Ben, a graphic designer by training, gives plenty of insight into his design philosophy—he calls the process "whoring it up"—and there's plenty of oddmod eye candy to longingly gaze at.

But let's cut straight to it: this is kind of disappointing. Why? Because for every interesting new fact we learn about Ben Heck, a myth is shattered. Fantastic myths, these were! For example, he—Herr Benjamin Heckendorn—doesn't have a German accent. At all! [Engadget]

There's a storage nook for the power cord, front slot-loading Blu-ray drive, and an Iron Man Arc reactor-inspired fan grill. He also says it could have been made smaller, but he wanted to keep the big 17-inch display. Sexy! (More pics once Ben uploads them to his site).

As Ben notes in the video, it's really the vintage Atari keyboard that sells this thing. The clickity clack is unmistakable, soothing and flashback inducing all in one—he even managed to get the thing to pop up at near the same angle as the original!

Some more specs, courtesy Ben's web site:

- Base unit is Atari XEGS motherboard, as usual.
- XE 130 RAM expansion built-in.
- Uses MyIDE circuitry and custom OS ROM to use a 2.5″ PATA hard drive. Very fast! You can check out Mr Atari's site here.
- Large 15″ screen, similar to the C64 laptop but this one is better looking and shinier (obviously important)
- Uses original, new-old-stock Atari 800 keyboard. This is probably the best keyboard in the history of computing, so it was worth including, despite the complications (see story)
- Flush-mount cartridge slot.
- Amazing old-school styling!

Oh, and there's the classic Ballblazer too:

[Ben Heck via Technabob]

Though he's gutted the same Gateway 1775W laptop with 17-inch (1280 by 720) display, he writes that this design is from scratch, and has the following new features:

• Built-in Ethernet port, finally.
• Built-in WiFi adapter, as usual.
• Digital pushbutton volume control rather than a clunky knob. Different, better sounding audio amp
• Flush-mount DVD door and side panels (such as the memory card slots)
• IR sensor for the remote control.
• Two user USB ports.
• More air holes!
• Jasper motherboard.

Check out the video for more.

[Benheck via CrunchGear]

It is very similar to the first C64 laptop I built, with the key difference being it uses the newer 1541-III Ultimate SD-card based storage solution / disk emulator. USB and Ethernet ports for this device are open and available on the front of the unit.

Want it? You'll need to wait until the auction goes live. All proceeds will benefit the American Cancer Society, so really, it'd be a good deed to buy it. Right? [Ben Heck via CrunchGear]

Created by BenHeck.com forum member Hifeno, this slick little operator is perfectly suited for playing fighting games such as Street Fighter IV, but would probably get you iced pretty quickly in a game of, say, Call of Duty.

Not that you've got a shot at using this thing. It's a one-of-a-kind creation, not for sale, only for drooling over. [BenHeck.com via Technabob]

Aside from the modified disc tray and 3.5 hour battery pack, the Dream Tablet also boasts external A/V connections, so you can always hook it up to a TV should you be so inclined. Sloppy Ben Heck apostles should take note, as this tablet follows the two core precepts of console modding:

1.) It is usable, and somehow better than the original
2.) It will no be confused for a homemade dirty bomb if you take it out in public

Know these, and you shall go far. [Mod of the Week via Kotaku]

Heck took apart the kick pedal that came with GH4's drum set and used the piezoelectric switch in it, McGuyvered it into a little chamber with a diaphragm and added a tube that uses air to hit the switch. Voila, instant breath-controlled pedal!

Want to help a friend in need? Heck's posted the way to do this mod on his [website. [Hackaday]

Dubbed the PSOneP and created by a gentleman by the name of gamefreak11, this handheld Playstation is constructed mainly of balsa wood. It has a lid that houses the screen that flips up, and the most ghetto looking controller ever built into the bottom. But hey, it works, and that's certainly more than I can say about any portable console I've tried to cobble together. So kudos to you, gamefreak11, for knowing that the beauty of a portable console is not skin deep. [Ben Heck Forums]

The Sixtyfree Lite-R features a 5-inch screen, headphone jack, C-button stick, and the smallest case we've seen yet in a portable N64 mod. It's got all the buttons on a traditional N64 controller, which is no small feat, and manages to evoke the same toy-like plasticky design aesthetic as the original console. The only caveat? No batteries. The case is too small to hold an internal battery, although SifuF notes that you can clip an InfoLithium battery onto the back in addition to the standard 7.2v supply it was designed for. Take a gander at the gallery below, this is one incredible job. [Ben Heck Forums]

You should note, the GPU appears to be Jasper's major relevant revision, and it keeps the same huge heatsink found on the previous iteration—which is probably a good thing, actually. The other revision is that on-board memory stores NXE in the Jasper Xbox 360 Arcade. (It's unconfirmed as to whether or not such is true in the 60GB models of the 360.)

To pick up a Jasper of your own, look through the hole in the Xbox 360 box. You need to spot the number of amps used by the 12 volt rail—not that hard, we promise. You can spot that right next to the 12V delineation. Since the new system uses 12 amps, look for this number to read "12."

In other words, buy 12V-12 and everything is good. Buy 12V-14 and you are getting an earlier model. [Engadget]

While stomping your way around DragonForce's Through the Fire and Flames doesn't sound anatomically correct, the pedal actually allows you to, for lack of a better term, foot-double-strum (both the up and down motions count as a string pluck).

To activate the whammy, the user lifts up on their heel to release the spring-loaded rear of the pedal. Yeah, it sounds a bit confusing, but Heckendorn makes it look pretty normal in this example video. Well, as normal as geeking out to Guitar Hero will ever look, at least. [Ben Heck]

Hotness. [benheck]

We're looking forward to seeing this product, because if Ben Heckendorn's track record of making controllers, handhelds, and Xbox 360 laptops shows one thing, it's that he knows audio. – Jason Chen

Product Page [eDimensional via Ben Heck via Kotaku]

So he's designed it for a reputable company rather than just for fun, so we should be able to buy it, right? Well… maybe. According to the GamePort site, "the company that would have distributed the GamePort in stores perished after legal problems. Several other options are being discussed, including selling directly online." Awesome. Not exactly something to fill us with confidence, but who knows, maybe it'll go up for sale at some point. –Adam Frucci

Product Page [via Ben Heck via Engadget]

So far the page doesn't say what the product will be, but hopefully Ben will make enough money to buy some shirts that aren't schwag from trade shows and maybe get a non-combover haircut. You know, standard fare for electrical engineers. We should know—we're one too. – Jason Chen

Product Page [eDimensional]

It may not look like much but there was a good deal of finangling to get everything to fit and work correctly, especially the right analog stick.

Hit the jump to see the process.

– Mark Wilson

Hack Page [via gearfuse]

VCSp Rev 5.1 Prototyped at 7 Year Mark [Via Gadget Lab]

VCSp Revisions 7 [Via Kotaku]

Project Page [Via SCI FI]