Fortunately, I've a nice diner near my house. For those of you interested in these Buffalo wooden speakers, however, you should know that they work without batteries. That's convenient, although you shouldn't expect boombox thump. [Buffalo via Akihabar]

There's no price yet on the USB 3.0 PCI Express card (IFC-PCIE2U3), but it's expected to be about $60. The drive itself will be $200 (1TB), $250 (1.5TB), and $400 (2TB), and ships with Memeo AutoBackup software for the Mac or PC. [Buffalo]

The drives will be available this month—although it appears to be a Japan-only release for the moment. The drives will run around $250 and $284 for 1TB and 1.5TB models respectively (a 2TB model is also in the works.), and the controller will run an additional $60. It's probably a bit early to jump on 3.0, but chances are we won't have to wait long before the technology goes mainstream. [Buffalo Japan via Engadget]

The airplane was a Q400 Bombardier aircraft that was flying from Newark to Buffalo Niagra. It crashed into a suburban home at around 10pm, just ten miles from the airport in Buffalo. The reason for the crash is not yet known.

Update: A reader tipped us off that the Q400 had been previously banned in Scandinavia, after two crashes involving the plane - one in Lithuania and one in Denmark. In those cases, the landing gear had allegedly corroded. [AP]

For now it looks like the FTD-W71 is Japan-only, but hopefully it won't stay that way. For everyone else, there's the rebranded Nanovision Mimo, which we reviewed a few weeks ago. D-Link's CES-launched mini-monitor is a rebranded version of the same.

Like the rest of 'em, Buffalo's has an 800x480 widescreen resolution, sucks video entirely from USB, and appears to only work with Windows. [Akihabara News via CG]

At 33mm by 16mm, this dongle really couldn't be much smaller—the brains of the unit are almost the same size as the plug itself. Nor could it be much more affordable. Though it's only available in Japan for now, the price translates to about $25.

It doesn't appear to be crippled in any serious way either, claiming official B/G certification for assured backwards compatibility, base station operation for bridging connection between peripherals or other PCs, and the automated WPS security system, along with Buffalo's own AirStation One-Touch Secure System. The main selling point here, obviously, is size—the WLI would make a great company for a netbook that needs to make the Draft N jump. [Buffalo via Akihabara]

The new Mini packs dual 120GB, 2.5-inch SSDs that allow the drive to run at a ridiculously quiet 2.3db. This setup also allows for either 240GB of data storage or a RAID1 mirroring configuration to protect your data should your new, fancy storage fail on you. The system is also DLNA-compliant to share media while supporting both USB and ethernet connectivity.

So now that we've sold you the Buffalo LinkStation Mini, we should probably mention...it's Japan-exclusive for the time being and will cost $1,200. No hard feelings though, right? Who want's a crummy, monster external SSD anyway? [Buffalo via Engadget]

BUFFALO TECHNOLOGY UNVEILS THE WORLD’S THINNEST EXTERNAL HARD DRIVE

The Super-Flat MiniStation Shinobi is Designed for High Performance Data Storage while Fitting into Your Shirt Pocket

AUSTIN, TX – September 22, 2008 – Buffalo Technology, a global leader in the design, development and manufacturing of wired and wireless networking, storage and memory solutions today unveiled the super-slim MiniStation Shinobi. At a mere 5mm (.2 inches) thick and weighing in at just 2oz, the robust MiniStation Shinobi is a lightweight in size but a heavyweight when it comes to features. Designed for the active professional, Buffalo’s new ultra-portable drive includes easy-to-use backup and sync software, mobile applications such as Firefox and Thunderbird for on-the-go email and web browsing as well as Buffalo’s SecureLockMobile software to prevent unauthorized access in the event the drive is lost or stolen.

Featuring a unique, self-contained cable management system, the sleek, new MiniStation Shinobi offers users the ability to backup and take their favorite music, videos, photos or mission critical files in an ultra-slim drive that can withstand the trials and tribulations of the road.

“Innovative, easy-to-use products with quality features is what Buffalo is known for,” said Ken Higgins, vice president of sales at Buffalo Technology. “With the new MiniStation Shinobi, we are continuing to push the envelope with more compact, design conscious storage solutions that will not only meet, but exceed the ever evolving needs of our customers.”

