices such as smartphones, tablet computers, and eReaders by families and small business, health care, and restaurant operations is a common daily occurrence. Unfortunately, power adapters for devices can get lost and wall outlets can only charge two devices simultaneously. Typical charging hubs don't offer enough ports and/or enough power per port so extra time is spent waiting for a full charge or worse, only getting a partial charge.

The Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA), working in liaison with the USB 3.0 Promoter Group, today announced the publication of the DisplayPort Alternate Mode ("Alt Mode") on USB Type-C Standard. Using the DisplayPort Alt Mode, a USB Type-C connector and cable can deliver full DisplayPort audio/video (A/V) performance, driving monitor resolutions of 4K and beyond, SuperSpeed USB (USB 3.1) data and up to 100 watts of power--over a single cable. The DisplayPort Alt Mode can also drive adaptors that support the huge installed base of existing DisplayPort, HDMI, DVI, and VGA displays.

VESA utilized the Alternate Mode functional extension of the USB Type-C specification in the development of this new Standard. The DisplayPort Alt Mode repurposes some or all of the four existing SuperSpeed USB lanes to deliver full DisplayPort performance, and uses other signaling available in the USB Type-C connector for DisplayPort's AUX channel and HPD (Hot Plug Detection) function. This enables computers, tablets, smartphones, displays, and docking stations to implement the new USB Type-C connector at both ends while using the DisplayPort Standard over USB Type-C to transmit high-resolution A/V along with USB data and power.

The USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) today announced that it will exhibit and present the latest USB developments at Intel Developer Forum (IDF) in San Francisco, September 9-11. At IDF, the USB-IF will host a Technology Community, present technical sessions on the new USB Type-C connector, and host press briefings featuring new technology demonstrations.

Philips rolled out the 288P6LJEB, a 28-inch Ultra HD (3840 x 2160 pixels) desktop monitor. Featuring a TFT LCD panel with LED backlit illumination that doesn't use PWM for adjusting brightness, the panel has some interesting specifications on offer - a stunning 1 ms response time, 160°/170° viewing angles (impressive for a TFT panel), 300 cd/m² maximum brightness, and 1,000:1 static contrast ratio. Display inputs include dual-link DVI, DisplayPort, MHL (mobile high-definition link), HDMI, and D-Sub. Other features include 3W stereo speakers, and a 4-port USB 3.0 SuperSpeed hub. The panel offers power consumption figures of 50.5W (typical) and 0.5W (standby). Its stand offers 90° rotation, apart from tilt and swivel. The 288P6LJEB from Philips is slated for late-May, 2014. Its price is still under the wraps.

ASUS' choice of decking its mainline motherboards in black and gold is coming to bite it, as the company unveiled one of the first of its "Gamer" line of motherboards. Simply put, these are boards from its mainline Z87 and B85 series products, but with black and red color scheme, and not many of the goodies that its expensive ROG (Republic of Gamers) series comes with. It's the idea of making entry-level and mid-range products more appealing to gamers that ASUS appears to have aped MSI on, even if MSI isn't the original "black + red" motherboard maker. That said, the B85-Pro Gamer isn't just a B85-Pro with fancy heatsinks. Its PCB resembles rather closely with that of the Z87-A.

To begin with, this slim ATX motherboard uses an 8-phase VRM to condition power to the LGA1150 socket. It's wired to four DDR3 DIMM slots, and a single PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slot. The other long x16 slot on this board is physically PCI-Express 2.0 x4, and wired to the B85 PCH. Three legacy PCI, and two PCI-Express 2.0 x1 make up the rest of the expansion area. Storage connectivity includes four SATA 6 Gb/s, and two SATA 3 Gb/s. Display outputs (which we doubt gamers would use), include DVI, D-Sub, and HDMI. ASUS worked on the networking and audio of this board. It features a rather premium Intel I217V GbE controller, and SupremeFX audio, with a 115 dBA SNR CODEC, electrolytic capacitors, a TI-made 300Ω headphones amp, and ground-layer isolation.

Intel is ready with an NUC form-factor system based on its Atom "Bay Trail" SoC. Called the NUC DN2820FYKH, the system runs a Celeron N2820 SoC, which integrates a dual-core 64-bit x86 CPU clocked at 2.40 GHz, and a TDP of under 7.5W. Its board features a single DDR3L SO-DIMM slot, a single SATA 3 Gb/s port, a single USB 3.0 SuperSpeed port, two USB 2.0 ports, HDMI display output, and stereo audio. Network connectivity includes gigabit Ethernet, 802.11 b/g/n WLAN, IrDA, and Bluetooth 4.0. The unit measures 116.6 x 112 x 55 mm, and features a VESA wall-mount, letting you latch it onto your monitor. Intel plans to sell it for US $139.

