We've all heard about cufflinks with flash drives inside
them - hell, we even own a few pairs, steadily gathering dust at the bottom of
a drawer, awaiting the day we're actually invited to something formal. The
thing is... surely they're a waste of real estate, as you have two wrists and a
need for only one flash drive. What to do with the other cufflink? Ravi Ratan
have it sorted with the Silver WiFi & 2GB USB Cufflinks.
Using the space afforded by cufflinks to solve some modern issues (such as where am I going to store all those funny cat videos while at a wedding?) doesn't take a massive leap of imagination. Cufflinks make great places to keep flash drives as they can be easily disguised and make perfect gifts for all those business douchebags we know. But American cuff designer Ravi Ratan has gone one step further, cleverly utilising that other link, and solving another modern problem: internet access.
That is why within the gorgeous polished silver body of one
cufflink you will discover a 2GB flash drive, and within the other you'll find
a mini USB WiFi Hotspot device. Simply whip it from the cufflink, plug into
your web-connected laptop, and then share via the hotspot your internet with
other computers, phones and tablets.
The cufflinks themselves look awesome, with a very shiny
silver body which is curved into an elliptical cross-section. The fastening bar
can be folded down to ease slipping them through the cuff holes of your shirts,
while the USB devices themselves fit very snugly into their holders and won't
budge easily or slip out accidentally.
The flash drive element is USB 2.0 which is pretty standard,
and although 2GB is a good enough storage amount, we were expecting something
in the range of 16GB. Still, transfer rates were good and the amount of storage
should be enough for quick document uploads (and copying the secret Russian
military plans onto, before leaping into your Aston Martin DB5).
The real unique function to the links is that WiFi Hotspot
device, which slots straight into your laptop and picks up the internet
connection. In order to do this your laptop must first have the relevant
programme downloaded onto it, but Ravi Ratan include a disk with the links, so
no problems there. We found that after installing the software and plugging in
the link, we had a WiFi network with a usable range of around 10 metres - more
than enough to make meetings and business seminars possible. The internet
speeds partially depends on your laptop's connection speed, but we never really
found there to be a problem. It felt very much like connecting to a WiFi
hotspot generated by a smartphone; pretty decent, just don't push it too much.
All in all, the Ravi Ratan Silver WiFi & 2GB USB
Cufflinks are a pretty remarkable gadget, combining damn fine looks with
real-world practicality.
£209.99