It’s one thing to play with the fishes, another to take a swim with them.  Catch our drift?  But you’ll be doing neither with this bad ass Xbox 360 mod. Before you get too excited, though, you should know it’s not a working Xbox 360.  It’s been gutted and replaced with, you guessed it, coral and more.  In fact, it contains live fish, crabs, snails, and shrimp.

The maker, Spencer of Blue World Aquariums, didn’t toss everything out, though.  He used the original power supply and outfitted it with low voltage LED lighting that changes color.  And in case you were wondering, the water volume is just .45 gallons and the tank is made from glass, measuring 6″ long, 8″ tall, and 2.5″ wide.

It’s just too bad that the Xbox 360 doesn’t actually, or should we say still play games.  Because if it did, this would be the world’s most amazing Xbox 360 mod, as well as the most hap-hazardous to you and your surrounding equipment.

A few years ago Iron Man was just a mere comic book hero.  Then Robert Downey Jr. stepped into the role and suddenly the character had become the talk of Tinseltown.  The movies we’re actually a bit of a disappointment since they were poorly directed, though Downey was easily the most readeeming factor in the whole saga.  And let’s not overlook the intro scenes of Iron Man 1, which were the most entertaining and captivating.  So, while movie one and two came and went – pending any Netflix streams that is – the Iron Man costumes continue to breathe additional life into the jet powered hero.  And what better time for a new version to arrive than a few weeks before Halloween.

The Steampunk Iron Man suit recently took the “best costume” award at the New York Comic Con.  Yes, they have a NYC Comic Con, but it can’t possibly be as epic as the San Diego version, right?  That aside, it turns out that the costume is in fact a reworked costume, from the movie “Heartless: The Story of the TinMan”.  However, the lead designer didn’t sanction the work and was completed behind his back by his ex-assistant.  Nonetheless, the costume received high praise from fans as well as Stan Lee and Jon Faveru.

Just found out that the Tin Man suit was taken and modified into an “Iron Man” suit that won the costume contest at the NY Comic Con by my ex assistant. The suit was changed without my knowledge or permission and I’m royally angered by this action. It’s also sad to see that the only screen used version of the suit that exists, is now a cheapened knock off of a popular character. I don’t get people anymore and it makes me want even more to become more reclusive.

So for a minute forget that the iPhone 5 will probably be announced in the next 14 days and consider this mod that illuminates the Apple logo on the back of the svelte handset.  Awesome, right?

The mod will be available sometime mid-October, but not direct to consumer.  Either you’ll need to visit iPatch, the creator of the mod, who is located in England, or track down an expert repair shop to perform the work (they’ll need to have purchased a “franchise kit”).

They anticipate that it will cost between £50 – £100 UK ($80 – $155 US) and that doesn’t include labor costs. A bit on the expensive side, but keep in mind that it will illuminate the logo when you receive a text message or a call, and works entirely in conjunction with the handset’s screen.  So if you dim the display the logo mimics the setting and turns off when you’re engaged in a call.

The back plate is the same one found on the iPhone, so black or white is available, as well as custom colors.  The logo’s color can also be influenced by adding a filter, but when off the logo will have a frosted glass appearance, though they might add a version that displays in reflective silver.

Note that this mod will void your Apple warranty, though iPatch offers a 90 day warranty on their work.  For a small fee the iPhone can be restored to its original form, which means the iPhone’s warranty can be reinstated.

You can follow iPatch on Twitter at @iPatch_iPods, as well as Facebook and their website to stay up to date on when they’ll roll out a production version of the iPhone 4 rear apple illumination modification.

Manipulating lighting bolts has long been relegated to magicians and mad scientists.  But not any more thanks to this Microsoft Kinect hack that pairs it with a set of Tesla coils, and maps the outgoing electricity with the “players” hand position.  It looks pretty sinister but we assure you it’s in good fun.

The setup calls for the user to stand about 5-10 feet in front of the coils and flail their hands in any crazed fashion they feel is suitable to their mood or motives.  Honestly, though, we we’re hoping for a slightly more compelling mapping experience, but this should suffice until the second iteration, assuming they’re planning on one.

Via: Make

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Stuffing the couch, floor or mattress are just a few of the best (worst) known hiding places in a house.  But what about a door?  Usually doors are regarded as a gateway to concealed or protected stuff, but no one ever thinks about jamming stuff into them, right?  

This mod makes use of the space inside of a door.  You’ll need to drill out a hole and then fit it with a canister (cigar tube in this case). It’s ideal for hiding USB sticks or small amounts of money.

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Instructuable’s user “Fungus Amungus” just wasn’t satisfied with his USB flash drive setup.  So like any good tinkerer he (or she) disassembled a NES cartridge and then retrofitted an 8GB flash drive in place of the chip.

But the wow doesn’t stop there.  His next step was to convert the NES console into the port.  Hit the video after the ‘leap’, but you’ll see the NES cartridge, complete with image, mount on the desktop once inserted into the console.

It’s all rather gimmicky, but fun nonetheless.

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Perhaps the Raging Judge handgun shotgun didn’t pack enough wow factor to satiate your growing need for all things ridiculous.  Well, if so, get a load of this Revolving Shotgun.  And before you grab your wallet and head to the local gun store in hopes of picking one of these up, you should probably know that it’s a one off by a forum member at Homegunsmith.com, rhmc24.

They used a “chamber cut off 12 ga. scrap barrels, a new $10 bbl for an Italian auto shotgun” and a hammer from a 1857 Remington perc revolve.  That’s all foreign to us since we deal in gadgets, not firearms, but it sounds about right, right?

