I-O Data of Japan introduced a new line of hard drives for DVRs and smart TVs, the AVHD-PxU. Available in two variants based on capacity, 500 GB and 1 TB, the AVHD-PU is capable of functioning as a storage medium for DVRs and smart TVs such as Toshiba Regza, Sharp Aquos, Sony Bravia, etc. Measuring 79 x 23 x 134 mm (WxDxH), and weighing around 200 g, the drives connect to host machines over USB 2.0 interface (standard and mini type-A connectors). It includes mounting holes to make it discrete (behind the TV). The 500 GB and 1 TB variants are priced at 13,125 JPY (US $161) and 17,640 JPY (US $216), respectively.

MemoTrek Technologies, the leading wholesale supplier of branded USB flash drives and promotional USB memory has recently announced the launch of the MemoTrek MetalKey USB flash drive, a classical key shaped metal USB flash drive containing a high quality NAND flash memory solid state chip with a storage capacity of up to 32 GB.

The MemoTrek MetalKey 32 GB USB key of solid metal can be branded with a custom company logo to create sustainable marketing value and boost marketing ROI by giving an attractive and truly practical promotional gift to the two important segments of potential new customers or loyal VIPs.

With the 14 nm "Broadwell" architecture, Intel will take a new step towards integration of the platform-controller hub (PCH) with the CPU, by designing it to be a multi-chip module (with the CPU+northbridge in one die, and PCH on the other). This would make "Broadwell" a true System-on-chip (SoC), which allows over 90 percent of the system's I/O to be routed to the processor socket, including memory, PCI-Express, SATA, USB, etc. Although not the first to the industry with single-chip chipsets and integrated memory controllers, Intel rapidly reshaped the arrangement between CPU and core-logic, over the past four years.

It began with transfer of memory controller from northbridge to CPU die (45 nm "Bloomfield"), and transfer of the entire northbridge to the CPU die (45 nm "Lynnfield"). The graphics northbridge transferred a little more gradually, first as multi-chip module with a separate CPU die (32 nm "Clarkdale"), then complete integration with the CPU die (32 nm "Sandy Bridge"). All through, the southbridge, or I/O controller hub (ICH) remained outside the CPU package, with the addition of a display output logic, it transformed into a "platform controller hub" (PCH), which is still just a glorified southbridge. Naturally then, such a drastic relocation of system components will warrant a socket change.

Here's a unique USB flash drive, which has both standard and micro USB type-A connectors, that allow you to plug it to both PCs with standard USB ports, and portable devices such as smartphones and tablets, which have micro-USB ports. The JF-UFDP4S from Force Media, is what its makers are referring to as the "Perfect Media". It provides 4 GB of storage, over both interfaces, and talks to hosts over USB 2.0 (480 Mb/s).

It is a conventional-looking capped bar design, only that both its ends are capped, with a connector on each end. To prevent misplacing caps, each cap can be attached to the top of the other cap, on the other end of the drive. When plugged in via its standard connector, it works as a normal USB Mass Storage device, while with its micro-USB interface, it works plug-and-play with Android driven smartphones, tablets, and smart portable media players that have USB OTG support. Measuring 18.0 x 73.1 x 9.2 mm (WxDxH), it weighs about 39 g. Its main body is covered with a sheet of aluminum. Slated for mid-April, the JF-UFDP4S from Force Media is priced at 1,980 JPY (US $24).

GIGABYTE TECHNOLOGY Co. Ltd., a leading manufacturer of motherboards and graphics cards, today announced the launch of its GIGABYTE B75 series motherboards, designed to offer small business users a simple, easy to manage office IT infrastructure using the new and exclusive Intel Small Business Advantage software suite.

"The GIGABYTE B75 series represents an exciting step up in GIGABYTE's commitment to Intel's business platforms, and we are investing significant company resources to promote broad adoption amongst our global customer base," commented Henry Kao, Vice President of GIGABYTE Motherboard Business Unit. "We plan to go to market on launch day with no less than 4 models that will be an integral part of our product portfolio as we believe the features offer an opportunity for our system integrator and retailer partners to differentiate their products and services with the elegant and easy-to-use Intel Small Business Advantage IT management system."

Japanese company Princeton took the concepts of Bluetooth input devices for tablets and smartphones, and turned it around. Its newest creation, the PSC Bluetooth KVM, is a combination of a USB Bluetooth 3.0 dongle, Bluetooth input device driver model, and its own software, that lets you use the input devices that are connected to your PC/laptop (your wired keyboard and mouse), with your Android, iOS, or Windows Mobile smartphone or tablet. This could come particularly handy to those who have their iPads on a stand, next to their PCs on their desks, as you could instantly give input to the iPad, and get things done faster. The PSC Bluetooth virtual KVM, from Princeton, is priced at 4,980 JPY (US $61).

