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Ratoc introduces Wireless USB kit for your PCMCIA-equipped laptop
Still getting by with PCMCIA, are you? Looking to get into the potentially crumbling world of Wireless USB? Well then, step right up! Ratoc is pumping out its very first WUSB kit with the REX-WUSB1, which includes a rather bulky PC Card (with ultra-wideband antenna) and a four-port WUSB hub. Users with Windows XP / Vista-based machines simply plug in the card, load up the drivers and link their favorite USB peripherals to the hub; from there, you can kick back and enjoy the spoils of wireless printing, wireless cooling and wireless warming -- two of which really aren't all they're cracked up to be. Anywho, the bundle is expected to go on sale in the Land of the Rising Sun later this month for ¥31,500 ($340).
Ratoc's REX-LINK2 and REX-WHP2 for quality wireless audio
There's a dirty little secret inside many of those wireless audio streaming solutions; it's called compression. Unfortunately, audio is often compressed to make the most of the limited available bandwidth. That's where Japan's Ratoc hopes to step in with their UWB solution capable of transmitting 24bit/96kHz audio. Unfortunately, that device -- the REX-Link3 is still in the shop -- today they are announcing their REX-Link2 receiver and USB transmitter pair in addition to their REX-WHP2 wireless headphones. Both are capable of 16bit/44.1kHz CD-quality audio transmitted in linear PCM format. Besides sportin' a quality AK4353 DAC and S/PDIF jack, the ¥17,800 ($147) REX-Link2 features the ability to stream digital audio up to 10-meters away from your PC over 2.4GHz -- supplanting their REX-Link1 system which relied upon the inferior SBC codec found in Bluetooth's A2DP for example. The ¥31,800 ($263) REX-WHP2 headphones weigh 160-grams and feature a lithium polymer battery for about 17-hours of wireless audio before needing a recharge. They also feature local audio level adjustment without having to touch your PC or Mac. Expect 'em both to hit Japan no later than March. Oh, and you can check the REX-Link3 engineering prototype after the break.[Via Impress]