Via: Theawesomer

Fallout 3 was one of 2008′s biggest games, and Fallout: New Vegas is hotly anticipated. So plenty of fans should be impressed by this replica of the game’s A3-21 Plasma Rifle. It was created by modder Ryan Palser, and it took him five full months to complete. Hit up the read link for a full Flickr gallery of the guy’s awesome work.

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As evidenced by Iron Man 2‘s box office, Iron Man is a pretty darn popular character. So this custom Iron Man Xbox 360, created by modder Zachariah Perry Cruse, should sell for a nice price on eBay, where it’s currently up for auction. It has blue LEDs that light up to resemble Tony Stark’s power core, and a very appropriate red and gold paint job.  The console itself has a 120GB hard drive and is a model with HDMI out. Check out the video below to see the LEDs in action.

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Daft Punk are certainly a geek-approved music act. They’re in the Star Wars Cantina in commercials, and also in the upcoming Tron: Legacy. So it makes sense that some guy took 17 months to make his own version of their helmets, and documented the whole process in a video. It’s got working color LEDs and wow, is it cool looking. He’ll certainly stand out at his next club night.

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Sure, we’ve shown you portable N64 mods before, but this one has a double dose of irony. A modder has managed to take the internals of a Nintendo 64 and N64 controller and stick them in the case of a Sega Game Gear. The result isn’t the cleanest mod out there, but definitely the trippiest. If only I had a time machine, I could go back to 1996 and totally blow some minds.

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Star Wars products and mods will never, ever end. As long as there are creative geeks, there will be things like this Metal Yoda statue. Constructed by Bangkok artist Yumi Modal, this Yoda is life-size (for a puppet, anyway) and is constructed out of metal scraps and parts. Now, where’s my Chewbacca statue?

]]> http://www.gadgetreview.com/2010/06/yoda-is-totally-metal-literally.html/feed 0 http://www.gadgetreview.com/2010/06/ultimate-nerddom-lies-in-the-dr-who-tardis-mame-console.html http://www.gadgetreview.com/2010/06/ultimate-nerddom-lies-in-the-dr-who-tardis-mame-console.html#comments Mon, 28 Jun 2010 18:18:31 +0000 Chris Gullo http://www.gadgetreview.com/?p=61034

The BBC’s long-running Dr. Who series is one of the biggest hallmarks of sci-fi TV ever, and just like Star Wars or Star Trek, it has legions of devoted fans. Fans like the guy who created a fully working Tardis MAME Console that’s a 3/4ths scale replica of the time machine from the show. It closes up like an actual phone booth when not in use. But, when you want to get your classic arcade gaming on, the console pulls out to reveal a nicely detailed control center for playing thousands of (legally acquired, right) ROMS. No word yet on whether cheeky British humor is included.

Here’s a little nostalgia to end the week — an original Game Boy for you, first launched in 1989. Some modders took the venerable handheld and turn it into a not so portable, but awesome little arcade unit that plays Mario Land, Pokemon, and all the other great Game Boy games. They took out the old d-pad and replaced it with a full joystick, to boot. They’re were selling these at $149.99 on eBay a little while back, but it looks like they’re all gone…for now. Bummer.

An enterprising modder has modded his iPad to use Verizon’s 3G network after he was dissatisfied with AT&T’s network (surely, he must be the first person to think this way…not). He removed Apple’s 3G card and replaced it with the innard’s of Verizon’s MiFi, which lets users create hotspots on the go. Of course, this totally voided his warranty, but if you’re interested in learning how to do it yourself, hit up the link.

No, you didn’t see that image wrong, and you certainly didn’t fall through a Steampunk time warp where GadgetReview reports on the latest typewriter wares in Victorian London (though wouldn’t that be awesome?). That typewriter, the USBTypewriter, is a fully digital and even iPad compatible keyboard. It’s the creation of a modder named Jack Zylkin, who takes old typewriters and retrofits them with keyboard mappings. At prices between $400 and $500, these things don’t come cheap, and their speed comes at a blazing 3 WPM. But they’re certainly unique. And if you have a family typewriter heirloom you want digitized, he’ll do that too for $200.

The USBTypewriter is available now for $400-$500 from Etsy.

An ingenious custom modder has created a fully working Lee Enfield Bolt Action Sniper Rifle out of LEGO Technics. It shoots LEGOs, it has a real reload and accurate aim — everything. I can’t believe the creativity of some of these guys. Check out the video to see if yourself.

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Some enterprising Japanese modder has created the Macintosh Classic iPad stand, made from, you guessed it, an old Mac. It’s pretty funny how the size of the iPad allows it to fit within the Mac’s chassis so well. Just goes to show you how far we’ve come in twenty years. As you can see from the video, the home button is covered up, which might get a little annoying after awhile. Maybe they’ll work up a fix for that.

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For those looking to add a little ruggedness to their otherwise bare MacBook, Stick With Me Baby’s “Bros and Mos” line of hair and mustache decals for your Apple logo is sure to do the trick. There are sixteen decals to choose from, half of which are just different varieties of mustaches. Personally, I’d go for “The Badge of Honour,” which reminds me of Ron Swanson from Parks & Recreation.

[via CoolestGadgets]

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When we think of flight sims, images of cockpits and joysticks come to mind.  This flight simulator however, is anything but the aforementioned scenario.

Much like a hang glider you strap into a harness, which is attached an automotive engine crane and provides the sensation of floating   A giant fan, presumably from a fan boat, blows wind into your face creating not only another level of realism but a tiny bit of lift allowing you to maneuver.  Completing the experience is a Nintendo Wiimote, which tracks your orientation while a pair of goggles displays a realtime feed of Google’s Earth Flight Simulator.

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