I picked up a new laptop yesterday, which came pre-loaded with Windows 7.

One concern I had was that I'd accumulated quite a few files over the past few years on the older laptop, which I'd want to have available to me on the new computer. While there are several solutions for this (backing data up to a separate thumb drive or external hard drive, burning to a DVD), connecting the two computers directly through USB 2.0 seemed much quicker and simpler.

I had a few options here, (given that I had immediate access to external storage and the XP laptop had a DVD burner built in), but this provided the opportunity for me to test one of our products - a USB Easy Transfer Cable (USB2LINK)!

Using the Easy Transfer application that was installed on the Windows 7 laptop was as simple as connecting the two computers using the USB2LINK and running the application, which walks you through the migration.

Once you've followed the steps outlined by the application, the process lives up to its name, as it's just a matter of waiting while the files and settings are transferred over! It took some time for the files to transfer, but was definitely an effective way to configure the new operating system (which I am really enjoying so far, btw!).

Congratulations go to our first 10 followers on Twitter - the lucky recipients of their very own USB Basketball game!:

And last, but definitely not least, the winner of the most recent ConXit Challenge (ending September 30, 2009), who was randomly drawn from the entries we received from the questionnaire for the recently launched ConXit Connection Wizard is...

Amy Burns

who will be receiving an Acer Netbook computer!

Congratulations and thanks to our winners! We'll contact you shortly to confirm delivery of your prizes!

Our new SATA USB Adapter Cable makes it very easy to test a bare Serial ATA hard drive, without having to install it in a computer case or a drive enclosure.

This is a particularly handy device to have on hand not only for drive testing, but also grabbing data off of an older, no-longer-in-service 2.5" or 3.5" SATA hard drive.

Included with the USB SATA Adapter is the accompanying power adapter (shown below), which eliminates even having to open the computer case for connection to the PSU.

Today marks our sixth Partsapalooza event - a tabletop show and training event for the StarTech.com team!!

This installment featured a sneak peek for our employees, of some of the new and upcoming products we have on the way, including our Hard Drive Duplicator Docking Station, our newest CAT5 VGA video extenders (point-to-point), and our 7.1 channel external USB Sound Card!

If you've been checking out our New Products page lately, you may have noticed that our ICUSBAUDIO7D USB 2.0 External Sound Card is now available!

This product is particularly useful for upgrading audio capability on your desktop or more notably laptop computer to 7.1 channel audio - which is great for running multimedia presentations, home theater and gaming applications in surround sound!

Here's a recent video that provides some footage of our NOTECONS01 USB 2.0 Laptop KVM Console Adapter starring our very own Jon Arnett, one of our Senior Product Managers, who gives you a hands-on look at the product in action!