DIY Gadgets
Making your own or hacking gadgets can be great fun, hear we share the various DIY gadget projects that we’ve found or done.
Giant Optimus Prime statue sees rainbow gush from my mouth
There is just one thing about robots that tend to fascinate mankind – otherwise, how else do you explain the amount of money raked in by the Transformers franchise over three films, despite the fact that the second and third parts were unable to live up to the first movie in terms of storytelling and fleshing out of its characters? Not to mention other robot films and cartoons that had made an impact in our lives all these years, too. For those who feel that they have this strange attraction to Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots, here is one memento that you definitely could make do with in your living room – a 2.7 meter tall Optimus Prime.
I am quite sure in real life (fictionally speaking, that is – I know that came across as weird), he is far taller than this, but considering this is a hand-made effort that was built using recycled metal, useless auto parts as well as other machines, it is a true masterpiece. The asking price for this half ton behemoth? We are looking at $10,500 here, and that does not even take into account shipping costs.
Internal Combustion Engine Kit
Ever wondered how your vehicle’s engine worked, if you are like one of the many millions out there with a standard car? Well, if you are curious enough to find out, there is always a Flash animation somewhere online to discover, but some of us prefer touching the real thing in our hands. The $49.95 Internal Combustion Engine Kit would be able to do the job just right, where it boasts of a working 1/10 scale model of a 4-cylinder internal combustion engine. This kit will feature more than 100 ABS plastic parts that will work in unison, as long as you use the included tools the right way.
The Haynes Manual that comes with it will help guide the entire construction process to completion, boasting step-by-step instructions as well as vivid, clearly printed diagrams. The transparent cylinder block will let you check out just how the connected parts work in tandem to get your vehicle up and running, while small applications of vegetable oil provide the necessary lubrication required. As for the engine itself, it will operate thanks to a small battery-powered electric motor that runs off a couple of AA batteries. I would say that I myself am mesmerized to see it work.
Portal Christmas Tree
Fans of the video game Portal as well as its sequel will definitely be able to jive with this cute looking Christmas tree – especially when one half of it is sinking down into the floor, while the other half cheekily pokes it’s top out from the ceiling. The light effects that comprise of the rings on both the bottom and the top also add to the overall effect, and good thing none of the presents were harmed or split into half – in fact, there are no presents whatsoever under the tree, simply because the law of gravity would supercede whatever portals that open up, and the presents would just fall down onto the floor, through the portal, and back again – ad infinitum. Best to stash this year’s goodies elsewhere in a safe and stable place, don’t you think so? That must be some special kind of glue used to make sure the top part of the tree remains stuck to the ceiling throughout this Christmas season.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, played with a Kinect
Last summer at E3, Microsoft announced at they were putting out some very cool games for the Xbox 360 Kinect.
I will leave it up to you to decide whether or not the holiday games for the Kinect are up to par. One of the biggest games on the market for the Xbox 360 is Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, and this man that you see in the upper corner of the image has figured out how to link the Kinect with this popular fantasy game.
You can watch a video after the jump, and I will have to say that it gives me hope for a more active video game future. You can see that sword slashes and spells are done with realistic pushes of the hand, but another hand is controlling the camera. Other commands are done with the power of voice.
Continue reading » The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, played with a Kinect
A DIY Privacy Monitor I could use in public
The site Instructables generally has some terrific DIY projects that you can try at home, and this one is definitely up there with one of their greatest.
As you can see in the image and the video after the jump, it is essentially making a monitor that only a special set of glasses can see. What Instructables user diimovi did was disassemble a monitor, remove the polarizing film, and then glue a cutout made from this film to a pair of 3D glasses, the types that you get at movie theaters and have to return at the end of the film.
Too bad I don’t really have any electronics that I can try this out on. Occasionally, I like to do work at the library or a coffee shop, and I am a little concerned about the information people might see on my computer.
Continue reading » A DIY Privacy Monitor I could use in public
Check out this DIY Wrist-mounted crossbow
I always like seeing DIY projects like this, especially if they are weapons. This wrist-mounted crossbow looks like it could do more than a little damage.
Designed by Patrick Priebe, it would have been already been classified as one of our coolest gadgets if he would have just made a wrist-mounted crossbow. Instead, the creator took it a step further and gave it a laser sight.
You can watch the video after the jump to see it hit some balloons, light bulbs, soda cans, and other targets. You will note how accurate that it is, and you can see how it is powered by two AA batteries.
Continue reading » Check out this DIY Wrist-mounted crossbow
First man-made electric helicopter constructed by Frenchmen
A while ago, I remember covering an inspirational story about a Chinese man who builds his own helicopter. I am just as inspired by Pascal Chretien, a French man who has created the first fully electric helicopter.
Mr. Chretien does not work for any big company, he is an electronics and aerospace engineer who practically built this craft single-handed. Considering that the big helicopter company Sikorsky has been trying to perfect their own electric helicopter known as the Firefly for years, Mr. Chretien’s accomplishment is quite impressive.
Yes, Chretien’s flew only three feet off the ground for two minutes and 10 seconds. Like most great feats of aviation, giant steps are often small ones. Think about the Wright Brothers’s 100-foot flight.
Continue reading » First man-made electric helicopter constructed by Frenchmen
MIT Student creates his own grappling-hook gun
Grappling hook guns. From Batman to Rorschach from Watchmen, everybody wants them, but nobody really makes them. Unless there is some sort of spy company that actually makes them. Sort of like Q did for James Bond.
An MIT mechanical engineering student has essentially given the world what it wants as he has created a full-functioning grappling hook gun.
You can see a video of it after the jump, and it is made with some ordinary parts like a chemical fire extinguisher, copper pipe, hose clamps, blowgun, a 20 ounce CO2 canister, and it is mounted on NERF N-Strike Raider Rapid Fire CS 35.
Continue reading » MIT Student creates his own grappling-hook gun