The MiniStation Shinobi is Mac and PC compatible and is the perfect grab-and-go storage solution, whether it’s for doing a presentation overseas or a casual lunch meeting down the street. Buffalo’s unique TurboUSB technology enhances data transfer rates of up to 20% faster than other standard drives and ships with Memeo’s AutoBackup and Auto Sync software allowing consumers to securely and automatically manage and backup their digital assets in real-time.

Pricing and Availability

The MiniStation Shinobi is backed by a limited one-year warranty that includes toll-free 24/7 technical support and will be available in October at estimated street prices of $119.99 for the 30GB (HD-PT30U2) and $169.99 for the 60GB (HD-PT60U2).

[Buffalo

[PC Watch]

PlayStation 3 owners who want to shove a bunch of DivX/XviD movies onto a server to stream to their consoles for HD movie action will be thrilled. Less thrilling is the price: $699 in May. Those features aren't cheap, nor are the smaller laptop drives they use to power it. Then again, for about $699 you could also get a Windows Home Server, which is quite full-featured but isn't nearly as compact. On the third hand, we're not sure why you would need a NAS to be all that compact unless you were living in a tiny apartment or wanted to sneak it through customs. [Buffalo]

Available in four designs (Mickey Mouse, Winnie the Pooh, Doraemon and — aargh! — Tamagotchi, the sticks contain a secure internet browser (Yahoo! Kids), a couple of games, and you can even limit the amount of time your little darlings spend attached to their computer. My suggestion? Buy them an OLPC and keep them well away from your notebook. [Buffalo via Akihabara News]

Fujitsu alone has been spared the lawsuit hammer because it caved and struck a deal over the summer to license Wi-LAN's whole patent portfolio—such transactions are why "patent holding" companies like Wi-LAN exist, not for anything productive. Be brave! Let loose the fury of your legal team to crush patent trolls into oblivion, since the patent office isn't doing much about it. The court system will ultimately thank you. [Reuters, Flickr]

Buffalo is shipping its MiniStation with Turbo USB at the end of August, priced at $99.99 for an 80GB drive, $119.99 for 120GB, $149.99 for 160GB, and $219.99 for the 250GB. The DriveStation with Turbo USB will be available in early September, priced at $129.99 for the 320GB drive, $169.99 for 500GB, $339.99 for 750GB, and $499.99 for 1TB.

The company didn't say how it's done, but If these drives can actually deliver that 60% data transfer speedup, this would be a great deal, because these prices are comparable to other drives with the same capacities. [Buffalo]

The site goes live on Monday, and all you'll need to do is upgrade the firmware on any LinkStation Live NAS unit, and you're good to go. Take a look at the exclusive preview gallery of screen shots below, and on the next page, see what else this system can do, and get an idea of the LinkStation live hardware, too.

In addition to accessing all your files, you'll also be able to stream MP3s from your storage device. LinkStation Live units can also function as iTunes servers, so you can access iTunes from anywhere on the network with data rates of 35MB per second. Web access only works with LinkStation Live units, and they're available in four different flavors: 250GB for $229, 320GB for $249, 500GB for $349 and 750GB for $649. – Charlie White

Linkstation Live Product Page [Buffalo Technologies]

In 802.11g news, the WHR-G125 also has that flip switch, but comes with only one antenna and 10/100 wired networking. These two are on the low end of the router spectrum, offering bare bones features at a bare bones price ($99 for the N, and $49 for the G). If all you need to do is get on the Internet, then Buffalo's got you covered.

– Jason Chen

Press Release [Buffalo]

No matter how fast your new 802.11n router is, if it can't reach your anti-WMD bunker, it is not good enough. Using the new Buffalo PL-HDP-L1/S, however, you will create a HD-PLC home network that will reach everywhere using your current electrical installation.

