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Ben Heck teaches us how to make a 'PS360' gamepad
Not content with putting a PlayStation 3 Sixaxis inside an Xbox 360 gamepad and letting the world be jealous, Ben Heckendorn is showing us how to make our own PS360 controller. All you need is a Sixaxis, an Xbox 360 gamepad, various tools and circuits, and a bit of technical know-how.The end result leaves us, alongside the freakish monster of Science seen above, a Sixaxis shell and the innards of an Xbox 360 gamepad ... hmm, sounds like Heck should find a way to combine those parts into a controller and save us having to throw away perfectly good circuitry.According to the post, part 3 in the how-to make an Xbox 360 Laptop Mk II series will return next week.
Ben Heckendorn prepping his first commercial product
While you'll still have to go the DIY route to get your hands on an Xbox 360 laptop, those pining for a Ben Heck creation of their very own will soon have a slightly easier go of it, as he's now teamed up with eDimensional Inc to bring out his first commercial product. Of course, Ben's not saying exactly what his product is just yet, only going so far as to say that it's a video game accessory and it'll cost less than $100. If you're feeling particularly prognostic about that, you can head over to eDimensional's site and enter their contest, where one lucky winner will take home the mystery accessory signed by the man himself.P.S. -For those not already in the know, ol' Hecky is an Engadget columnist. We'd like to think that won't sway your feelings about his mystery product, though.[Via Ben Heck, thanks Rasmus]
Engadget's how-to make an Xbox 360 laptop (part 2)
Ben Heckendorn's back to serve as educator for all those would-be modders who wish to emulate his Xbox 360 laptop (mark II). Steps covered in the second part include designing the case, modifying the heatsink, hacking (dare we say Hecking?) apart an LCD monitor and combining the console's and monitor's power supplies. Despite the many descriptive images, explanations and downloadable resources, this project is not for the faint of heart.The final chapter of the how-to trilogy will show how to compile everything into a working beauty and is coming soon. See also: part one
Engadget: how to make your own 360 laptop
Hey, remember that super sexy Xbox 360 laptop we reported last week? Remember how we said that Engadget would be posting all the information you need to build one for your very own? Well, they've already posted parts 1 and 2 of their "how-to" series. Now, we would be putting our brains at risk of explosion if we were to try and follow the directions. As such, let's just say that building a 360 laptop involves soldering, desoldering, clipping, snipping, attaching, detaching, and magic.If you have the means, and if you can read the directions without damaging your grey matter, then you can start with part 1. If you manage to make it through that unscathed, proceed to part 2. All that remains is the looming madness of part 3. We'll let you know when it goes live.
Ben Heck creates the 360 Laptop mk2
Of all the wonderful things that can be said about the Xbox 360, "portable" doesn't usually come up. With a sizable case and a monstrous power brick, the 360 takes some effort (and preferably a comfy backpack) to haul around. Always there to heed our call, the venerable Ben Heck is at it again with the 360 laptop mk2. Many will recall his previous laptop effort, and we have to say the mk2 is definitely an improvement (the keyboard should come in handy for IM). There's no word yet as to how much the beast must have cost (HD screen = expensive), nor are there any "making of" pictures, but Engadget promises to reveal the whole process in the coming weeks. So, if you'd like to build one for your very own, stay tuned.In the meantime, hit the "read" link to check out some images and video of the 360 laptop mk2 in action.[Via Joystiq]
Ben Heck's PS360: SIXAXIS-stuffed Xbox controller
While not particularly partial to either, it's no secret that quite a few individuals seem to prefer Microsoft's Xbox 360 controller over Sony's award-winning SIXAXIS, and in the case of a particular individual who refused get his / her PS3 game on with a dual-shock controller, Ben Heck came to the rescue. In yet another instance of his DIY handiness, Ben stripped the innards from a PS3 controller, worked his PCB-bending magic, and somehow ported the functionality necessary for gaming on a PlayStation 3 into an Xbox 360 controller. Notably, this particular mod was done "on consignment," so if you've got a hankering for a couple of these yourself, we're sure Ben can make it happen. Be sure to hit the read link to see this traitor of an input peripheral in action, and click on through for a few more snapshots.[Via Engadget Chinese]
Ben Heck explains how to make Wii laptop
Remember that crazy Wii laptop Engadget commissioned from mod extraordinaire Ben Heckendorn? Well, Ben Heck was kind enough to write up a thorough how-to guide so that we can emulate his work. The third and final part of his instructional guide has been posted onto Engadget so that you can now get out your soldering iron and copies of Hardware Hackery for Dummies and give your Wii a crazy makeover. Part 1 ripped up the console. (O, the humanity!) Part 2 rearranges the parts and designs the case. Part 3 creates the casing and puts it all together. Hack, mod and enjoy, but be wary: if you screw up, a replacement will be extremely hard to find.
