Pocket spectrum analyzer from $16 toy
Check out this repurposed IM-Me instant messaging toy turned pocket spectrum analyzer from embedded hacker Michael Ossmann. What’s more, he’s included source.
Mods
Stainless steel sharpie iPad stylus
Folks looking for a good looking stylus for their tablet/smartphone will love this variation on the standard capacitive touch stylus. Designer and mobile UX pro Craig Villamor whipped together this handsome stainless steel sharpie mod by gutting the refill housing with a drill bit and cramming a Pogo Sketch stylus in the remaining cavity. Conceivably one could forego the additional stylus and just use some conductive foam.
Willow Garage PR2 controlled with Kinect
The OpenKinect windfall keeps rolling in. The folks over at Willow Garage look like they’ve been having a blast developing an improvised teleoperation system and generally riffing on all the wonderful possibilities inspired by the Microsoft Kinect controller and OpenKinect driver.
Water scooter for disabled child
Shawnmelito on Instructables writes: THE PROBLEM: When the family goes swimming, either in a pool or at the lake, my daughter, who has Cerebral Palsy, would either just have to float around in a life jacket, or be carried around by an adult. Either way she had no independence. Also, because she is so skinny […]
My Little Pony soldering unicorn
Sparkles, here, is the creation of LA hackerspace denizen Matt Pinner, based on a concept by Sean Bonner. More pics in the Crash Space Flickr pool. “The value of something like this,” Sean observes, “is pretty obvious.”
Although it may be hard to top the My Little Pony version, this could be a fun game, for awhile. Mr. Potato Head, maybe?
Guitar Hero controller synth
What do you do with that little plastic axe once you’ve had your fill of Guitar Hero? Turn it into a real instrument, of course. Arizona maker Justin Bread added just enough components to convert his.
Mod your camera and your microscope on Make: Projects
Two fun and simple project contributions to Make: Projects this week both involve mods. The first is the above-pictured retrofitted microscope by Christoph Ziimmermann (nuess0r) from Switzerland. Christoph had access to a solid, classic microscope, but wanted to amp up its usability by adding lights. The mod ended up costing him a paltry $8. The […]
