Crave

This bracelet supports a unique cause: 8GB of wearable storage!

(Credit: Meritline)

It's rare enough to find an 8GB flash drive for less than $20, but one you can wear? Meritline (yeah, it again) has the 8GB Bracelet Wrist Band USB Drive for $12.35 shipped.

That's after applying coupon code MLC40142835P, which is conveniently listed right on the product page. That code will also work for the blue, yellow, red, and orange versions of the bracelet.

As you'd probably expect, this is a USB 2.0 drive that's compatible with virtually every operating system. (Linux and Mac aren't listed, but I can't see any reason the drive wouldn't work with them.)

So, you tell me: Is a wearable flash drive more or less convenient than a typical thumb drive that rides on your keychain or in your pocket?

If you're the kind of person who uses a flash drive all day, every day, I think this might be seriously handy. Definitely a conversation piece (to say nothing of a geek badge of honor).

In any case, it's hard to argue with the price. The coupon code expires Friday, August 7, and I desperately hope these don't sell out in five minutes like yesterday's Meritline deal. (Again, sorry about that.)

Also, I should note that after yesterday's mention of problems with the vendor, I received several e-mails from readers. Some said, "Meritline, never again!" Others: "Meritline, love 'em!"

Because I haven't had any problems with the company myself, I'll simply pass along what others have told me: Customer service via e-mail is poor, but much better if you pick up the phone.

Ace reporter Caroline McCarthy joins the show today to give us a little preview of South by Southwest, while we ream Justin Yu for totally being a pushover on our competing podcast "Bore Out Loud." Caroline says there isn't really much scheduled that will be ground-breaking this year, but that's because The 404 isn't there.

Ace reporter Caroline McCarthy.

(Credit: Wilson G. Tang/CNET)

McCarthyism says that she's got the connection to get us on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon." We think we can get on if Diggnation can get on. Letterman ain't having us after a week with U2.

Jeff and Caroline have a pale-off. It's pretty damn close, but we've got to say Jeff wins this one. He temporarily blinded Wilson yesterday when he sat underneath a light when shooting the brand new Nintendo DSi. Speaking of which, CNET gets an exclusive first look at the device, and we think Jeff is a believer now. It only took 100 million Nintendo DSs to get it done. Also, check out Jeff on Loaded today, where he gives his first impressions of the new Resident Evil 5.

Finally, we end the show on a classy note. A man has managed to get a USB flash drive installed on his prosthetic finger. The jokes ensue when Justin comments that he'd love to get a USB drive attached to a certain peripheral on his body. This is truly the home of the "Nerdy dirty."

Our contest is still going on. Send in your suggestions to the show. We love hearing them, especially the international ones. Much praise goes to brisebanelistener for quite possibly one of the funniest voice mails ever!

The big entertainment companies refuse to give up on USB drives for media delivery. Sony announced on Monday that it was loading movies and albums on flash drives.

Michael Jackson fans can obtain the 25th Anniversary edition of the album Thriller for $19.99 or the feature films The Da Vinci Code or Men in Black for $29.99 each.

I can understand trying to sell flash drives for digital movies. Downloading big movie files can still take hours depending on the speed of the Internet connection. I'm not quite sure why anyone would pay $30 for catalog titles just because they're on a USB drive. Sony's press release doesn't say whether there are any added features.

As for offering music on flash drives, well, it's been tried and the public yawned. It's just too easy to download music from iTunes or other music stores and store them on digital music players. If you absolutely require a physical media-delivery system why not just buy a CD?

But Sony Music has struggled lately. For more on that read this story.

This is good for those who have grave concerns over others knowing what kind of videos they're watching.

On Wednesday, Veoh announced that its new Web video player (which is still in beta) is now available in a portable version, but only on SanDisk's Cruzer USB flash drive. For those who already own the drive, the download is available for free on SanDisk's site.

That means any TV shows, movies, or other Web videos found on Veoh can be downloaded to the drive and played on any PC, without need for an Internet connection. Veoh has content from MTV Networks, ABC, Warner Bros., ESPN, Lions Gate, and CBS (parent company of CNET's publisher, CBS Interactive).

SanDisk's own U3 Smart technology enables the player to work on any PC without any installation necessary. The Cruzer drive is also password protected, so no one will be the wiser to what you've been viewing.

Also, SanDisk specifically notes that this could come in handy for people who, say, want to watch videos at work, but whose employer blocks access to streaming video sites.

In other words, this is for rule breakers and the extremely paranoid. Check out the screenshot below.

The Veoh Web Player available on SanDisk's Cruzer flash drive.

(Credit: veoh)

(Credit: Dunhill)

There's no escaping the ubiquity of USB flash drives, even in the sanctified world of cigars.

It began when S.T. Dupont started producing the storage keys in the trademark diamond-head pattern previously reserved for its luxury smoking accoutrements, and now Dunhill has succumbed to the trend as well. Maybe it's trying to maintain some old-boy Churchill-esque style with its "Bulldog" design, but in the end it's just another disguise for geek gear.

And as Uber-Review points out, the $350 price tag for a 1GB drive only adds insult to injury. Especially when that money can go to something far more useful, like a cigar cutter.

(Credit: Imation)

We're still not sure about the wisdom of having a USB key so small that it can get lost among pocket change but, if you want something truly tiny, this is it.

The appropriately named "Nano Flash Drive" from Imation comes in storage capacities ranging from 1GB to 8GB, but the size remains the same for all of them: 1.75 inches long and a half-inch wide, weighing a scant 1.3 ounces. Not surprisingly, Imation says it's the smallest flash drive of its kind that it offers.

In our view, its smartest feature has nothing to do with the storage technology: It has a swivel cap that can't get lost. Then again, if you can't find the key itself, that won't matter much.

(Credit: TFTS)

The designer jewelry trend of USB flash drives has been long documented in this space, from a $29,000 diamond pendant to a block of wood--including one from J. Lo. For the most part, however, these items are all meant to adorn the fairer sex. (We refuse to count those gold and diamond Swiss Army knives as anything masculine.)

So we were pleased to see this obvious disparity acknowledged by designers Tonia Welter and Julia Reyman, who have created a pair of USB cuff links. These limited-edition pieces of man jewelry come in 2GB storage sizes, though Coolest-Gadgets says that upgrades are available. There's only one problem: Other than a tuxedo shirt that no longer fits, we don't have any French cuffs.

(Credit: Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories)

Not everyone has a USB flash drive outfitted with locks or alarms, but there may be a better deterrant anyway: deception. The aptly named Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories has devised a diabolical way to create a USB key that looks like a hastily severed cable. All that's needed is some epoxy glue, an old cord, and "almost zero technical know-how," according to Uber-Review. A step-by-step guide can be found here.) If that doesn't work, please proceed to the next level of deception.

(Credit: Super Talent)

We've always been curious about Super Talent's name, and finally its origins are slowly becoming clear to us: It must be some kind of allusion to Hollywood celebrities, because the company seems obsessed with the anorexic dimensions of its storage devices.

The latest example of this apparent fixation is what it calls "the world's smallest 8GB drive," according to Fareastgizmos. Indeed, even with the countless flash drives on the market, the ultra-petite "Pico-C" would be hard to beat in the shrinkage department. It weighs less than a nickel and is only a little bigger than a quarter, as shown in the picture above.

The only potential problem, however, is that it may be too small. It's a good thing that the drive is water-resistant, because it's bound to be forgotten in somebody's pocket and end up in the wash.