Chinese company ORICO unveiled the KM6116 value wireless keyboard mouse combo, that includes a 1600 DPI 3+scroll button mouse, and a narrow QWERTY keyboard with the EN-US keyset. The mouse uses an optical sensor with resolution switchable between 1600, 1200, 800, and 400 DPI, on the fly. Lower resolutions could help conserve battery. In its belly, the mouse hides the battery compartment (two AAA-size), and a space where the 2.4 GHz band wireless USB micro-receiver can be stored for transportation. The same receiver handles both the mouse and the keyboard. The keyboard is of a common membrane type, with 12 multimedia other shortcut keys. The keyboard takes in two AAA-sized batteries, too. Both devices have several power saving features that work to increase battery draw. The ORICO KM6116 goes for 89 RMB (US $14).

NEXUS announced the NXTEK SM-5000 series silent wireless mice. The SM-5000 is an advanced 2.4G wireless silent optical mouse which connects to your PC or laptop with it's super small nano receiver, double scroll wheel, DPI switch and superb comfortable design it's a must have mouse.

The Nexus Silent Mouse has a comfortable size and is an excellent mouse for desktop use. But also for laptop users it is very suitable. Especially because of the small nano receive which you plug in a USB port and leave it there. It is so small that you do not need to take it out...you just forget its there. Furthermore the mouse is made from quality surface treatments so it feels good in your hand.

Genius, a leading manufacturer of computer peripherals, is pleased to announce the SP-i250G Portable Speakers for the GX Gaming Series. Able to play rich and vivid audio from virtually any device, these dual compact speakers are ideal for the modern on-the-go users.

Listening to high-quality on these 40mm omni-directional neodymium speakers is easy. Users simply plug in the gold-plated 3.5mm jack into their preferred electronic device, be it an iPod, iPad, or notebook, and they can experience the full spectrum of sound including deep low tones.

NEC and Access Technica launched a trio of 802.11n 450 Mbps-capable wireless networking products, including the Aterm WL450NU-AG, the Aterm WR9500N, and Aterm WR9300N. The star product here is the Aterm WL450NU-AG, an 802.11n USB network adapter that's capable of 450 Mbps over the 5 GHz band, and other speeds over 2.4 GHz band. Measuring 28 x 85 x 15 mm, this adapter includes an easy network configuration utility called "Easy Start". It is priced at 6,000 JPY (US $73).

Moving on, the Aterm WR9500N is a bundle of an 802.11n/a/b/g-compliant wireless router that's capable of 5/2.4 GHz dual-band operation, and the Aterm WL450NU-AG. It is priced at 10,000 JPY (US $121). The Aterm WR9300N, on the other hand, is a bundle of an 802.11n/a/b/g-compliant router that's only capable of the 2.4 GHz band, and includes the Aterm WL450NU-AG. This one goes for a little lesser. All three products reach stores this week.

Sanwa Supply introduced the MA-NANOIR13 series wireless optical mice, which feature infrared optical sensors. The infrared sensors draw lesser power than visible light sensors, and hence conserve battery. The sensors offer tracking resolution as high as 3000 DPI, this resolution can be switched on-the-fly between 3000, 1500, and 1000 DPI. Oriented for the right-hand, the MA-NANOIR13 has two side buttons apart from its three main buttons and a 2-way scroll-wheel.

Measuring 55 x 107 x 36 mm (WxDxH), these mice weigh 70 g without batteries, they take in two AA-size ones. With a pair of mainstream alkaline batteries, up to 15 months' battery-life can be expected. The mouse talks to the host machine over 2.4 GHz radio band, a USB micro-receiver is included. The MA-NANOIR13 comes in three color options, black, silver, and red. They are priced at 3,675 JPY (US $44.6).

Option, a global leader in wireless connectivity, security and experience, establishes its credentials as an LTE provider with the launch of Beemo, its new, ultrafast, quad-band 4G LTE USB modem.

Beemo brings best-in-class 4G. It sets itself apart through its stylish design, high quality and great performance. It has proven superior heat dissipation and delivers exceptionally fast quad-band (800/900/1800/2600 MHz) connectivity. Beemo comes with an external antenna connector that enables users to improve the signal in areas with low signal strength.

Cooler Master, an industry leading chassis, thermal solution, peripheral, and accessory manufacturer, today announces the next incarnation of the extremely popular QuickFire Rapid Mechanical Gaming Keyboard, the QuickFire Pro.

