Yep, that’s about it. ‘Nuff Said. The bulbous panda head speaker is available over at Gadget4All for $27 (USD).

They really do need to work on the name, though. Maybe something like Big Oval-Shaped Panda Head With Look of Constant Surprise Stereo Audio Output Device With USB Charging Cable. Or maybe just PanDasonic.

[via GeekAlerts]

Fresh off the boat from Japan, this USB gadget looks just like the grotesque giant-headed, acid-blood-dripping, eponymous alien of Alien, Aliens, Alien 3, Alien vs. Predator, Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem, Alien: Resurrection (and the soon-to-be Alien prequel).

Just plug the nasty thing into your USB port, its grotesque inner mouth randomly pops out of it’s mother mouth, backlit by a glowing red LED. Yummy.

If you’re a fan of Alien, you’ve gotta grab one of these. They’re available for pre-order over at Strapya World for ¥3990 (appx. $44 USD), and should start shipping this December.

I think I’ll put this right next to Hello Kitty and Domokun.

These new Tactile Pro 3 keyboards are built from the same technology used in the original Apple Extended and Extended II keyboards, complete with lovely, long-throw, clicky ALPS mechanical switches. While the key switches may be decidedly old school, the design of the Tactile Pro 3 has been updated to be more ergonomically friendly than retro Apple keyboards. It’s got a sleek, curvy form factor, and is built for durability. The keys are each laser etched, and the case is designed to keep crumbs and dirt from getting in-between the keys. And Matias has included a special technology that prevents missed key-presses if you’re a smokin’ fast typist. There’s also a built-in 3 port USB 2.0 hub, and it’s even compatible with PCs if you don’t have a Mac lying around.

While $149.95 (USD) might sound like a lot for a keyboard, it seems like a worthwhile investment if you spend all day sitting at your keyboard like I do, and want to type at the highest speed and accuracy. Want one? The Tactile Pro 3 starts shipping in January 2010, and Matias is accepting pre-orders here.

[thanks for the tip, Kenny P!]

If you need to use the reader half of it, just unscrew the pen to reveal the USB connector. I don’t know if you can use the pen half on its own though.

Maybe in the future we’ll have pens that can recognize our handwriting and store it as a text file, ready for us to plug in to computers  - or our heads! – for reviewing.

You can get the Four SD Slot Pen at GeekStuff4U for appx. $22 (USD); at that price you’d better not be the type who easily loses pens. The pen comes with two ink refills and a USB cable.

Those who want their peripherals to blend in with the rest of their computer will be glad to know that the 10 Key also comes in black and white.

I don’t know if there’s any way to re-map the arrow keys though, and that could be a problem if you’re used to the 2-4-6-8 layout of ordinary numpads. Unless of course that functionality is baked into you operating system and not in the peripheral itself.

You can get the 10 Key at Retail Factory for £50 (approx. $80 USD). I guess the dual functionality and the design were factored into the formula used to derive the price.

[via ChipChick]

Other than the color of the base stone, I’d say these 4.3-inch tall Lady Liberty drives from Super Talent are pretty accurate 1:421 scale replicas of the real thing – other than the fact that they get their bluish-green hue from dyed rubber instead of weathered copper verdigris. I suppose it would have been pretty hard to make a copper USB drive with a little tiny staircase and people inside. But I bet it could be done. Then you’d have to leave it out in the elements for 200 years to get that perfect patina.

The drives are available in 4GB ($14 USD), 8GB ($19.50) and 16GB ($34.45) versions over at Amazon. As an added bonus, you’ don’t have to take a boat ride and then wait in line for 3 hours to see what’s inside this version.

As you may have guessed from its looks, the Tape Express is also a portable cassette tape player. So if you just can’t let go of your tapes even after recording their contents, you can still use them with the Tape Express. Pop in a couple of AA batteries and take it with you wherever you go, just like old times.

You can get the Ion Tape Express at Firebox for £50 (approx. $80 USD). Nostalgia guaranteed.

[via popgadget]

Each DreamScreen features a bright, high-resolution LCD color screen, and has built in speakers so it’s a completely self-contained media playback device. And if you don’t want to bother streaming media from your PC, the DreamScreen has a built in 6-in-2 media card reader and a pair of USB ports too. Video formats supported include MPEG 1, 2, 4 and H.264, while you can listen to audio in MP3, AAC, WMA and WAV formats.

