An MP3 player for your wallet

The Wallet MP3 is only slightly thicker than a credit card, and it plugs directly into a PC. Image: Jon Fortt

LAS VEGAS – At the Consumer Electronics Show, you often find those geeky product gems tucked away in a little booth away from the action. That’s where I spotted the Wallet MP3.

It’s an MP3 player the size of a credit card, complete with a USB connector that plugs into a computer. (It actually works; I tried it.) Walletex, the Israeli company that makes them, says the card gets five hours of battery life and charges via USB in 90 minutes. It holds 2 gigabytes worth of music, twice as much as Apple’s (AAPL) iPod shuffle.

Why would you want an MP3 player the size of a credit card? If you have to ask, you lack geek cred. It’s cool because it’s weird. Good luck getting your hands on one, though; Walletex doesn’t do retail. They sell these, and identical card-size storage drives, to businesses that want to offer snazzy giveaways to their clients.