Brando -- Engadget

Brando's Ultimate 3-Point Hand Strap will help you get attached to your DSLR

by Donald Melanson posted Aug 20th 2009 at 1:32AM

Sure, a regular wrist strap will probably stay attached to both your wrist and your camera most of the time, but why take chances when you can have something like this? Always on the cutting edge of inexpensive, occasionally useful contraptions, Brando is now offering this so-called Ultimate 3-Point Hand Strap, which attaches to your camera's tripod socket, its wrist strap attach point and, of course, your wrist -- all in the name of comfort and stability. Will it hold up to lugging your hefty DSLR around all day? Will your wrist hold up? It only costs $16 to find out.

[Via Red Ferret]

Brando churns out new HDD dock, all is well with the world

by Vladislav Savov posted Aug 13th 2009 at 3:01PM

We've decided to start using Brando's tireless refreshes as a sort of economic barometer -- if an entire calendar month passes without a brand spanking new HDD dock, we'll know we are in trouble. Seemingly content with its high-end offering, Brando has gone back to basics with the SATA Dual HDD Docking Station, which has space for a pair of 2.5- or 3.5-inch drives, but eschews the usual multicard reader. You get an eSATA extension kit in the package for suckling power and data from your computer, but that's pretty much it. Is it convenient? Sure. But at $63 we'd expect a little bit more -- like maybe bundling the hard drives for free.

Brando credit card light bulb fills the void in your wallet... not your heart

by Vladislav Savov posted Aug 6th 2009 at 7:21AM

Tailored to fit inside a vacant credit card slot -- let's face it, we've all got a bit more room in our wallets these days -- Brando's latest offering is an unfolding LED light tastefully shaped like a bulb. You might point out the irony of replacing cold hard cash with a cute yet limited trinket, but do you really expect such subtlety to stop the company that brought you the sliced bread wrist rest? We'll let you to come up with viable justifications for its existence, but do yourself the favor of going past the break for a snap of the little wonder flicked on, while we decide whether to file it under pointless sophistication or sophisticated pointlessness.

Continue reading Brando credit card light bulb fills the void in your wallet... not your heart

Brando HD Media Player Docking Station does multi-format 1080p

by Vladislav Savov posted Jul 27th 2009 at 3:59PM

It seems that Brando can't go a month without bringing out yet another slightly-improved domicile for your orphaned SATA HDDs. Following in the footsteps of the very recent Multimedia Dock, the latest unit adds H.264 decoding to the already present DivX, Xvid and MPEG-4, while output graduates to full 1080p. Featuring HDMI and a plethora of supported media formats, the humble docking station has certainly grown up, but is it enough to compete with standalone media players? Input flexibility would suggest so -- the new device accepts 2.5-inch and 3.5-inch hard drives, alongside USB flash memory, SD, MMC, and MS cards -- but alas, Brando loses the plot at the final hurdle, asking for an astronomical $199. With prettier alternatives available at half the price, this is unlikely to sell like hotcakes, but Brando's breakneck refresh cycle give us the feeling it won't be long before we see that perfect do-it-all dock.

Brando Tiny USB Rechargeable RC Helicopter prettifies your desk, might fly

by Vladislav Savov posted Jul 22nd 2009 at 8:19AM

Hey there, has your previously high-powered stock trading job been downsized out of existence? Are you one of the unlucky ones who've had to diversify their job portfolio? We understand, so here's a way to satisfy those latent urges to own a helicopter on the cheap -- Brando is offering to exchange $39.90 of your blood money for a machine so simple that its protracted model name describes it almost in full. To complete the picture, you get a 3-channel IR controller, integrated gyroscope for balancing and a set of blinking LED lights on the sides for, you guessed it, nighttime flying. You should be warned though, the first functionality listed for this product is "decoration," so temper your expectations accordingly.

