Fun tech accessories

Technology can be fraught with problems at times that it's good to have a source of amusement close at hand no matter how light it may be. I've been having some stressful mouse and keypad problems with my notebook PC yesterday when I noticed four objects lying around the table that made me smile. I have almost forgotten about these tech accessories that managed to insert fun and humor in technology which, today, is stressing me out.






First is this "Any Key" keyboard key.




Remember how programs would often ask us to "hit any key"? Somebody somewhere thought why not have a dedicated key to play that "any key" role? The result was this yellow Any Key which can be snapped on any key in a standard keyboard. I forgot exactly where I got this, but it must be from a science and tech store in San Jose or San Francisco.



Second is this rubberized 2.5-inch tall Kung Fu Panda that is actually a USB drive.

HP gave away this cute USB item during one of its regional press briefings and it's been wearing that smirk on its face as it stands in that pose on my table probably for over two years now.




Then I have this USB hub shaped like a man.

This smiling little guy with arms and legs that double as USB connectors is particularly useful when I'm using a relatively old machine with limited slots for USBs.




Last but not the least is this crunching dog.


I got this from a store in Akihabara, Tokyo. I thought it's a real USB and was disappointed to learn after buying it that it's really nothing but a toy. The dog automatically does fast crunching when attached to a USB slot. It came in a box that was all in Japanese and the store clerk only speaks Japanese, so there's really no way for me to tell then if it offers some storage or not.

Comic relief that is what they are. Little reminders that everything has a light side, even technology which can get hairy at times.