Mods: Arcade Invader

Engadget (16 unread)

Redpark announces serial and RJ-11 cables for iPhone/iPod touch/iPad

Posted: February 12th, 2010, 11:28am PST by Joseph L. Flatley

Tags: adapter

It's not like we spend much time with serial cables and RJ-11 jacks these days, but we do appreciate that they have their uses, especially among industrial customers and hobbyists -- so it's no surprise that the enterprising folks at Redpark have cooked up adapters for the iPhone / iPod touch (and, presumably, the iPad). Approved by Apple as reference designs, they're not yet commercially available, but they do signal the continued expansion of iPhone / iPad functionality that we've noted with things like SD card readers, keyboard docks, and GPS car kits. So what do you think -- contemplating any iPhone mods involving RS-232 communication? PR after the break.
Continue reading Redpark announces serial and RJ-11 cables for iPhone/iPod touch/iPad
Redpark announces serial and RJ-11 cables for iPhone/iPod touch/iPad originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 12 Feb 2010 14:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Omega GM-1 lets you bring your real drum set to Rock Band

Posted: February 1st, 2010, 3:29pm PST by Donald Melanson

Tags: drum

We've already seen some mods for using a real drum set with Rock Band or Guitar Hero, but it looks like Omega Music Technology's new GM-1 system is the first off-the-shelf option, which should no doubt please the less DIY-inclined among us. Available on its own or bundled with a Pearl drum set, the system packs individual sensors that detect each drum hit with "speed and accuracy" and, most importantly for those not playing, support for mesh heads and a dampening system for the cymbals -- of course, if you opt for the drum set package, you'll also get some real drum heads. Omega is even going so far as to promote the system as an ideal way to learn to play the drums and, conversely, says that non-gamer musicians that tried it were able to start playing songs with ease immediately. Hit up the gallery below for a closer look at the complete kit, and look for the basic system to run you $249.

Gallery: Omega GM-1 lets you bring your real drum set to Rock Band
Omega GM-1 lets you bring your real drum set to Rock Band originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 01 Feb 2010 18:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Ben Heck's PS3 Slim laptop pops up for sale on Ebay

Posted: January 1st, 2010, 6:28pm PST by Laura June

Tags: ben heck

You're probably already familiar with the work of modder / hacker extraordinaire, Benjamin Heckendorn... and if you're not, well, maybe it's time to familiarize yourself with his work. Regardless, some of his fantastic handiwork has shown up on Ebay for sale, and while we don't want to counsel you to foolishlessly spend loads of hard-earned cash, this is bound to be an heirloom one day. The listing here is for Ben's PS3 Slim laptop -- the one modded from a 17-inch Gateway 1775w LCD with a 1280 x 720 pixel resolution -- and its currently at around $1,075.00 with 16 bids on it and roughly 3 days remaining. So if this kind of thing strikes your fancy (and we know that it does) hop to it! Check out our segment of The Engadget Show we filmed at Ben's evil laboratory after the break.
Continue reading Ben Heck's PS3 Slim laptop pops up for sale on Ebay
Ben Heck's PS3 Slim laptop pops up for sale on Ebay originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 01 Jan 2010 21:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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MacBook inhabits a Linksys router after ill-advised casemod

Posted: December 8th, 2009, 9:32pm PST by Joseph L. Flatley

Tags: casemod

Apple products are known far and wide for their design. Linksys products, on the other hand, are not. That's why this latest laptop mod strikes us as a little odd. When a technically-proficient gentleman named Tyler wanted to get his hands on "a working, genuine" Mac as cheaply as possible, he did what any self-respecting (and frugal) geek would do: he scrounged New Egg and eBay for MacBook parts. Why he would then turn around and cram 'em into an old router is, quite frankly, beyond us. Had he asked, we would have suggested something a bit more classy: perhaps a flashing pyramid? Why not a Timex Sinclair ZX81? Or maybe even a toaster? That said, this achievement -- while puzzling -- certainly seems to have been pulled off with not a little technical skill. If you're curious to see how it all went down (including copious step-by-step pics) hit the source link. And prepare to scratch your head in wonderment.
MacBook inhabits a Linksys router after ill-advised casemod originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Wireless USB keyboard / touchpad is more than the sum of its parts