[Thanks, Louie]

Brando's latest SATA HDD Multimedia Dock does HDMI, the ancestors proud

by Darren Murph posted Jun 12th 2009 at 9:31PM

If you haven't been following this phenomenon in geek culture, you've truly been doing yourself a grave disservice. Not quite an Obama-level disservice, but we digress. Just a few months after refreshing its SATA HDD dock to bring along multicard support, the outfit has done the multimedia crowd one better by offering up an HDMI-equipped version. As expected, the device supports 2.5- and 3.5-inch SATA hard drives and can connect to one's PC via USB 2.0; from there, just hook up your component jacks or HDMI cable and enjoy crystal clear playback of whatever content you've got slammed in there. Too bad all this fun will set you back $79, but we suppose it's still a wee bit cheaper than an unadulterated media streamer.

Brando offers up wireless HTPC keyboard with multitouch trackpad

by Donald Melanson posted Jun 9th 2009 at 4:46PM

Brando may be best known for some of its slightly off the wall products, but it also carries plenty of less fanciful gadgets, like this HTPC-minded keyboard with a still relatively uncommon built-in multitouch trackpad. As you can sorta see above, that also doubles as the numeric keypad, and you can switch between the two functions at the press of a button, but not a swipe, apparently. Otherwise, you'll get a 2.4GHz RF USB transmitter that can be tucked into the keyboard itself if you don't feel like actually using it, along with 18 presumably customizable hotkeys, and support for Windows XP and Vista, but not Macs. $69 and it's yours.

Brando's Paper Storage Box inconspicuously hides your HDDs

by Darren Murph posted Jun 3rd 2009 at 5:42PM

Oh, Brando -- how you make our hearts flutter. One day, you're pumping out new kit fit only for our Crapgadget roundup; the next, you're delivering gems such as this. The 5-bay HDD Paper Storage Box with Cover covertly hides up to five of your precious 3.5-inch hard drives, and it likely provides more security for your personal information than a fireproof lock box. 'Cause really, what data thief is going to shuffle through a cardboard container looking for valuable platters?

Spy Ear power strip lets you listen from the floor

by Nilay Patel posted Jun 1st 2009 at 6:39PM

Yeah, it's not the wildest power strip design we've ever seen, but the Spy Ear has a secret: a hidden SIM card slot and cell radio that allows you to monitor what's happening in your absence. Just dial in and listen away -- we're not sure how much you'll hear from the usual places a power strip is hidden, but it'll be better than nothing, nosy.

[Via Red Ferret]

Brando's latest HDD dock adds HDMI into the mix

by Tim Stevens posted Jun 1st 2009 at 12:47PM

There are apparently an awful, awful lot of people out there with shoe boxes full of spare SATA drives. Somebody is buying all these new HDD docks, and while most surpass the previous editions by adding support for another obscure format of memory card, Brando's latest seems like an actually useful update, adding HDMI and component ports through which it can output video at either 1080i or the always popular 576p. Standard resolutions may not be its strong point, and sadly there's no mention of which video codecs it can unravel, but it does at least support the major flavors of audio files (MP3, WMA, AAC, etc.) and of course will read memory cards and thumb drives to boot. No, a bare drive may not look particularly appealing while rattling away on your entertainment center, and at $69 you're not far from the price of a Windows Media extender or the like, but don't let such practical concerns dissuade you from adding this unique focal point to your home theater.

Crapgadget: USB embarrassments shame Intel's rock stars

by Darren Murph posted May 24th 2009 at 2:32AM

Seriously, Ajay here would be downright ashamed. His Universal Serial Bus has found some seriously awesome uses over the years, sure, but the latest torrent of USB-equipped garbage is looking to do more harm than good to the venerable connector. In our latest roundup of crap found 'round the web, we see yet again that it's the USB-infused devices holding down the fort. From a flashlight-packin' USB SD card reader to a USB Parrot, our heads hurt from just imagining who among us is actually spending cold, hard credit on this rubbish. Feel free to inflict the same pain upon yourself by visiting the links below, and then cast your vote for the worst of the worst. Good luck, brave souls.

