PQI Power Drive merges power bank, card reader and wireless access point into one

After showing off its USB OTG accessories and NFC flash drive, PQI decided to tease us with its unannounced Power Drive that was sat quietly in a corner at Computex. Much like the Air Pen launched last November, this upcoming device acts as a portable wireless access point with storage expansion, meaning you can share an RJ45 network connection and your files over WiFi. But what's new is that not only is the RJ45 port collapsible to reduce device thickness, there's now also a standard SD card slot in addition to the old microSD slot. Better yet, as the name suggests, the Power Drive can also be used as a USB power bank to charge up other devices, making this PQI's most versatile WiFi product yet. Alas, details are light on the specs, so stay tuned for its announcement at some point in Q4 this year.

PQI demos NFC-encrypted flash drive, offers different access modes via Android app

Sure, there are already plenty of cool options when it comes to encrypted flash drives, but what about one that uses NFC on your Android or even Windows 8 device to unlock it? PQI showed us one such implementation at Computex. Essentially, this NFC flash drive requires an NFC-enabled device to toggle its access mode: full access, read-only, one-time access (and remains hidden afterwards) or hidden. All you have to do is choose the desired mode in the app, type in your preset password, and then tap the flash drive (even when unplugged) with your device to change the former's setting -- provided that the password matches, of course.

Since the encryption is done on the storage controller level, the computer's drive utility wouldn't be able to see the dongle at all if it's hidden, so you wouldn't even be able to format it unless you unlock it or, well, physically destroy it. And that could be anywhere from 8GB all the way up to 64GB of storage space, when the drive launches in Q4 this year.

Samsung announces the Galaxy Ace 3, its new entry-level Android smartphone with an LTE option

Sidestepping the fanfare and press events typically associated with Samsung product launches, Samsung's revealed another addition to its Galaxy family. As we saw teased just hours ago, it's the Galaxy Ace 3, Samsung's latest (humbly specced) smartphone, arriving in 3G (1GHz dual-core processor) and LTE (1.2 GHz dual-core processor) options. Both devices house a 4-inch (480 x 800) LCD display, placing the new device just beneath the Galaxy S4 Mini in Samsung's 2013 smartphone pecking order. Despite those pretty underwhelming technical points, the company's has managed to cram in some of its latest software additions like S Translator, S Voice, and Smart Stay into its diminutive new phone.

There's Android 4.2 underneath, while a 5-megapixel camera with LED flash resides on the back. 8GB of built-in storage rounds out the LTE device, with user-accessible storage of 5GB. There's 4GB in the 3G model with just 1.77GB of space -- but don't worry, there's also storage expansion up to 64GB through microSD. We've added it to our to-do list for Samsung's incoming London event -- it's going to be a busy evening.

Update: The UK can expect to see the faster LTE model when it launches, although Samsung UK isn't saying when that will be.

Samsung Galaxy Ace 3 possibly spied posing for official imagery

When Samsung's GT-S7272 made its way through the FCC a few days ago, it existed as little more than a set of numbers. If SamMobile is on the ball, however, we may now have a face to go with those digits. The site claims to have an official shot of the phone, which might launch under the Galaxy Ace 3 badge. While it's hard to verify specs attached to the rumor, they line up with both the image and a few previous details. The Ace 3 may ultimately be a subtle evolution of its predecessor with a 4-inch WVGA screen, a dual-core 1GHz chip, Android 4.2 and design ideas borrowed from its bigger cousins. Will this diminutive device launch at Samsung's June 20th event, in tandem with the Galaxy S 4 Zoom? We can't say for sure, but we'll certainly be keeping our eyes open.