Posted: November 25th, 2009, 12:44am PST by Donald Melanson

Tags: htpc controller

A free PDA that came with a magazine subscription in 2002? An early Peek prototype? No, this is the humbly named USB Wireless Handheld Keyboard and Touchpad that's now available from USB Geek, and it just might be the sort of device you never knew you were looking for. As the folks at CrunchGear have noted, while the device is simply being marketed as an all-in-one wireless touchpad and keyboard, it actually has all the makings of an ideal HTPC controller -- not to mention an entirely reasonable price of $62. No multitouch, no LCD -- just a plain old trackpad, a wireless USB dongle, and a QWERTY keypad that should be adequate enough for tweeting your reaction to the TV show remake du jour. Video after the break.

Update: And here comes a review!
Continue reading Wireless USB keyboard / touchpad is more than the sum of its parts
Wireless USB keyboard / touchpad is more than the sum of its parts originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 03:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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OS Xbox Pro casemod build video is mesmerizing

Posted: November 24th, 2009, 2:44pm PST by Nilay Patel

Tags: case mod

We've certainly seen plenty of hackintoshes in our time, but Will Urbina's OS Xbox Pro is also one of the cleanest casemods we've ever seen. Built so that Will can run Final Cut Pro for his job as a video editor, the machine is based on an EFI-X hackintosh dongle, and inside it sports an 2.93GHz Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550s paired with an NVIDIA GeForce 9800GT card, 8GB of RAM, an 16GB SSD, and four traditional hard drives: one each to boot Windows 7 and OS X, and two 500GB 7,200rpm drives in a RAID0 array for video editing. Will says his total parts cost was under $1,500 for a system that matches a $4,500 Mac Pro, but that obviously doesn't include the value of his time -- which, judging by the totally captivating build video, should be plenty expensive. Check it below.
Continue reading OS Xbox Pro casemod build video is mesmerizing
OS Xbox Pro casemod build video is mesmerizing originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Nov 2009 17:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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ION Cube case mod wins NVIDIA design contest

Posted: November 13th, 2009, 11:24am PST by Donald Melanson

Tags: desktops case mod

We haven't seen a ton of ION-based case mods just yet, but it looks like NVIDIA itself has kick started the scene in a pretty big way with a case mod design contest, and it's now crowned a winner. Built by Bill Owen of Mnpctech.com, the so-called ION Cube draws on a few fairly obvious influences, and makes use of a combination of CNC milled sheets of aluminum and laser cut pieces of acrylic which, combined with the rest of the build, apparently took over a hundred hours to complete. On the inside, and one of the impetuses for the contest, is the ZOTAC ION ITX 330 motherboard, which is intended for small, low-power systems just like this (and less flashy ones, too). Head on past the break a video, and hit up the link below for a look at the build.
Continue reading ION Cube case mod wins NVIDIA design contest
Filed under: Desktops
ION Cube case mod wins NVIDIA design contest originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Nov 2009 14:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Portable NES modded into a cartridge, hearts modded into love

Posted: October 11th, 2009, 4:03pm PDT by Nilay Patel

Tags: gaming cartridge

digg_url = 'http://digg.com/nintendo/Portable_NES_modded_into_a_cartridge_hearts_modded_into_love'; We've seen NES mods that incorporate a screen and controls into a cartridge in the past, but this example from Airz in BenHeck's forums is just so clean and well-polished that we had to give it some love. Inside Airz says it's just a generic Chinese media player that can play NES, Gameboy, and Gameboy Color ROMs, along with the relevant controller bits, a 2.8-inch LCD, 4GB of storage, and a rechargeable battery. Oh, and if you're feeling particularly retro, you can hook it up over TV-out and play on the big screen. Not bad -- and it's for sale if you're as in love as we are. Video after the break.

