That's the DVD player, modded to look like it's spinning one of the original LPs.

More DVD player, now with more lights!

And more lights...

And the internals. Inside is a Core 2 Quad CPU and a RAM cooler to counter overheating. [Case Mod Blog via Technabob]

ILM Research Engineer Bhautik Joshi disassembled his iPhone only to stuff in part of his DVD player, the laser pickup, which houses three miniature magnifying lenses. These lenses are what made it possible for the iPhone to accept the light/images beaming through the 18-55mm lens, which was carefully positioned through PVC pipe, duct tape and cursing.

The results?
(iPhone left, modded version right)

The Phone-O-Scope doesn't take especially superb images, and it's a bit clumsy to handle. On the other hand, it's fun to shoot with and produces very analog (almost Holga-like) results.

We're just glad someone did it, finally, so we didn't need to duct tape our iPhone to our dSLR Flight of the Conchords style. [captin nod via MAKE via OhGizmo!]

The original 1.2GHz Core 2 Solo U2200 processor (which was soldered in place) has been swapped with a 1.33GHz Core 2 Duo overclocked to 1.438GHz. And the 48GB SSD is replaced with a fast RunCore ProIV 128GB SSD. Amazingly, the battery life is said to be pretty much the same.

It's a pretty involved mod, but it's a hackintosh I'd definitely like to take for a spin. That 4.5-inch touchscreen doesn't look too bad, either. [MicroPCTalk via UMPC Portal via SlashGear]

For sale November 30th in a limited run of 200 units, the kits run around $125 (plus the cost of buttons, as I understand). As for the final built product, it features 16 programmable buttons and LEDs that allow you to cue your MIDI samples with all the finesse of button mashing Shredder to death.

The only possible point of improvement would be a coin slot mandating occasional quarter-purchased continues. Or, you know, the addition of even more buttons (which is technically feasible with some modification to the kit). [djtechtools via MAKE]

Using a hacked Powermat, this plank of wood becomes a full capable inductive charger. Why do I find this so superior to the original product? Most tables are built from wood, and this technique would allow a tabletop, with no special gimmicks on top, to charge your gadgets.

And it's the potential for passive, seamless integration that makes inductive charging so attractive to me, not just the lack of plugs. [Instructables via CrunchGear]

Maximum PC's how-to uses 3D picture synchronization software called StereoData Maker, a nonvolatile firmware update based on the Canon Hack Development Kit (CHDK).

You'll then need to build a mounting rig, and use a small enclosure (such as an Altoids tin) to make a simple USB switch remote. Free software called StereoPhoto Maker is used for post-processing. And yeah, you'll still need a pair of red/cyan glasses. Still, it looks like fun. Full instructions at: [Maximum PC]

The system was built by Bill "Overkill Bill" Owen from mnpctech, based on a winning render by "Cheapskate". The worklogs of all the finalist mods are fun to flick through, and the hundreds of hours of work that went into the Cube's CNC milled sheets of aluminum and laser cut pieces of acrylic look worth it to me. [Modders-Inc and Mnpctech]

Full specs:

ION ITX-A-U Specifications
Processor 1.6 GHz Intel Atom 330
533 MHz FSB
Chipset NVIDIA MCP7A-ION
System Memory, Dual channel DDR2 667 DIMM slots
Up to 4 GB of memory
VGA Integrated NVIDIA GeForce 9400M Graphics
Supported Resolution 1920 x 1440 (VGA)
Expansion Slots PCI Express Mini Card (wireless card pre-installed)
Onboard IDE None
Onboard Serial ATA 3 SATA (3 Gb/sec.) connectors (RAID 0, 1, 0+1)
Onboard USB 10 USB 2.0
Onboard LAN Realtek RTL8211C GbE 10/100/1000
Onboard Audio Realtek ALC662 5.1 channel HD codec
Back Panel I/O 6 USB 2.0 ports
1 VGA port
1 DVI-I port
1 HDMI port
1 eSATA port
1 LAN port
1 PS2 keyboard port
2 S/PDIF-out ports (coaxial/optical)
3 Audio jacks: line-out, line-in, mic-in
1 DC jack
Onboard I/O Connectors 3 SATA connectors
4 USB 2.0 via 2 pin headers
1 RS-232 COM pin header
1 Front panel audio pin header
1 Front panel pin header
2 Fan pin headers
4-pin Molex connector (for peripheral power)
BIOS AMI BIOS 8 Mb flash memory
System Monitoring & Management: System power management, RTC timer
Operating Temperature 0ºC ~ 50ºC
Power DC 19 V @ 4.74 A
Form Factor: Mini-ITX (17 x 17 cm)
Includes Driver CD
Backplate
CPU fan
90 W AC adapter & cord
Wireless antenna
3 SATA cables
1 SATA power cable

Our first mod is a relatively recent one. The modder took a nice, fully functioning Super Mario Bros./Duck Hunt combo cartridge, gutted it, and turned it into an admittedly clean and portable NES emulator. Sure, the gutting made most of my 1986 memories fade into a terrifying pit of blackness, but at least this wasn't a golden Legend of Zelda cartridge or anything.