Read - USB SD card reader with flashlight
Read - Sparkling USB bracelet with no purpose or dreams
Read - USB Notebook Pocket Cooler puts 'Huffing' and 'Puffing' out of work
Read - Pepe, the USB Parrot
Read - 4-port USB hub gains a mirror... because it can
Read - Jewel Rose Pin USB Flash Drive: perfect for Great, Great, Great Grandmother's Day
Read - USB U-Shape i-Speaker just looks disturbing

Multicard-lovin' dual SATA HDD dock keeps the dream alive

by Darren Murph posted May 20th 2009 at 8:19PM

It's funny, really. Years back, we figured this SATA HDD dock was a one-off device that would get swept under the rug as quickly as it reached prominence. And yet, here we are in May of 2009 looking at the latest iteration of a product that won't ever stop reinventing itself. Brando's Dual SATA HDD Multi-Function Dock with One Touch Backup (yeah, seriously) doubles up on elder models by holding two 2.5- or 3.5-inch hard drives, and it also accepts a litany of flash cards. Lastly, this adds an eSATA connector to the traditional USB 2.0 socket for a bit more flexibility, but we still can't justify the $89 price if you already own a predecessor (or three).

Engadget's recession antidote: win a Brando 55-in-1 Card Reader reader!

by Laura June posted May 15th 2009 at 12:00PM

This whole global economic crisis, and its resulting massive loss of jobs got us thinking. We here at Engadget didn't want to stand helplessly by, announcing every new round of misery without giving anything back -- so we decided to take the opportunity to spread a little positivity. We'll be handing out a new gadget every day (except for weekends) to lucky readers until we run out of stuff or companies stop sending things. Today we've got ten (yes, 10!) Brando 55 in 1 Card Readers to give away. Read the rules below (no skimming -- we're omniscient and can tell when you've skimmed) and get commenting! Hooray for free stuff!

Big thanks to Brando for providing the gear!

The rules:

Leave a comment below. Any comment will do, but if you want to share your proposal for "fixing" the world economy, that'd be sweet too.
You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.)
If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Just be careful and you'll be fine.
Contest is open to anyone in the 50 States, 18 or older! Sorry, we don't make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so be mad at our lawyers and contest laws if you have to be mad.
Winner will be chosen randomly. The winner will receive one (1) Brando 55 in 1 Card Reader. Ten (10) winners will be chosen.
If you are chosen, you will be notified by email. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen.
Entries can be submitted until Friday, May, 15th, at 11:59PM ET. Good luck!
Full rules can be found here.

Unitek's 3.5-inch SATA HDD bay / MicroSD card reader is more fun than it looks

by Joseph L. Flatley posted Apr 27th 2009 at 6:42PM

Aside from his stunning portrayal as Col. Kurtz ("I swallowed a bug"), Brando is our go-to guy for drive bays and memory card readers. If you're not holding out for a dock that plays DivX movies (or tells the temperature in your cube) this device should be right up your proverbial alley. The Unitek 3.5-inch USB Multi-Functional Bay sports a 2.5-inch SATA HDD enclosure, SD(HC) and MicroSD(HC) card readers, and a four pin power port -- 'cos you can't have too many four pin power ports. Since this is Brando, we were hoping to see something with a little more kitsch appeal, but we suppose that we'll just have to hold out for something from the Happy-Kid line. If a sane and sober-looking approach to portable storage is what you're after, be sure to size this guy up in the gallery below.

Gallery: UNITEK 3.5-inch Multi-Functional Bay

EagleTec Nano flash drive makes losing data easier than ever

by Donald Melanson posted Apr 22nd 2009 at 4:34PM

Still haven't found a USB drive small enough for your needs? Then you might want to consider EagleTec's new Nano flash drive now available from the ever dependable folks at Brando, which measures an impossibly tiny 19 x 15 x 6 mm and weighs in at a mere three grams. Despite that size, however, you'll still get a fairly generous 4GB or 8GB of storage ($22 and $33, respectively), and an included lanyard that'll let you attach it to something you're less likely to misplace, though you're on your own keeping the drive's cap from wandering off.

[Via OhGizmo]