By Nick Heath, 24 September 2009 17:20
The RatPlug, produced by OmniPlug Technologies, will download media files, such as photos and videos to any USB-enabled device - such as an MP3 or portable video player - while it's charging.
The user registers the device with OmniPlug Technologies online and sets where they want to download media from: for instance a video podcast XML feed. From then on, the device will automatically download any new media files from that source every time it's plugged in to charge.
Video files that would not normally play on a certain media player, because the video format is incompatible, will be automatically converted to compatible format by the plug. Every time a device is plugged in it will be checked against an OmniPlug database of compatible video formats and the video will be converted by the plug's built-in software.
Photos or videos from a device, such as a smartphone or camera, can also be set to automatically upload to a social networking site, using the details provided when the plug was registered.
The plug will connect to a home's broadband connection via Ethernet, wi-fi or Homeplug, which sends internet data over the mains wiring.
Founder of OmniPlug Jeremy Penston said he hopes the plug will be for sale in the shops by December this year.
Photo credit: Nick Heath/silicon.com
