Awesome Storage

It isn’t the only mp3 player and flash drive we’ve seen (recall the 1G iPod Shuffle), but this USB MP3 player and microSD reader is dirt cheap and will support up to 32GB cards.

These USB Transformers take Cybertron to your cubicle and include flash drives and mouses; our favorite is Jazz, who transforms into a laptop-shaped USB hub. Thanks, Perry!

Iomega’s portable eGo hard drives get a refresh with a new 1/2″ thick aluminum case, 7oz weight and up to 500GB of space; a special BlackBelt model can survive falls of up to 7 feet.

The size of a credit card, Clickfree’s Traveler connects via USB to your PC or Mac and begins backing up your data immediately without setup; choose from 16GB, 32GB and 64GB sizes.

Nearly exact replicas of Hip Hop’s most famous sequencers, these Akai MPC 2000XL and E-Mu SP1200 flash drives have 4GB of space, ideal for storing your MP3s, of course.

Similar to Apple’s Time Machine, Seagate’s Replica backs up your entire computer, with both 250GB single and 500GB multiple PC versions available; the latter includes a dock.

It’s just begging to get vacuumed up or otherwise misplaced, but EagleTec’s USB Nano Flash Drive is pretty sweet: this tiny drive packs plenty of storage, with 4GB and 8GB versions.

Brando’s latest cheaptastic gadget is the USB Cubic Card reader, patterned after a Rubik’s Cube; it allows up to 270 degrees of rotation and includes SD, microSD, MMC and XD support.

The gadget gurus at Brando have a new combination uber-dock up; it could use an eSATA port (it uses USB 2.0), but still packs a 2.5″/3.5″ HDD dock, two USB ports and 3W speakers.

Kristofer Hammar’s DIY SNES Cartridge USB Hub is fast and easy; three out of four ports are available, with the last is permanently attached to a flash drive dongle for storage.

It’s not for the squeamish, but Jerry Jalava turned the loss of his ring finger into a chance to get cyborged out with a USB Finger; it packs a Bilix Linux distro, CouchDBX and Ajatus.

If the new iPod Shuffle’s proprietary earbuds give you pause, Dexim’s Shu-Lip just might make it worthwhile: it eliminates the need for a separate cable a-la the 1G Shuffle.

Billed as the highest capacity pocket drive on the market, Apricorn’s Aegis Mini is a 1.8″ hard drive that weighs just 3.7 oz, yet can hold up to 240GB; choose from USB and FireWire.

We’re happy with one solid-state drive, but the geeks over at Samsung put a whopping 24 SSDs in RAID with blazing fast results; 53 programs in 18s and DVD rip xfer in 0.8s FTW! Thanks, Alex!

They’re not just shaped like keys–LaCie’s USB Keys and microSD card reader can be hung from your keychain; sturdy metal and Gold SIP tech lets them survive scrapes and water.

It’s too bad this iPhone-shaped USB drive is Taiwan-only; you’re virtually guaranteed to get the ladies gushing over it’s bendy uber-cuteness, made possible by a flexible rubber body.

Physical media will eventually go the way of the dino, but until then we’ll settle for Baba Akcja’s Floppy Disk CDRs, which are a double dose of nostalgia; they’re shaped like 3.5″ floppies.

Look, it’s a monolith: LaCie’s Hard Disk MAX is an all-black mirror polished enclosure for a pair of 1 TB drives (RAID 0 or 1). The ominous blue LED? It turns Jovian planets into stars.

They don’t exactly stay out of sight when not in use, but Sebastian Errazuriz’s Repisa N5 folding shelves let you periodically mix things up while looking swank in a dark finish.

Never content with piddly single function gadgets, Brando’s laptop cooler also squeezes in 2.5″ SATA HDD bay and 3 USB ports; in effect, it doubles as a docking station.

Even machine guns have identity crises: Stuart Fingerhut’s Gun Rack Organizer is an AK-47 with birds and a girl on a swing, all of which are useful places to stow your keys and mail.

If your GT-R is lonely in that big ol’ acid-stained garage, check out this limited edition Snap-on toolbox; it’s covered with a Nissan GT-R graphic and includes a keyfob-shaped key.

Samsung’s 256GB SSD is finally going into mass production; with capacities that rival laptop HDDs and blazing fast 200-220MB/s read/write speeds, we can’t wait to get our hands on one.