state

Crucial 256GB SSD for ultrathin debuts at $226

Crucial announced today a bevy of solid-state drives for skinny gadgets ranging up to 256GB.

Sold under the Crucial brand name (the flash memory used in the SSDs is manufactured by parent company Micron Technology), the m4 drives deliver the performance of mainstream SSDs but in a much smaller 1.2 x 2.0 inch (3cm x 5cm) mSATA size -- the package typically used in ultrabooks and tablets.

SSDs are faster than standard spinning hard disk drives found in many laptops.

The m4 can be used as an upgrade to a device with an mSATA-compatible SSD or act as a cache to boost the performance of an existing magnetic hard disk drive. … Read more

Top five portable drives: Mobile storage redefined

When you think of a portable storage device, you think of something that can be plugged into a computer's port to provide extra storage space. Well, that's true for the most part, but some can offer more, such as really fast speeds, a lot of storage, a convenient backup solution, or a built-in mobile media server that works even when not plugged in.

Here are the best portable drives currently on the market and they collectively offer all the goodies mentioned above, as well as something I personally find important: sexiness. They are sorted in the order in … Read more

Cheeky talking urinal cakes join drunk-driving battle

Michigan State Police have deputized a new sort of law enforcement officer in the fight against drunk driving. Talking urinal cakes are now in residence in bars and restaurants around the state.

The cakes have a motion-activated audio track where a lady tells the restroom user, "Hey! Listen up. That's right. I'm talking to you. Had a few drinks? Maybe a few too many. Then do yourself and everyone else a favor. Call a sober friend or a cab. Oh, and don't forget. Wash your hands."

"Not only do we want to turn some heads and get people talking, we hope everyone takes the message to heart," said Michael L. Prince, director of the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning, in a statement about the project.… Read more

Seagate's SSDs to be powered by DensBit's Memory Modem controller

Despite the proliferation of solid-state drives (SSDs) with vendors, such as Samsung, OCZ, Plextor, or RunCore, regularly releasing new drives to the market, Seagate, a major storage vendor, has been for the most part missing from the party until now.

The company announced today that it and DensBits have entered a strategic agreement for development of SSDs for consumer and enterprise markets. DensBits is an Israeli-based developer of the world's first Memory Modem controller for SSDs. In SSDs, the controller is one of the most important parts since it determines the performance, life span, and reliability of the drive.… Read more

Top five affordable portable drives that ain't cheap

When it comes to storage, you definitely don't want to risk getting stuck with a lemon. That's because, unlike other commodities like a car or a TV, when a storage device breaks down, chances are you lose a lot more than just the drive itself. It's a painful experience to see your invaluable data vanish. Take my word for it on this.

But you likely don't want to spend too much, either, and want your storage device to be easily accessible, especially on the go since there's not much use for your data if it always has to stay at home.

Bearing that in mind, compact and portable external hard drives are arguably the most popular form of storage. They have room to hold lots of data, often more than your laptop or ultrabook can, without being big or heavy. Following is the list of the top five portable USB 3.0-based drives that are the best among their peers, offering great performance, large storage space, compact design, and sometimes even the kind of toughness that will withstand drops and submersion in water. Most importantly, you can easily find them for less than $100. Have more to spend? You can get larger capacities that cost more.

Note that these drives also work with USB 2.0 (MacBook Air owners, you're included here) and they are all bus-powered, so you don't need a separate power adapter to use them.… Read more

Drobo hooks up Thunderbolt with USB 3.0, data cable

The time when you could only use Thunderbolt storage devices with Thunderbolt-enabled computers is about to be over.

Drobo announced today two new Thunderbolt storage drives, its first that, on top of the traditional two Thunderbolt ports, also come with a USB 3.0 port. In fact, these are among the first Thunderbolt storage devices from any vendor that also support USB connectivity. This means you can use the drives with your existing computer, be it a Windows PC or a Mac, and keep them for use with future systems that support the Thunderbolt standard.… Read more

Thunderbolt storage roundup: It's a PC world after all

Editors' note: This roundup was originally posted on March 23, 2012, and updated April 16 and June 15. It will be updated on a regular basis as more devices are reviewed.

Those days of the "I am a PC" and "I am a Mac" guys have long gone, mostly because the two have married into one, so to speak. The truth is Mac and PC are now one -- they are both personal computers anyway -- sharing the same Intel chipsets and processors. In fact, you can install Windows on an Intel-based Mac, and, if you … Read more

State Department offers Amazon up to $16.5M to hand out Kindles

The only e-reader fit enough to meet the U.S. State Department's needs is the Kindle Touch. The iPad and Nook simply won't do. The government has asked Amazon to negotiate a no-bid contract of up to $16.5 million to pass out Kindles to the country's embassies overseas. This was first reported by Nextgov.

If Amazon proposes a contract based on the State Department's needs, it would theoretically provide at least 2,500 Kindle Touches preloaded with 50 titles each to the State Department; but this number could grow because the government is looking to … Read more

Buy a Samsung 830 SSD, get Ghost Recon Future Soldier for free

If CNET's sterling review of the Samsung 830 series solid-state drive isn't convincing enough, here's another incentive.

Samsung announced today that its 830 series SSDs will include a downloadable version of Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Future Soldier PC game with a purchase of the 128GB, 256GB, or 512GB model. … Read more