Christ! That's ugly. But pimpin' ain't easy, so we'll give it a break. Unfortunately for me, my psyche receives no such break, and I am reduced to but two hearts, and my Master Sword no longer shoots laser beams.

The greatest platformer ever created by human hands, now a lowly 160GB USB drive. When will the insanity end?

Never, apparently. A mere month before the Super Mario Bros. 3 USB "creation" came to light, someone took a classic Game Boy, removed everything in it that made it a timeless piece of video game lore, and replaced it with a hard drive. Half a heart left, and there's this incessant beeping in my ears. Jack needs food, badly.

When I grip an NES control pad in my hands, its hard edges digging unforgivably into the soft flesh, I go to my happy place. When modder Taylor Merrill does the same, he hears the theme song from Sanford and Son. He also hears friends and relatives because he managed to get a Samsung Eternity phone into the controller that defined a generation of early console gamers. Good for you all. My childhood just ran into a goomba, jumped straight up into the air, and fell off the screen.

First you'll need to get iXtreme LT, which'll attempt to return your console to a playable state. The catch is that you need to know your CPU code and that the instructions rely on a lot of different (free) tools.

Has anyone used this or another workaround to get their Xbox playing again? [DailyTech via Crunchgear]

A project of Garnet Hertz of the Pasadena Art Center College of Design, this is a classic OutRun arcade cabinet that's been placed on an EVT America Electric Trike with electric motors that can go up to a whopping 20MPH.

Check out the below video to see a bit more about how this thing will work.

[ConceptLab via Jalopnik]

The previous design was a lot sleeker, and placed the controls on the side. But it didn't have those awesome nubs. A test run of those units were shipped to selected people in February, and early feedback, plus a "sleepless night", lead to the updated, bigger look.

You'll need to Jailbreak your iPhone, but the iControlPad is supported by some of the biggest iPhone devs (including ZodTTD's PSX and GBA emulators). If you're interested in placing a pre-order, sign up for the newsletter over at: [iControlPad]

Loading stock discs from a wickedly exposed spinning disc drive on the back of the device, this "Gamecube" is ironically constructed from almost everything but the charming purple box. Inside this body, you'll find a Datamax Kid's Delight, Dreamcast Quantam Fighterpad, Wii Classic controller (3rd Party), and most of the components from the PSOne portable screen.

It's all fun and games until one particularly dexterous jump in Super Mario Sunshine costs someone a finger. [benheck forums via Engadget]

That's why the red tape marking the maze is really only there for the video. The player sees a virtual representation on screen, and the ghost roombas use internal odometry with a positioning system to find their way around, and avoid each other.

Now they just need those LED-lights that make Pac-Man chomp in the dark. [Roomba Pac-Man via Engadget]

Built using our spare time, Roomba Pac-Man is designed to showcase the extensive Unmanned Aerial System software suite that we have developed to support our personal research. It was also a great opportunity to use some of our skills for our own entertainment. As a disclaimer, our research center, RECUV, is not affiliated with the project, and the work done here, while utilizing some software we were paid to develop at CU, is the sole creation of those listed at the bottom of the page.

A lot, apparently. To actually play games on this SNEGENES P portable, you have to jam actual cartridges into the back of the portable.

It's not an issue for collectors, obviously, but in this day and age of cheap emulators it seems a bit excessive. Let's see a lite version.

Note: The modder recorded the demo video incorrectly. This system doesn't actually play games in reverse. [Ben Heck Forums via Technabob]

Concept renders from the movie's pre-production, here, if you're into it. Hooo! [Xbox Freedom]

The new sticker, found under the faceplate (just like the old one), looks a bit bigger and features both a code and a mysterious black bar.

Maxconsole forum members already came up with some interesting/believable theories: Could this code be tracked to your serial number, in case you open the machine and want to seal it back up with a fraudulent sticker? Could this black bar be heat-sensitive tape that would change color should you try the classic hot box trick to repair an RRoD? Could this sticker contain a tiny capsule of cyanide meant to crack under duress, eradicating the modding community one lonely guy at a time?

We don't know. But what seems obvious is that Microsoft is taking their warranty stickers a bit more seriously.

For reference, here's what the old sticker looked like:

Go nuts with accusations in the comments while we wait for Microsoft to give us an official answer. [Logic-Sunrise via Maxconsole]

(Of course, that heat savings comes at the price of an unspeakable icky factor.)

Then again, if Microsoft had used this simple engineering trick in the design of the 360, just imagine all of the RRoDs that could have been avoided, you know, because no one would have bought the console to begin with. [Llama's Forums via technabob via DVICE]

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]