Ben Heckendorn updates the Atari 800 laptop mod
Will the myriad of modded consoles from Ben Heckendorn never cease? (We sure hope not.) The man who brought us the NES Micro, N64p, PPS2, Phoenix 2600, (not to mention an ongoing series of how-tos for Engadget) has finally updated his November 2005 hack of the Atari 800. That laptop, which combined a screen and the guts of the 1980s gaming system, has now been brought into the modern age (read: 2006) with a new case, a cleaner keyboard (with round keys!), and a breakout cartridge case. We particularly admire the Atari logo on the top, and Ben's usual attention to detail and a clean, efficient, design. Still, we can't wait for the day that Ben's talents get noticed by Apple, Dell, or another big-name laptop maker, so that more of the masses can be showered with his talent -- but then again, perhaps it's better that we keep him to ourselves. Check out a few more snaps on the next page, and then head over to benheck.com for his always thorough and entertaining build diary...[Thanks, technick29]
Hand it to Heck: The Xbox 360 one-handed controller
Hackmeister Übergeneral Ben Heckendorn has whipped up a handy (pun!) one-handed Xbox 360 controller, perfect for The Fugitive dude or folks who are busy multitasking. This isn't for the faint of heart, but if you've got a bit of a bug to try it out yourself, roll up your sleeves and give it a go.Seriously, is there anything this guy can't do? The thing is wireless, AND has both rumble controllers inside of it (take that, SIXAXIS!). Between this and the Xbox 360 laptop, he's a one-man hacking machine. Really. We're convinced the guy is a robot himself, with no organic parts left inside.[Via The Xbox Domain]
Look Mom, one handed 360 controller
The talented Ben over at BenHeck.com has come up with a new take on your standard Xbox 360 controller. Ben must have had the logic that using two hands on your controller is so 2005, why not just condense the control scheme and make it so you only need one hand? This modded 360 controller allows just that, only one hand required! All kidding aside, the inspiration for this mod what so that people with disabilities or those who have function of just one hand could play the 360. This is actually a great mod and very well thought out, gold star for you Ben![Via Digg][Thanks, kade]
Xbox 360 crammed into laptop form
Master of all things portable and playable, Ben Heckendorn has managed to create an Xbox 360 laptop within the space of three months. The unit weighs approximately 14 pounds, is 2.8 inches thick and, more importantly, can play Dead Rising. Through an intricate process that undoubtedly involved soldering, bending and the use of arcane magic, Ben combined the 17" HD monitor, Wi-Fi adapter, a keyboard and a water-cooling system with the innards of an Xbox 360 to produce what is likely one of the least productive (and possibly best) laptop devices we've seen yet -- this stance will likely change should robotic lap dancers suddenly become the norm.Ben's official site seems to be taking a hammering, but the page dedicated to his latest creation still appears to be functional. If you encounter problems when viewing the images (none of which depict the system placed on an actual lap), wait a few moments and refresh. If you're wondering how exactly he put it all together, you'd best start reading the article right from the beginning.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]
Benheck one-ups himself with portable nPod 2
Just as Nintendo has dropped the unwieldy designs of their past in favor of svelte, smaller designs, so too has hacker-extraordinaire Ben Heckendorn (that's Benheck to you kids). He's gone and updated the dated retro-Nintendo look of his original nPod with something decidely more Apple modern-Nintendo like. Behold: the nPod 2!The Geppetto to this Pinocchio writes, "[The nPod 2] uses a different kind of NES on a chip motherboard and is actually even smaller than my original nPod. It has an easy-to-use sliding battery pack (4 AA's that last a long time) and clean, simple styling. And lo and behold it has a headphone jack! Customization would also be possible, such as all the gray parts could be a different color, for instance."Just how small is it? "Think of 2 NES carts stacked atop each other, and that's pretty much it." Not bad, and bonus points for using Nintendo's metric of x amount of something stacked atop each other. Better still, you won't have to settle for ogling it through the dense and unloving prism of your computer screen. You'll be able to throw $250-300 (he guesstimates) down and buy one for yourself (or a loved one). Whaddya say? For the price of a Wii, are you buying?See also:Top 10 custom-built consolesNES Micro by Ben Heckendornbenheck does it again - the portable N64[Via TechEblog]
Portable N64 site lives again, mocks us
The site for this incredible portable N64 dubbed -- mysteriously -- the L64, has been presumably recuperating after a thorough digging and Engadgeting(?) last week. Worst part about it all: the L64's creator, Marshall, turned us onto his creation ten days before that! We missed the boat and we deal with the consequences; namely, not being able to show you this thing until now. Now that his site is all better, we think you'll be plenty pleased with Marshall's labor of love. His site has plenty of pix of the assembly with some added commentary. Think he might have made himself a BenHeck-killer there. So sure, Marshall just happens to work as an industrial designer with a dozen years fabbing ... what's that? Marshall says, "In fact I'm not any bigwig of the game industry, I'm just a 16 year old with too much time..." Yeah, and now we're totally dejected. Seriously Marshall, tell us you were kidding. You're a pro, right?
Top 10 custom-built consoles
TechEBlog has assembled a list of the "Top 10 Strangest Custom Gaming Systems." It should come as no surprise that more than one of their selections was created by console hacker-extraordinaire Ben Heckendorn. In addition to variants of popular consoles like the NES and Genesis, the list includes portable versions of famous flops like Atari's Jaguar, and Sega's Genesis add-on, the SegaCD. We're hoping these aren't ranked in order 'cause that portable Colecovision totally houses that NESPlusSega monolith![Via VH1's new game blog, Game Break]
NES Micro by Ben Heckendorn
Hardware hacker extraordinaire Ben Heckendorm has shoved a working NES it into a tiny little container measuring just 5.25" x 2.625" x 1.63". You thought your PSP got you looks on the subway? Whip out this bad boy, pop in an NES cartridge (blow on the cartridge first, for dramatic flair), and them other brothers can't deny that you'll be the envy of the morning commute. Hot. [Thanks, Princess Zelda]
benheck does it again - the portable N64
This guy, Ben Heckendorn, is a perfect example of how we are all put on this planet to find our talent; and to practice that talent to the best of our ability. If only we were all so lucky! Ben is at it again, this time popping the top off of an N64. He clearly struggled to retain control over the wonky Nintendo engineering, but, in the end, there was success. Now if he could just turn a PS2 slim version into a portable... [via digg]