Precision, Comfort, & Durability

Featuring a smooth and clean aesthetic, QuickFire Pro includes laser-marked keycaps and a non-glossy matte finish. This is complemented by a set of extra keycaps (includes a key puller) that give the keyboard an extra appeal that draws other gamers in. A response time of 1 ms, in USB mode, offers gamers a necessary consistency to navigate the ever changing landscapes of their video game libraries.

Western Digital today introduced the first 2 TB capacity portable drive dedicated for Mac customers, My Passport Studio. This new standard in high storage capacity, along with Apple Time Machine compatibility for quick and easy automatic backup of Mac hard drives, allows Mac users to use one drive for the protection and transport of virtually all their digital content, everywhere they go.

The new My Passport Studio portable drive maintains its elegant and protective all-metal casing to complement the MacBook Pro or MacBook Air, providing the beautiful aesthetic that Mac users expect while increasing storage capacity to 2 TB, enough space for approximately 400,000 photos, 240 hours of video or 500,000 songs.

Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc. continues to offer better audio solutions for laptop computers with the release of the S-MM201 USB-powered computer speakers. The speakers deliver better performance and a much fuller sound experience than built-in laptop speakers, all from a compact package that is easily transportable and can be quickly connected via USB and without the need for AC power. The S-MM201 offers a built-in audio DAC and bass-reflex enclosure designed to enhance bass frequencies.

Japanese PC peripherals webstore Kuroutoshikou unveiled a new 2-bay HDD dock, the KURO-DACHI/CLONE/U3. Built in the top-loading "toaster-dock" form-factor, it measures 108 x 62 x 149 mm (LxHxW). The dock takes in two SATA hard drives and solid-state drives in the 3.5-inch and 2.5-inch form-factors. It can connect the two drives to a PC over fast USB 3.0 interface, as USB mass-storage volumes, and can also clone drives 1:1, without needing a PC. Windows 7, Vista, and XP; 32-bit and 64-bit, are supported. Slated for early-April, the dock is priced at 4,000 JPY (US $48.7).

ZOTAC is flexing its engineering muscle. First, it was talk of a 2 GHz GeForce GTX 680 by one of its senior executives, and now this, ZOTAC GeForce GTX 680 Extreme Edition. Pictured below, the card's design is reminiscent of the crazy engineering endeavors ZOTAC China undertakes, to come up with some extremely powerful designs, which seldom get out of the APAC region (to EMEAI and NA regions).

ZOTAC took a top-tier binned GK104 GPU, 2 GB of high-grade Hynix GDDR5 memory chips, and paired them with a 12-phase VRM power supply. Apart from bleeding-edge International Rectifier GaNpowIR driver-MOSFETs, the VRM uses server-grade tantalum capacitors, and FPCAP multi-phase capacitors. To drive it all, ZOTAC used CHiL CHL8318 VRM controller.

inXtron showed off its newest small-business NAS server at Intel Storage Forum, the Akitio MyCloud Pro. As the venue might suggest, this 2-bay desktop NAS is powered by Intel x86 architecture. inXtron even put is logic board for display, which revealed it to be driven by an Intel Atom D425 single-core (HTT-enabled) processor, with its usual NM10 chipset. The board also revealed several interesting components, such as two 2-port USB 3.0 controllers, giving out two ports on the rear panel and two for the front-panel, via a standard header.

The primary storage controller is the Intel NM10 chipset itself, the NAS uses a USB DOM (disk-on-module) it boots from, to hold its operating system. The primary network interface is a 1 GbE, driven by a Realtek-made PHY. Interestingly, the board has a vacant mini-PCIe slot, on which WLAN cards can be installed. The MyCloud Pro supports two SATA 3 Gb/s hard drives in the 3.5" form-factor. It supports all modern NAS features, such as UPnP-AV, NFS, FTP, Samba, but DLNA wasn't mentioned. The OS also includes a Bit-torrent client, and Apple iTunes-compatible music server. inXtron has apps for Android and iOS smartphones, with which you can use the phone to control the NAS. inXtron is targeting a sweet price-point under US $200, with the Akitio MyCloud Pro NAS.

Chinese company SAMA introduced Nighthawk 2, a value ATX mid-tower case, priced at just 299 RMB (US $47.4). Despite its low cost, it offers a host of new features, aesthetic touches, and a good load-out of fans. Measuring 450 x 200 x 420 mm (WxDxH), the case is made of ABS and SECC/steel. It features an all-black interior and exterior, with a red acrylic side panel window, which slightly protrudes. Most of its front-panel is perforated.

