After hearing about the next generation for over two years, we may even see some devices using USB 3.0 later this year. SuperSpeed USB will interoperate with existing USB 2.0 products and is going to be super fast with transfer speeds up to 4.8Gbps. That being almost 10x faster than current high speed USB, what shall I do with all that extra time I will have that will no longer be spent waiting for file transfers? [USB]

The only downside I can see some of you noting is that the bus-powered 2.5" drive is 5400rpm, so not as ideal as a 7200rpm drive for serious amounts of randomly accessed video content, but it's amazing when you're moving files around.

I tested it against other drives using a 1.04GB file (an MPEG-4 rip of my Burn After Reading DVD). When I copied that file to a nice SanDisk Extreme III SDHC card, via an ExpressCard SanDisk SDHC reader, it took 1 minute 48 seconds. When I moved it to an old USB 2.0 IDE drive, the same file took 38 seconds. On a PC, I moved that file to a newer USB 2.0 drive, and it took longer, 52 seconds. When I moved that file from the Mac to the eGo via FireWire 800, it took just 15 seconds.

As you might have guessed, it took about twice as long via USB 2.0, and since Apple has pretty much given up on the FireWire 400 format, I didn't test that, but it would have probably been even slower still. I have to say, there was one drive that was even faster: A 7200rpm 3.5" 2TB Seagate Free Agent XTreme that you have to plug into the wall, connected to an HP notebook via eSATA. At first, it took 23 seconds to move that file from PC to drive. But I reformatted the drive so that it didn't have its own software in the way, and boom, the thing scooted from PC to drive in 11 seconds.

But I digress. The point is, for people who have a FireWire 800 jack, but might need to connect elsewhere using USB 2.0, grabbing this totally bus-powered drive is smart. I plan to offload all of my movies to it, and just plug them in when I am on the road, or at home and in possession of Apple Remote and Mini-DisplayPort-to-HDMI adapter.

It's super light (7 oz) and has "Drop Guard" protection for falls of up to 51 inches. My only gripe is the ridiculously shiny blue LED that indicates when the drive is being read or written to. It's so bright, I decided to tape over it, so that the neighbors wouldn't think I was busy laser-welding my homemade Iron Man suit (again).

The 500GB version is $150, and comes in the red you see. There's a 320GB that comes in blue for $110, and a white one that holds 250GB for just under $100. (It doesn't take a lot of math skills to see why the red is the best bet.) [Iomega]

The Smiling Face USB Hub's head can be rotated a full 360 degrees in order to direct his perkiness to you, no matter where you place him. And if you ever get tired of his overly peppy smile, you can replace his face with other photos that will cheer you up (NSFW). Available in blue and orange, this Smiling Face USB 4-Port Hub will cost you $14. [Gadget4all via Craziest Gadgets]

The USB 2.0 bus-powered eGo comes with 160GB and costs, by coincidence, $160. It's bundled with EMC's Retrospect software for backup, something you might not need if you run Vista (or if Leopard ever freakin' gets here). More uniquely, it has DropGuard technology, that protects data from accidental damage at drops of up to 51 inches. Iomega calls it a "fashion statement"—I'll just stick with cute little red hard drive.

The 500GB eSATA drive is for the "pros" (aka Torrent luvrs): it's got a 3Gbps eSATA interface if you are lucky enough to have an eSATA connection on your PC. Hey, you might. If not, there's always USB 2.0. The eSATA lists for $210. Man, pricing on 3.5" 500GB drives are really coming down, but it looks like that eSATA card might set you back $70 or more.

Home Page [Iomega]

Hit the gallery for more pics of this drive; see if you can wrap your head around this concept. Created by the department of redundancy department. Geek humor. We like. – Charlie White

The USB 2.0 enclosure for hard disks that looks like a hard disk! [Akihabara News]

Product Page [TigerDirect]

That's $12 a gig for USB 2.0 flash memory. Not bad, plus there's free shipping. You can put 'em in your new Vista rig, or even give a few to those school kids in Africa. – Charlie White

Memorex 2 X 1GB TravelDrive USB 2.0 Flash Drive Kit [Buy.com]

A serious advantage these ToughTech enclosures have had all along is their FlexMount anti-shock protection, keeping that valuable data and all your most important porn safe even if you jostle it around. The enclosure by itself, to which you add drives, is $119.95, or you can get it with SATA drives included, were the 250GB unit is $252.95, the 500GB is $455.95, and the 750GB is $784.95. Just add a SATA card to your Mac or PC and you're off and running like the wind. – Charlie White

Product Page [WiebeTech]

Here's a magnetic USB hub to match that $1.53 million magnetic bed you sleep in along with your magnetic personality.

Sure, it's a rather prosaic item, this USB 2.0 hub with four ports, but if you have a metal desk and wire management issues, this $22 device might be able to solve a small problem or two. Just don't get that small built-in magnetic pad on the back too close to any magnetic media. – Charlie White

Product Page [Brando]

We like the DriveStation's auto power feature that turns on and off automatically with your computer, and its fanless design that keeps things quiet when the going gets tough. Plus, you can lock up your data with Buffalo Secure Lock Ware, encrypting everything in case somebody jacks the drive from you. And, at 1.77 x 6.41 x 7.86 inches, it'll fit into tight spaces. Available now.

Product page [via über gizmo]

That's it. Seriously. That's all it does. Think we're joking? Look at the picture. What, you don't trust us? We slave all day for you, and this is the thanks we get? We're going to our mothers. Don't bother calling.

PocketDock Combo [Sendstation via Gadget Spy]

On the storage side, RAID 0, 1 and 5 can be configured to support four 250GB hard drives, which makes for a maximum of 1 Terabyte. Even Dean Cain couldn't handle that much Teri Hatcher.

New 1TB Iomega NAS Device Offers 802.11g [Digital Trends]

The question is, how small is too small? This thing could get lost in your pocket.

Product Page [OCZ via digg]

Comparable to slip covers on a vinyl couch, the drive's protective silicone surface is protected with a little black carrying case. Hey, anything to save that precious data.

Plextor's portable drive with silicon skin [Tech Digest]

More TrendNet Wifi Detectors [Amazon]

Fujutsu s 2.5 120GB HandyDrive [AkibaLive]