Intel rolled out its first NUC (next unit of computing) kit based on its newest 4th generation Core processor family. Named NUC D54250WYK, it's a combination of D54250 motherboard, and a compatible chassis, with a compatible cooling solution. Its motherboard integrates a BGA Core i5-4250U processor (dual-core, HTT, 1.30-2.60 GHz, 3 MB L3 cache, HD 5000 graphics with Ultra-HD support), Intel QS77 chipset, room for two DDR3 SO-DIMM slots (16 GB max., DDR3-1600 supported).

Connectivity on the D54250WYK includes four USB 3.0 SuperSpeed ports, two USB 2.0/1.1 ports (internal header), gigabit Ethernet, a SATA 6 Gb/s port (internal), one full-height mPCIe gen 2.0, which doubles up as mSATA 6 Gb/s, and one half-height mPCIe gen 2.0, letting you add your own wireless communications card. The unit draws power from an external 65W power-brick (included). It can latch onto your display over standard VESA wall-mounts.

Addonics Technologies today unveiled the Sapphire Snap-In Disk Array, a high performance external storage device family that is easily expandable with RAID capability. The Sapphire Disk Array is a great portable storage solution for a wide range of applications that demand high performance and large amount of storage in the field.

The new product comes in a choice of models equipped with different interfaces for fast external storage performance via an eSATA, SuperSpeed USB 3.0, or a mini SAS connection. The Sapphire Disk Array allows users to hot swap up to four SATA 2.5-inch hard drives, SDDs, just like using a tape cassette. The four drives can be set up as four individual drives or a large volume and high performance RAID group with redundancy for reliability. On the model that comes with USB 3.0 connections, the four drives can also be instantly turned into a network attached storage (NAS) solution for sharing data over the network by attaching to the optional Addonics NAS 4.0 adapter.

Gaming PC specialist CyberPowerPC launched its first entry-level notebook that leverages Intel's Iris Pro 5200 integrated graphics, the Zeus Hercules. Tucking in an Intel Core i7-4750HQ processor, which is a variant of the Intel Core "Haswell" processor with a larger integrated GPU featuring 40 execution units, and L4 eDRAM cache, the notebook features a 14-inch full-HD (1920 x 1080 pixels) screen. The notebook is also one of the first to integrate Intel's Hyperbaric cooling technology, which works to minimize hot-spots.

In addition to the Core i7-4750HQ processor, it features 8 GB of RAM (expandable to 16 GB), SSD and HDD-based storage options, and connectivity that includes Bluetooth 4.0, 802.11 b/g/n WLAN, gigabit Ethernet, three USB 3.0 "SuperSpeed" ports, and a multi-format card reader. Windows 8 Pro comes pre-installed. Backed by a 1-year warranty, Zeus Hercules notebooks from CyberPowerPC start at US $1,039.

The USB 3.0 Promoter Group today announced the completion of the USB 3.1 Specification which adds enhancements to enable SuperSpeed USB to operate at up to 10 Gbps. This latest release of the specification will be available today for download from the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) website.

SuperSpeed USB 10 Gbps uses a more efficient data encoding and will deliver more than twice the effective data through-put performance of existing SuperSpeed USB over enhanced, fully backward compatible USB connectors and cables. Compatibility is assured with existing USB 3.0 software stacks and device class protocols as well as with existing 5 Gbps hubs and devices and USB 2.0 products.

Pioneer unveiled the colorful new BDR-XS05J portable Blu-ray XL writer. Its faux-aluminum plastic body can latch on to a selection of four body panels, bushed aluminum, piano black, soft pink, and glossy white. Measuring 135 x 135 x 20.3 mm (WxDxH), and weighing in at 330 g, the drive features a slot-type disc-loading mechanism, and USB 3.0 SuperSpeed. It uses a single cable for both power and data connectivity.

Moving on to its chops as an optical drive, the BDR-XS05J can write single- and double-layer BD-R and BD-R LtH discs at up to 6X, triple- and quadruple-layer ones at 4X, and all kinds of BD-RE discs at 2X. DVDs are written at speeds of up to 8X, and CDs at 24X. Blu-ray discs of all kinds are read at speeds of up to 6X, DVDs at 8X, and CDs at 24X. Bundled software include Cyberlink PowerDVD 10, PowerDirector 10, PowerProducer 5, Power2Go 7 (for pure-read), InstantBurn 5, PowerBackup 2, LabelPrint 2, and MediaShow 6.