[Via 8bitfix; thanks, Gusto]
Continue reading Portable NES modded into a cartridge, hearts modded into love
Filed under: Gaming
Portable NES modded into a cartridge, hearts modded into love originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 11 Oct 2009 18:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Acidmods moves a few buttons and a joystick on Xbox 360 controller

Posted: October 5th, 2009, 8:27am PDT by Laura June

Tags: gaming acidmods

Hey, not all mods are outlandish and creepy. Some are just plain old... utilitarian. Acidmods got a request for a modded Xbox 360 controller that would move the X, Y, A, and B buttons and the right joystick. The fully functional finished product looks a little odd to the eyes, of course, but it's also done so well that it looks like a stock unit. As you'll see in the video after the break, the modded controller would take some getting used to for most of us, but it sure has character.
Continue reading Acidmods moves a few buttons and a joystick on Xbox 360 controller
Filed under: Gaming
Acidmods moves a few buttons and a joystick on Xbox 360 controller originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 10:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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PSP Go scores its first mod job, a handful of white LEDs find a new purpose in life

Posted: October 3rd, 2009, 2:21pm PDT by Paul Miller

Tags: gaming handhelds hack

">[acidmods.com] Who knows what it is about the PSP that engenders such a loyal following of hackers -- both on the hardware and software side. Some of the hardware hacks we've seen are no doubt more impressive than others, but they're all united in a common disregard for warranties and for the most part a deep affection for LEDs. The first PSP Go mod we've seen, done up by roro3030 over at AcidMods, keeps things simple with some strategic, tasteful white LED placement. It's all internally powered and pretty seamless, and provides a nice jumping off point for a community that will be no-doubt eager to consume the PSP Go as a new challenge -- even if the rest of us are busy making frowny faces at that endlessly derided price tag. Video of the lit-up Go is after the break.
Continue reading PSP Go scores its first mod job, a handful of white LEDs find a new purpose in life
Filed under: Gaming, Handhelds
PSP Go scores its first mod job, a handful of white LEDs find a new purpose in life originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 03 Oct 2009 16:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Computer scientist mods Xbox 360 to detect heart attacks, girls still mysteriously elusive

Posted: September 26th, 2009, 1:04pm PDT by Laura June

Tags: gadgets gaming science

">[https:] We've seen so many mods around here that sometimes it's truly hard to get excited over the minor stuff. Well, this doesn't fall into that category in any way. A computer scientist at the University in Warwick has developed a method to use Microsoft's Xbox 360 to detect heart defects and help prevent heart attacks. Based on a demo created by Simon Scarle a few years back when he worked at Rare studio, it's based on a modded chip that -- instead of producing graphics for the game -- now produces data tracking how the electrical signals in the heart moves about damaged cells, creating a model of it. The model can then be used to help doctors to identify defects and disturbances in the heart's beating. This significantly decreases the costs and complications of creating a model of the heart, which is currently done by supercomputers and is very expensive. Scarle's project and findings were just published in the August issue of the Journal of Computational Biology and Chemistry. Looks like we'll all have a response the next time someone tells us that gaming is good for nothing, right?

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Gaming, Science
Computer scientist mods Xbox 360 to detect heart attacks, girls still mysteriously elusive originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 26 Sep 2009 15:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Original Game Boy repurposed as external hard drive

Posted: September 12th, 2009, 12:23pm PDT by Darren Murph

Tags: handhelds storage diy

Okay, so maybe this here mod isn't nearly as extreme as shoving an entire PC into the case of a classic Game Boy, but it's still pretty fantastic in its own right. Completed at some point during the dog days of summer, the 80GB Game Boy had its innards stripped and replaced with parts that enable a 2.5-inch 80GB SATA HDD to operate beautifully as a standard USB hard drive. The display you see here is (unfortunately) an illusion, as it's simply a professional-looking still insert that merely gives the impression of it paying Game Boy titles while offloading spreadsheets. Now, if someone could figure out how to make it pull double duty...