The case is spacious enough to hold 300 mm-long graphics cards. Drive bays include four 5.25" and six 3.5", all of which are tool-free. Its ventilation system includes one 120 mm red LED-lit front intake, one 120 mm exhaust between the 3.5" drive cage and the motherboard tray, one 120 mm rear exhaust, and two 120 mm top exhausts. The front utility panel includes four USB 2.0 ports, and audio.

Taiwan-based Edimax, which is known more for its low-cost networking hardware, took a big leap, by unveiling its first 802.11ac wireless networking hardware. These include a static router, and a USB adapter. The router uses a Broadcom-made 600 MHz Intensi-fi MIPS32 central processor. This chip has two PCI-Express interfaces, a built-in USB 2.0 host controller, and DDR2 memory controller. It has two WLAN modules, the Broadcom BCM4331 handles 802.11 b/g/n in the 2.40 GHz band, while a Broadcom BCM4360 handles 802.11ac in the 5 GHz band. This module supports network bandwidths up to 1.35 Gbps. Then you have a wired LAN interface, with one gigabit uplink port, and four gigabit downstream ports.

Moving on, Edimax showed off one of the industry's first USB 802.11ac adapters. This dongle uses Broadcom BCM43526 chip, and offers dual-band operation. In the 5 GHz band, it offers bandwidths of up to 900 Mbps, while in the 2.4 GHz band, it offers 300 Mbps. Sadly for this adapter, the USB interface is USB 2.0 HiSpeed, which poses a host bandwidth bottleneck of 480 Mbps. When you factor in things such as the various protocol overheads, the actual bandwidth yield could be much lower. Edimax is yet to name its products, so quite some development is left.

Taiwan -based Genius is an international leading company in computer peripherals presents a new set of portable stereo gaming speakers, SP-i250G for the GX Gaming line. SP-i250G has two omni directional stereo speakers that provide vivid and rich audio. The advanced 40mm neodymium speakers provide deep low notes in a small portable cabinet. Also one can just use one speaker with any audio device.

SP-i250G uses a special mechanical to turn the power on/off and adjust the volume by twisting the middle cover. As an added feature an LED ring in the middle of the speaker will change different colors when music is playing. The Gold plated plug makes sound signal transmission smoother and decreases noise.

PNY introduce one of its USB flash drive collection, a product for business people. The PNY Cube Attaché boasts of a simple and no-nonsense cube design with solid colors of red and black symbolizing professional coherence. The small and ultra-light drive easily lets you carry your presentations from your work PC to the conference room with no hassle. Don't let the classic appearance fool you as this drive comes in a strong and rugged polymer body that can endure rough usage.

The Cube Attaché has a cap that snugly fits onto and seals off the USB plug, protecting it against dust and water. We must mention here that it is based on COB packaging technology using A+ grade memory chip that allows it to be packaged in such tiny dimensions and yet ensure good performance. The small size of 7 mm x 16 mm x 31 mm and weight of just 4.2g makes it very easy to carry it in the pocket. Additionally, it also has a hole to attach it to a lanyard or to a keychain, belt, wallet, etc.

Finally the high-end CM Storm Trigger keyboard will be launched in Europe! The CM Storm Trigger Keyboard is the first keyboard produced by CM Storm for the extreme gamers.

The Trigger keyboard offers you the ability to press up to 6 keys simultaneously and utilize five programmable macro keys with profile management. These features give you the possibility to reduce transport and redeployment times by storing profiles and key assignments with 64 KB of onboard memory. Next to this, the multi-media controls allow you to quickly adjust for example audio options to make working with the Trigger even easier.

ARCTIC launches its new gaming accessory - The USB Wireless Gamepad. In order to completely fulfill the need of every gamer to extend his/her play time, this gamepad is designed with a high-capacity rechargeable 1000 mAH lithium-ion battery. You can also recharge your gamepad while you play.

Thanks to its 2.4 GHz wireless technology, this wireless gamepad gives you quicker responses and the freedom to move up to 10 m away from your PC. Its dual vibration motors let you feel every hit, every explosion and every crash right in your very own hands - offering you a much more realistic and interactive gaming experience.

AREA introduced the SD-DSCV, a VGA down-scan converter device, that lets you convert your PC's VGA output to legacy/TV-compatible outputs such as Composite and S-Video. The converter supports output resolutions up to 1024x768 pixels, with TV formats such as PAL and NTSC. What's more, the VGA connection isn't interrupted, and VGA output can run simultaneously with the other analog outputs. Measuring 91 x 66 x 24 mm, the device requires an external DC power input, but instead of a bulky AC adapter, AREA included a USB-DC cable, that lets you plug the device to a USB port, and draw power from it. Slated for April 09, the SD-DSCV from AREA is priced as low as 4,980 JPY (US $59.4).