You just need to connect the master to your DSL and a power outlet, then connect the receivers and that's it, instant Ethernet-over-electric-wires. At a maximum 190 Mbps, the system can't beat the 520 Mbps of the lastest Wi-Fi but it can wipe out 802.11g and cover the whole house. Even my tin-foil insulated basement; if I lived in Japan, that's it, where you would be able to get the base unit plus a receiver for $178 in april, and $115 more per extra receiver. Hopefully, Buffalo will distribute it in other parts of the world too. – Jesus Diaz

Product page (in japanese) [Buffalo Tech via PC Watch]

What I'd like to know is, how many people buy these tricked out aftermarket mice in the first place? I'm still clinging to my Mighty Mouse even though the scroll ball gets gunked up all the time (Hint: Use some rubbing alcohol.) because the idea of buying a "fancy" turns my brain into this. – Nicholas Deleon

Product Page [Buffalo via Everything USB]

The capacity diff here lies in those swappable drives, and instead of the four 500GB hard disks of its 2TB predecessor, now there are four 750GB hard disks ($695 each for spares) nestled inside. Techno-strap them altogether with RAID 1-5 for your choice of speed or data security, and they also support DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance), that nascent industry attempt to make sense of drives and multimedia networking in the home.

Take a look at one more beauty shot of the drive, plus one of the removable 750GB drives:

Damn, 3TB is a lot of movies even when you're talking HD, and then swapping out those drives makes this config even more versatile. We'll take two. – Charlie White

Buffalo teraStation pro 3TB [Akihabara News]

As tight on space as you are, we'd recommend just getting a regular desktop-sized mouse to use with your laptop instead of one of these small and not-quite-as-useful laptop mice. – Jason Chen

The Buffalo mobile mouse [Akihabara News]

To get that amount of boost, unfortunately, the antenna has to be gigantic and ugly. That's actually an IETF RFC standard—RFC 4797 - Specifying Aesthetic Design For Wireless Component Enhancers. Look it up if you don't believe me. – Jason Chen

The Buffalo wireless adaptor [Akihabara News via Mobile Mag]

Its latest trick is its ability to play well in the sandbox with Intel Viiv PCs, even waking them up when they're asleep, and it's also Dolby Digital approved and certified by the Digital Living Network Alliance. Plus, it can play just about any music, image or video file formats such as MP3, MPEG 1, 2, and 4, Windows Media and even XviD and H.264 among others. Those must all be, of course, in standard definition. There's more:

Other than that, this LinkTheater looks a lot like the media players Buffalo has been showing as for the past year or two. It's a rather handsome box, but it also stops a little short in the output category, too, where it spits out composite, S-Video and component, but no dice with HDMI. Pricing and availability date wasn't announced, but this will probably be the value-priced entry in the Buffalo home theater media player line. – Charlie White

If you don't like using this WZR-AG300NH as a router, switch it over to bridge mode and then you can use it as an access point. In addition to its wireless feats of strength, it also has a quartet of gigabit Ethernet ports. Buffalo didn't announce pricing, but said the product is designed for the consumer market "and small to medium businesses." – Charlie White

Nevertheless, Buffalo's silent mouse, which probably uses a similar technology to Thanko's, would have come in handy back then, if just to give them one less thing they could harp on. – Jason Chen

BOMU-SL, the silent mouse for demanding users [Akihabara News via uber gizmo]

The Buffalo iPod mouse [Akihabara]

From checking out the image under 20x magnification, I speculate it has a 4-port Gigabit switch built into its backside. The grey background of the image is symbolic of the extreme WiFi-ness that your house and body will be bathed in once you plug this baby in. –Brian Lam

Wi-Fi USB2 Lan Adaptor [via Akihabara News]

A new Buffalo dock for iPod [Akihabara]

So, $175 for a mouse... Ok, being able to use it in mid-air is a neat trick, but a trick worth that many dead presidents and/or switching to Windows for? I'd be hard-pressed to say "yes," I think. – Nicholas Deleon

Press Release (in Japanese) [Buffalo via Fareastgizmos.com]

Buffalo's Skype-Certified Keyboard [Techeblog]

Buffalo USB Micro-Pads [Akihabara]

Look for Buffalo's monitor by mid-month in Japan for an "open price." How thoughtful of Buffalo. – Nicholas Deleon

Product Page (in Japanese) [Buffalo via Akihabara News]