[Via technabob]
Filed under: Handhelds, Storage
Original Game Boy repurposed as external hard drive originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 12 Sep 2009 14:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Man turns luggable 25-year-old cellphone into OLED-packing HTPC

Posted: August 27th, 2009, 8:33am PDT by Tim Stevens

Tags: cellphones homeentertainment Jani Japala Pnkk

Do you remember the Mobira Talkman? No? That's okay, you may not have been born yet. In 1984 this was what all the sierra hotel financial traders had glued to their faces -- and clutched to their hips, since the thing was as big as a briefcase. 25 years later skilled modder Jani 'Japala' Pönkkö came across a free (and fully-functional) example and set upon completing his dream of turning it into an HTPC, which he has called the Dataman. Inside he managed to pack an Intel T5500 Core 2 Duo processor, 1GB of DDR2 memory, a 32GB SSD, and a wireless network card. The 40-hour mod is laboriously detailed in photos at the read link, while the fruits of all that labor are shown in videos after the break, the first showing the pre-mod phone still working perfectly -- but complaining about the lack of network (like the Russian Empire's rule of Finland, the NMT network is long gone) -- and the second showing that green LCD replaced by a rather more colorful OLED one.

[Via The UberReview]
Continue reading Man turns luggable 25-year-old cellphone into OLED-packing HTPC
Filed under: Cellphones, Home Entertainment
Man turns luggable 25-year-old cellphone into OLED-packing HTPC originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Aug 2009 10:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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DIY cameraphone macro lens requires one old DVD player, zero tech savvy

Posted: August 25th, 2009, 4:35pm PDT by Joseph L. Flatley

Tags: cellphones digitalcameras cameraphone

You know, we wish we could say that there was more to this DIY cameraphone macro hack than tearing the lens out of an old DVD player and duct taping it over that of the cameraphone -- but there really isn't. And you know what? That's OK. Some of the best mods are simple -- so long as they work. And this one seems to work quite well, at least judging by the "before and after" shots after the break. And if you hit the read link, there's even more where those came from. Now, if you'll excuse us, we have an old optical disc drive to smash open.

[Via Make]
Continue reading DIY cameraphone macro lens requires one old DVD player, zero tech savvy
Filed under: Cellphones, Digital Cameras
DIY cameraphone macro lens requires one old DVD player, zero tech savvy originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Aug 2009 18:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Portable SNES mod is slick enough to hit retail

Posted: August 14th, 2009, 9:44am PDT by Vladislav Savov

Tags: gaming handhelds console

digg_url = 'http://digg.com/nintendo/Portable_Super_Nintendo_Mod_is_Awesome'; Sometimes mods go to such lengths that words like 'homebrewed' and 'DIY' no longer do them justice. Presenting the Nintendo SNES Portable. Not the first, and probably not the last of its kind, this bad boy mobilizes Nintendo's venerable console with a few buttons from a PSOne controller and a ridiculously detailed skinning job -- yes, even the packaging gets a makeover. The sheer nostalgic overload at the sight of it must be worth something to Nintendo, no? There's not a person, with both a heart and a history of gaming, that can glance at that bulky unwieldy-looking thing and not break into a wistful smile. Really, we dare you. More snaps after the break.
Continue reading Portable SNES mod is slick enough to hit retail
Filed under: Gaming, Handhelds
Portable SNES mod is slick enough to hit retail originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 14 Aug 2009 11:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Modder hacks PSP for DualShock 2 control, proves kids aren't worthless

Posted: August 13th, 2009, 6:56am PDT by Darren Murph

Tags: gaming diy

Okay, so there's at least a sliver of a chance French modder Flasheur got his inspiration from an eerily similar mod last year that involved Sony's PlayStation Portable and an original DualShock controller, but hey, progress is progress. This time around, we're looking at a rather dashing blue PSP and a DualShock 2, and while the actual modding process looks to have taken a different route (three connections on the rear versus one on the side), the end result is the same. Bliss. Pure bliss. Hop on past the break for an entirely-too-lengthy video demonstrating the hack in action, and hang tight for a DualShock 3 iteration to surface in 5, 4, 3...

[Via Slashgear]
Continue reading Modder hacks PSP for DualShock 2 control, proves kids aren't worthless
Filed under: Gaming
Modder hacks PSP for DualShock 2 control, proves kids aren't worthless originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 13 Aug 2009 08:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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