In addition to media playback, you can access Facebook and view updates without getting up from your chair. There’s also a slideshow integration with Snapfish, so you can upload photos to their site and view them on the DreamScreen. HP has also been kind enough to provide access to streaming digital music via Pandora, and HP’s own “SmartRadio” which aggregates Internet radio from around the globe. There’s also a built in calendar and alarm clock, so you might want one of these on your bedside table instead of a traditional alarm. There’s no word on future plans to roll out additional Internet services, but I’m hopeful HP will release more integrations in future.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

The only major downside I can see to the DreamScreen is that it’s crying out for a touchscreen surface. For now, you have to navigate using the buttons along the sides of the screen, or using the included wireless remote. Hopefully, HP will make a touch-enabled version in the future. I also wish there were an open standard for widgets like there is with the Chumby.

The DreamScreen 100 features a 13.3″ display, while the DreamScreen 130 has a 10.2″ screen. Both devices have 800×480 screen resolution, so the smaller display just has smaller pixels. The DreamScreen 100 lists for $249.99 (USD) and the DreamScreen 130 is $299.99, but you can find both models over at Amazon for a few dollars less.

With this nifty Smart Pad peripheral from Speed, you can add not only an external numeric keypad to your laptop or desktop, but one that works as a true multitouch input device. The compact Smart Pad plugs into any available USB port, and ships with software which lets you start using multitouch gestures to control window movement, mouse buttons, image zooming, scrolling, and other interactions with your computer. The touchpad can support 1, 2 and 3-finger gestures, many of which work with all programs.

There are also a number of specialized gestures that work with popular programs like the MS Office suite and Adobe Acrobat. No word on whether or  not there’s any multitouch drawing apps that’ll work with the Smart Pad, but I’m hoping that somebody will hack one together since the hardware could certainly support it.

Just keep in mind that these early drivers pictured below are in Korean, but I’m hopeful the final version ships with English software.

The Smart Pad’s specs say it works with Windows XP/Vista, though, so I’m not sure if there are any compatibility issues with Windows 7, which has native multitouch support. The device ships this November and is available for pre-order over at Brando for $40 (USD).

The controller is modeled after the traditional garb of a Samurai warrior, but underneath this fighter’s mask is a scary Skeletor head, complete with glowing green LED eyeballs. Now I didn’t have the patience to read the entire Wikipedia entry on Samurai warriors, but I don’t remember the part about glowing green LED eyes. Leave us a comment if you happen to find that part.

The warrior controller does all of the usual stuff – it’s got dual digital/analog sticks, a D-Pad, shoulder buttons, has vibration feedback and works with the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, or any PC using a USB connection. Of course there’s that little part about how you’ll be left with painful red indentations of snake-dragons on your palms and creepy little faces on your thumbs after 60 minutes with Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2, but that’s the price you pay for having a cool looking controller with glowing green LED eyes, right?

You can grab a Samurai warrior joypad over at USB Geek for $25 (USD). Personally, I prefer this guy with the mask on. He’s not so scary anymore.

I feel like the only thing you should be playing through these awful looking clown speakers is some sort of disturbing, scratchy carnival music that might be playing in the background of one of those circus horror movies.While some of you may think these puffy-cheeked, red-nosed speakers are cute, I’ve officially filed these under “evil clown” in my database. Ok, maybe not quite as evil as this clown.

Still, it’s definitely one UGLY clown. If you just have to have one of these, head on over to UXSight, and plunk down your $8.69 (USD). Just don’t blame me when it arrives and you immediately regret your purchase.

LaCie is known for making aesthetically pleasing – or at least interesting – gadgets that are equally functional, and Starck’s new babies seem to be no exception. Both the desktop and mobile versions of the external hard drive have aluminum casings that help dissipate heat while providing ample protection. The desktop versions have 3 mm casings, a “Starck signature” LED, and a touch-sensitive front panel that can be customized so that it “opens the application of your choosing, depending on whether you use a short tap or a long touch.”

Unfortunately we don’t have a video of the touch panel being used so I don’t have an idea where exactly the touch panel is, if the whole thing is the button or what. It could also be that I’m an idiot, but please, just play along and act like you’re as dumbfounded as I am. The 1 TB desktop hard drives sell for $130 (USD), while a 2 TB drive can be yours for $250.

The 320 GB mobile version on the other hand sells for $100, while the 500 GB version sells for $140. The mobile hard drives have 2 mm aluminum casings, but no fancy signature LEDs or touch panels. What they have is an embedded USB cable that tucks neatly inside it’s butt derriere. So yeah, still functional and beautiful. They’re a bit pricey though. Oh yeah, about the love affair, here, watch monsieur Starck admit it on camera.

Did I let you down? I probably did, but you were also treated to lots of sexy, heavily-accented English, so that makes up for the disappointing metaphorical tryst. Good on you.

