Earlier today, we published a review of the Thalbach Wooden USB Drives here on GearCrave. Markus Bischof, owner of Thalbach Design Manufaktur, contacted us a few weeks back to introduce his line to us, and wanted to offer a few of these to GearCrave readers. We gladly accepted– these USB drives are brilliant, or as Markus himself says “a Timeless, noble design, carefully selected exquisite woods, hand-crafted unique pieces.” We’re giving away four Thalbach Wooden USB drives to four GearCrave readers. Continue reading below the jump to learn how you can win your very own, unique and free USB drive by Thalbach.de.

The USB flash drive has taken mobile media storage in a surprising direction. Where the floppies, CDs and tape drives of yesteryear were all about business, the USB flash drive has become an art form in and of itself. USB flash drives have been integrated into jewelry, into action figures, even into little puppies that hump your laptop when plugged in. While the latter shows how absurd this art has become, we’d like to share just how sexy and stylish USB flash drives can be. A small company based in Germany, Thalbach Design Manufaktur, sells hand-crafted, hand-engraved wooden USB drives with up to 4GB of storage. Using a variety of woods and polishes, Thalbach provides a signature spin on your personal data storage.

Continue reading for an in-depth look at these unique USB drives– and stick around GearCravers, we’ll be giving away 4 free USB drives from our friends at Thalbach in a post later on today.

The mix tape is back, retooled for modern times while keeping the anaolog look we all know and love. Use the USB flash drive to store an hour’s worth of your favorite tunes, then pass it along to someone special in the cassette-style carrying case. This is one of the best ideas for music sharing to come along in quite some time…refreshingly devoid of any concern for the financial future of corporate record labels everywhere, and even a little romantic to boot!

Buy: Approximately $35 (U.S.)

Evergreen presents this cute Caterpillar USB hub. Looking at it one way, it looks like two airline seats back to back, but another glance makes these look like a sort of candy-colored daisy chain of suitcases. Four USB ports make this a fun way to connect those Macbooks, Macbook Pros, or Gateways and liven up the place with something besides black, silver or white. Monochrome color schemes are nice and futuristic, but slightly dull. Hooray for bright hues on perhipherals like these.

[Via]

BlueLounge makes affordable little innovations to minimalize clutter and hassle for your digital gear. Behold Cableyoyo, which organizes USB and other cables to eliminate tangled cords and keeps them neatly organized. Cableyoyo is being sold in the Notebook Kit which includes two sets of feet–one short and one tall– for laptops to help them cool and get air circulation underneath the unit. These two products together at one affordable price brings you a step closer to the minimalist desk setup you wish you had if it weren’t for all those blasted cords! It also keeps your laptop nice and cool, too.

Buy the Notebook Kit for $19.95

No more clicks, gentlemen. The Buffalo Silent Mouse is a usb Mac & PC-compatible noise-free optical mouse. It has all the typical features; scroll wheel, left and right buttons, and can be configured for lefties. If the sound of mouseclicks drives you nuts, this one’s all you. Absolutely silent!

Buy for $49.99

These rechargable AA batteries are made to be plugged into your USB ports, and until we get to the stage where every gadget known to mankind is USB-powered, Moixa’s USBCell AAs are literally the next best thing. Who doesn’t need these? All your remote controls, hand-held voice recorders, flashlights, and camera flashes all need battery power. Use the Moxias until charge is gone, flip the yellow top and plug these babies into your USB ports. There’s even an LED to tell you when the charging process is finished. Brilliant.

Buy for $20.00 a pair

How dumb will the USB revolution get? How far away from USB-powered male-enhancement kits and self-hypnosis kits are we? By the looks of this list, those two items are just around the corner. Check out the official GearCrave Top Ten Dumbest USB Gadgets Ever:

10. The USB Vacuum is truly too goofy for words. Not to mention that vacuum cleaners can generate magnetic fields when running that your hard drives don’t care for at all. And don’t worry, we’re NOT going to resort to that old wheeze about how “this vacuum really sucks”. Nope, we just aren’t going there. Buy for $19.99. <via gadgetvenue>

Check out the rest of GearCrave’s Top 10 Dumbest USB Gadgets after the jump!

You might forget the MOTORAZR Maxx Ve is a phone. It has a with a 2 mega-pixel camera, advanced editing features (eye reduction, adjustable zoom etc.) The Maxx Ve is primed for music and video, compatible with Bluetooth stereo headsets and comes with expandable transflash memory. With nearly of four hours of talk time, this is a well-rounded package. Phone, features, long battery life…sweet.

Buy for $299

Gearheads, this one’s all yours. It’s a three port USB 2.0 hub, nothing too fancy. But it is the perfect gag gift for any motorhead you know. (Or yourself, naturally.) The only thing missing here is the stink of oil, exhaust fumes, and maybe a grimy toolbox somewhere nearby. You probably already have the pin-up calendar.

Buy for $62.39