Gizmodo: kits

Super-Sleek Aurora Open Source DJ Mixer Can Be Built From a Kit

John Mahoney — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 18:00:00 EDT

We love open source hardware, especially when it can throw some MIDI flange and fade into your party like the Aurora—a dual-channel, USB-powered DJ mixer. All the schematics, bills of materials and source code can be nabbed for free online, or you can have one built and shipped. And it can pull off a pretty mean LED lightshow...

Here the ump-shh ump-shh is dished out by Ableton Live, with effects being controlled by the Aurora.

[Aurora via Hack A Day]

RoboPhilo: A Humanoid Robot for Less Than $500

Sean Fallon — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 14:50:22 EDT

If you have always been interested in humanoid robotics, but found the price of entry to be a little more than your budget could handle, the RoboPhilo may be the solution. Designed for the entry level enthusiast, the RoboPhilo packs the functionality of more complex and expensive robots into a much more affordable package. He comes complete with 20 servos that control the head, waist, thighs, and joints along with a controller with 24 servo channels and up to an 8 I/O interface. You can even hook him up to your PC and program him to execute your personalized movements.

You can get RoboPhilo fully assembled for $500, and even less if you purchase the kit. It's not dirt cheap by any means, but most other kits will cost you up to three times that amount. Even if you have some money to burn, picking a few of these up may be an attractive option. You could be well on your way to assembling an army of 13-inch-tall robots programmed to terrorize the kneecaps of your enemies. And by the looks of some of the images below, he knows some karate. [RoboPhilo via Robots Dreams]

RFID Experimentation Kit

Travis Hudson — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 15:15:27 EST

The RFID Experimentation Kit is the toy I always dreamed of owning. This kit includes over 12 different types of RFID tags, a USB RFID reader and a book full of fun projects. It does require a minimal amount of technical knowledge, but the kit includes every piece of hardware needed to complete basic and even advanced RFID projects. Think of it as your child's introduction to stalking. It is available for $100 and, unfortunately, is currently on backorder from Thinkgeek. –Travis Hudson

Product Page [Via Popgadget]

DIY Home Projectors

johnb — Mon, 26 Jun 2006 12:12:12 EDT

Not unlike homebrew beer kits, DIY projector kits are an easy to make projectors in the comfort of your own home. Unlike homebrew beer kits, however, a bottle skunky self-made beer won't burn your house down if you make it wrong.

The folks at LumenLab are here to help. They have a full DIY kit, forums, and free instructions on creating your own HD projector for pennies. While it may require a degree in electronics and a underdeveloped fear of death, it seems like an interesting way to rock your own 120" screen. – John Biggs

Product Page [LumenLab via TechDigest]

Mini Catapult and Trebuchet Kits

gizmodo.com — Thu, 13 Apr 2006 18:29:34 EDT

One of our favorite episodes of Junkyard Wars was the pumpkin-flinging catapult competition so when we saw these functional mini catapult and trebuchet kits we briefly but immediately wished we lived somewhere with a yard big enough to use them—the catapult can hurl things ten feet and the trebuchet twenty, so they wouldn't be much fun in a New York apartment unless you live in an industrial loft or don't mind potentially breaking all your stuff.

The catapult will set you back $19.99 and the trebuchet costs ten bucks more; if you get one or both, send us photos of the mayhem, we like to live vicariously through our readers. In the meantime maybe we'll just get a Monty Python Cow Catapult for fun around Gizmodo HQ.

Catapult and Trebuchet Kits [ThinkGeek, via Uncrate]