Each speaker measures 7.87 x 5.51 in. LaCie backs up Poulton’s design with French audio company Cabasse’s technology. Sound² speakers are equipped with a Class D digital amplifier, magnetic shielding and a peak output of 30 W (15 x 2), as well as Cabasse’s Wide Band ICF Driver with a frequency response of 80Hz – 20kHz. Not that I understand any of that. Here’s more technobabble! Maximum Acoustic Level : 95.5dB@1m! And did you know Signal Processing & Frequency was 16-bit / 48kHz?

The Sound² comes with a power adapter, but if for some reason you don’t want to bring the adapter with you, the speakers can also run off the power that it gets from your computer via the built-in USB cord. You can buy the Sound² at LaCie’s online shop for $100 (USD).

[via Everything USB]

It’s Hello Kitty wearing a Hello Kitty suit. Either that or it’s a Hello Kitty monster with Hello Kitty’s head in its mouth. Either way this needs less kittens. Fortunately there are other, less mind-boggling designs.

You can buy the Hello Kitty MIMOBOT flash drives at mimoco’s online shop. The 2 GB flash drive sells for $25 (USD), the 4 GB sells for $35, and the 8 GB sells for $50. I’ll wait for the Keyboard Cat MIMOBOT.

[via Josh Spear]

And while I think the surface is actually a woodgrain veneer over composite board, it still looks pretty darned nice. The Singibigi has a dozen buttons, an can be used with the PS2, PS3 or PC via USB. They also include a PC profiler app that lets you configure the buttons to whatever keys you’d want to map them to on your PC, making it an ideal candidate for MAME and other emulators. It also features “Device Level Technology,” whatever that means.

About the only downside I can see to this controller is that it’s not wireless. But if you’re looking for a solid retro arcade joystick, you should definitely check it out. You can find the Singibigi joystick over at SuperUFO for the completely reasonable price of just $39 (USD).

I think it’s more of an emergency solution rather than something you should rely on on a regular basis. For one, the Printstik uses thermal paper so you won’t be able to print colored material. But more importantly, it has a slow-ass printing speed – the Printstik PS910 ME can only print up to three pages per minute.

But if the printer’s USB and Bluetooth connectivity are solid and easy to use, then it’s going to appeal to a lot of businessmen, scientists or researchers who frequently find themselves in unfamiliar – or uninhabited – places. Here’s the Printstik PS910 ME in action at the recently concluded IFA consumer electronics exhibit in Berlin:

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

The Prinstik PS910 ME sells for $170 (USD) at Amazon. A roll of thermal paper good for up to 20 pages is included with every purchase; additional rolls cost $18.50 for a pack of 3.

[via AVING]

The device can hold 2 GB of data. It’s pointy too. However, if you’re a real ninja you know that this is not a real Kunai and so it must not  be treated as a weapon. Your fist however, is a different story altogether. Your fist, especially if it is of the North Star, can punch holes through men. For real.

You can buy a Kunai USB drive at GeekStuff4U for $125 (USD). It seems that real ninjas have lots of cash money as well.

[via SlipperyBrick]

I don’t know if the fluffy bunnies or the pooh bears are more insane. And even if they weren’t completely stupid looking, do your hands really ever get so cold that you can’t type and you need to wear hand warmers at the computer anyway? It’s certainly never happened to me, but then again, I don’t live in an igloo.

Both Bear and Rabbit USB Hand warmers are available from Gadget4all for $22.50 (USD) a pair. I dare you to bring these to work and wear them during a board meeting while you’re typing on your laptop. When the CEO asks WTF is going on with you, just tell him your hands were cold. I’m sure he’ll understand.

Taito is making these USB-powered desktop R2-D2 humidifiers for the Japanese market, but the fine folks over at NCSX have been kind enough to import these and make them available for the rest of us for just $20.90 (USD). Each R2 unit holds about 8 ounces of water, and sprays a fine mist into the air to keep things nice and humid. They’re not shipping until November, but for now you can drop off your pre-order and make sure you have yours in time for the cold weather when it really blows in.

Here’s some sexy specs for audiophiles: the microphone is a condenser with a wide frequency response, from 35 Hz to 20 kHz, and a 16-bit audio sample rate of 44.1 kHz. Yeah. Awesome. I don’t know what we’re talking about.

Non-techie users should also consider the Eyeball because it’s easy to install – it works out of the box with both Mac and Windows systems, no drivers needed. The Eyeball’s stand also doubles as its compartment, so it’s quite portable as well. Here’s Mark from Coolest Gadgets‘ review of the Eyeball, taken using the Eyeball itself.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

Convinced yet? You can get the Eyeball for $140 (USD) (or less; I could have bought it for $70 as of this writing, just click “add to cart” to see the discount) at Amazon.