USB hubs being the neccessity they are, it’s always nice to see one that looks like it could class up the joint. And this one really is a nice bit of architecture. They merged a Newton’s Cradle with a USB hub. The Boynq Swing gracefully suspends four USB cables underneath an arch. It just sits and waits and looks classy.

Aside from it’s awesome design, it’s pretty much your typical USB hub, sporting DC power for multiple high-powered USB devices and fuses to protect against power surges. It’s got a sweet look and I hope other hub designers are taking note. We’d like to see more like this.

My mouse pad serves but one function – to provide a surface for my rodent to glide around. Most people would feel that’s enough, but for those desiring more you can take the Zonet ZUP8020 Multifunctional Mouse Pad for a spin.

This Zonet mouse pad, usefully most likely if you are tight on space, also offers you a four port USB 2.0 hub, stereo speakers, an integrated microphone, headphone output and audio input. All of this is built right into the pad, along with blue light which glows when you plug the mouse pad in. If you desire …

For most of us a mouse pad is just a thing piece of material that we roll our mouse along. That’s really all a mouse pad is good for. But it becomes a lot more useful when you add a usb hub and a mic. Which is exactly what Zonet has done with the The Zone ZUP8020 Multifunctional Mouse Pad.

It makes sense as it combines some key peripherals to save you desk space. It sports a four port USB 2.0 hub, integrated stereo speakers, built-in microphone and built-in audio in and out ports. It’s a bit thick for a mouse pad, but maybe this will add some spice to your mouse area. If the design were thinner I think it would be a winner. Only $20.

Newer Technology was busy this past week showing off a new  FireWire/USB hub for data storage. It is called the Newertech miniStack v2.5 and pricing, depending upon hard drive storage size, runs up to around $280 for 1TB.

The Newertech miniStack v2.5 is a FireWire 400/USB 2.0 powered hub storage solution, according to its maker. At its maximum storage offering of 1TB it can reportedly store upwards of 1 million JPEGs, 350,000 MP3s or 500 DVD quality movies.

Samsung had a little mid-year coming out party yesterday as it unveiled a bunch of new flat panels and associated home theater gear. One of these upcoming releases is the new Series 8 850 and Series 8 860 LCD HDTVs, pricing between around $2,700 and $3,500.

Four models make up the Series 8 850 and 860, consisting of two each 45.9- and 52-inch televisions. All units will be available in September and unique features include a slim, narrow bezel with a touch of color around the edges and support for RSS feeds from USA Today. For full details, check out the press release after the jump.

Yeah I know. I thought I had seen everything that Transformers could transform to and from as well. As usual all I needed to do was wait and sure enough, the next weird thing comes along.

Transformer fans will love these. Are they really wearable? Well these are toys, but if your feet are small enough, you can step into the very sole of Optimus Toejam here and share in the foul smelling adventure to get the All-spark and save the world from the Decepti-clogs. They come in blue or yellow for $27 a pair.

For those of you who don’t like the awesome Star Wars USB hubs we told you about last night, maybe robots are your thing. In that case check out this cool Ultraman USB drive if you need something cool and USB related.

I’m not sure if Ultraman is technically a robot or not, but this USB drive looks cute,stunted and he’s a limited edition. He’s got 2GB of storage capacity and only 3,000 will be made. No word on pricing and availability yet.

I choose neither the light or the dark side, instead preferring to the subtle arts of the Geek side. Which is why I love these Star Wars USB hubs. Best of all, no Jar-Jar or Ewoks. Just your favorite droid and your favorite Sith Lord. The details are super nice too.

Both feature four full-speed USB ports in front. We think R2’s head moves every 3 minutes and lights up, and both have sound effects from the movies so you can re-inact scenes as often as you like. They’re Japan only for now, but it’s only a matter of time. Oh yes, I will have one.

I still can’t figure out why the calculator is making a comeback, but here’s yet another example of a new twist on the number crunching device. If the HP Quick calc isn’t enough or the keyboard calculator is too expensive, this USB Hub calculator has the added benefit of being a bit more useful.

Aside from the hub aspect, with 3 USB ports, it also has some other bonus features, like a 12/24 hour world clock with alarm, a calendar and a even a thermometer. And it’s only $19, so it won’t kill you in the wallet. If you absolutely need a calculator, it might as well have a few other functions.

For most computer users who want more than one display adding a second isn’t that hard if you have a video card that supports dual monitors. Going above a pair of displays requires an additional video card. This can be in the form of a USB adapter or actually installing a second video card into your PC, which can be a hassle.

Thankfully DisplayLink promises to make that difficulty a thing of the past by allowing you to simply connect a second, third, or even more displays via a simple USB connection. ASUS has announced that its new VW223B 23-inch LCD and its VW202B LCD are both DisplayLink Certified.

NEC kicked off a new enterprise focused LCD series today with the unveiling of the NEC MultiSync EA261WM. This first display of the MultiSync Enterprise Advanced (EA) Series prices at around $670.

The NEC MultiSync EA261WM is a 26-inch widescreen display with 1920 x 1200 (WUXGA) resolution and a 1000:1 contrast ratio. It is HDMI capable via an adapter and supports 720p and 1080p from DVI-D.

When a device comes along that lets us operate with one less cable on our desk, we’re all for it. The latest offering from IOGEAR uses the sharing-over-network method with its new Net ShareStation.

It plugs into your router (wireless or not) and can take up to four USB devices of your choice, but you’ll need your own AC-powered 4-port USB hub if you want to use more than one device. Yes, that kinda sucks doesn’t it? But if you still want one, you can get it for $80.

First off, a USB calculator is pretty useless. I mean wth, are you too lazy to use the calculator app? Maybe it’s for our parents and grandparents who may not be able to find it. Plus, everything has a calculator built in these days.

At any rate, stupid as it is, this one can be forgiven, because it also works as a 4 port USB hub. It’s available in hot pink(For those who want the color without the Kitty), white, or black. For $16.00 the USB Calculator Hub is an affordable gift for those who may not be able to find calculator app on their own.

It makes sense to have man’s best friend on your desktop, serving your USB port and radio needs. Even if your robo-dog has a head that looks like it met a Mac truck head on. One rather creepy design aspect is that the head can be detached, giving you an instant portable radio with auto-scan from 88MHz to 108MHz.

Put it back on the body, and like a zombie reborn, it will turn it into a crappy computer speaker. It sports two USB 2.0 ports on each side.(If it spawns robo offspring, these are what they will suckle, getting precious mothers milk of USB juice.) $19.15 will get you this bizarre desk pet.

Transformers fans will love this four port USB hub in the shape of Optimus Prime’s head. It’s like you decapitated the lead transformer and have a talking trophy on your desk. Like the All Spark version, it spews classic phrases like “Autobots, transform and roll out!”, “This is Optimus Prime - do you read me?” and “It’s time to stomp some Decepticons!” when you connect a USB gadget.

It has an on/off switch for the voice, so when you get sick of it, you won’t have to pull your hair out. It will cost you $34.99. Now you have something to keep you company until the sequel comes out.