USB Gadget Of The Week: USBCell

What is the Universal Serial Bus all about?
1. connect a device to a computer
2. supply the device with power.

This week's USB gadget benefit from the power supply. The USBCell is a rechargeable battery and it can be recharged with our USB port.
We need batteries for all kinds of devices such as digital cameras or flashlights. If you have some sort of environmental consciousness, you use rechargeable batteries. Common batteries need a charge adaptor to get recharged, but USBCells doesn't. Just pop up the top and plug it in our USB port. It will take about 5 hours to fully charge a USBCell. USBCell.com offers a variety of batteries such as AA, AAA, 9V batteries and even cell phone batteries.

However I wonder: If you plug a USBCell into your computer at work, could you get sacked for stealing electricity?

Kerchoonz - When entertainment meets social networking!

Social networking sites spring up like mushrooms. There are the big ones like MySpace or Facebook and there are a lot of small social networks like Thoughts.com. But how can they all survive? Quite simple - by filling a niche and addressing the right users.-

And that's exactly what Kerchoonz does. It is the new place to be for musicians and music lovers - finally providing everything artists and fans could wish for.
What really makes it stand out in the crowd of networks is the possibility of not only listening to streams, but also downloading the music - legally and for free of course. This doesn't mean that the artists go away empty handed. They do not only get free promotion and an international platform to introduce themselves to new fans, they also get money if their music is downloaded. That's how everybody wins and I think that's just fantastic!
Here's an interview with the developer duo Indiana Gregg and Ian Morrow, and why they think that Kerchooze could solve the problem of music piracy:

For me the fun section is the great part - I got stuck there at my first visit for quite a while. I love those little flash games and Kerchooze offers a good variety of them. My favourite game so far is Cunning Stunt and you better watch out for Sparky - come on, try to beat my score! Of course Kerchoonz offers all the features you would expect from a good social network, too. Mail service, chat, instant messenger, inviting friends and starting polls.

So what are you waiting for? Stop reading and register at Kerchooze for free, broaden your musical horizon and ensure that your favourite artists get paid for their hard work!

And now excuse me please - I have to play another game of Cunning Stunt.

USB Gadget Of The Week: The Human Skull Drive

This is the first edition of 'USB Gadget Of The Week'. Every week I want to introduce a new USB device. The Universal Serial Bus is the source of a lot of useful, funny and wacky inventions and I will show my favorites.

This week's item is the USB Human Skull Drive from USBGeek.com. Halloween is already over, but the skull design is timeless. What's inside the skull? This is an ordinary USB thumb drive with 2GB storage. As a matter of course the USB Human Skull Drive features USB 2.0 and supports Windows Vista, XP, 2000 and Mac OS. And it costs $19.

Why did I choose the USB Human Skull Drive?
I really like the special designed memory sticks. And in this case I favor the little details of the Skull Drive: the detachable jaw, the teeth and the cheek bones. And as I said before, the skull design is timeless and definitively attracts attention. Two thumb drives up!

Neo Shifters - A browser-based MMORPG

Once upon a time there was a little planet. A planet torn apart by an ancient war. The evil Templars and the magnanimous Paladins fought each other to rule this world. And now it's your time to choose a side and enter the battle.

Welcome to NEO Shifters. A nice browser-based MMORPG for the younger ones. You don't have to download any client software; the whole game is played over the internet using only your web browser. Just visit the website and register for a free account and start playing.
The game is set in a Sci-Fi-space-world, so your char is a robot. First of all you customize your character. You pick a certain class such as 'Bomber', 'Warrior', 'Fighter' or 'Sniper', each class has pros and cons. Then you design your appearance by picking a mask (the face) and two colors. Finally you name your robot and get ready to enter the world of Neo Shifters.

Once you've entered the world you can earn experience points and hydrocells through mini-games, which are scattered all over the map. Boost your abilities and buy new weapons, improved armor and useful gadgets. You can also find webcodes to gain greater skills and arming. The game allows you to play in groups or alone and with the in-game-chat you can talk to all the other gamers.

Go ahead! Register now for a free game and try Neo Shifters yourself. Maybe we'll meet inside game, look for for my character: Rexel187!