Modding - Page 2

Fandom can be wonderful, where passion and dedication can lead to some truly impressive feats. Case in point, The Time Trekking Technologist and his Star Trek-inspired Shuttle PC created in part to celebrate the new Star Trek Picard TV series. With three months of design, 3D printing, painting, and wiring, the DIY PC build is always exciting to see.

The video covering the build is a fun watch, as it covers the build and includes some of the 3D printing failures. There are some excellent touches, with the windows acting as vents for cooling and the power and reset buttons assigned to panels next to the windows.

There's some clever PC-building expertise, too, with additional Noctua fans used to vent air like an actual working engine on the back. There are even hidden USB ports on the front alongside the motherboard and other parts being installed on panels that can easily slide in and out.

When it comes to handheld gaming in 2023, there's the Nintendo Switch, and then there's Valve's Steam Deck - one being a traditional Nintendo-style console and the other being a portable gaming PC. What if you could hack the Switch to make it run Steam and fire up PC games? Wouldn't that turn it into a Nintendo Switch Deck or a Steam Switch?

That's the question YouTuber SpikeHD set out to answer and hopefully pull off - except it was impossible using existing tools and hacks. The idea is sound; a jailbroken Switch can run Ubuntu, so there should be a way to run the Linux version of Steam on the Nintendo console.

It's worth pointing out that only older models (from the console's launch) can be hacked in the first place, but that wasn't what ultimately led to the Steam Switch journey ending. Even though that requires a lot of SD card action bypassing boot loaders and compiling and even shorting connections on the Joy-Con rails to get working.

Manufacturers have been toying with new smartphone form factors in recent months. The most notable new form factor has been folding smartphones. We've seen some that bring dual screens with a separate second screen. A new smartphone form factor has turned up in the form of a leaked LG device rumored to be codenamed the LG Wing.

The top screen is said to rotate, allowing it to be swung from portrait to landscape position uncovering a second screen beneath. In the leaked image the second screen acts as a keyboard. When unfolded, the LG Wing resembles the letter "T." We most certainly aren't sure the LG Wing is anything more than a hastily photoshopped device.

There are some rumors about hardware to go along with the leaked image. Those rumors suggest that the Wing will use a Snapdragon 7-series processor and have a 64-megapixel primary camera. The main screen is said to be 6.8-inches. We could see the form factor getting a YouTube usage experience similar to what the Galaxy Z Flip features.

The force is strong with DIY electronic toymaker, littleBits. They have just released an amazing toy that is supposedly aimed for users in the age bracket of 8-12 years old. Introducing the 11-inch tall, fully-functional R2D2 Droid Inventor Kit. The R2D2 Droid kit features everything you need to get your own R2D2 droid moving around your living room bleeping and whistling with 20 authentic sounds directly from the Star Wars movies.

The accessories kit consists of 20 parts that snap together magnetically, so no screws are required. 3 sticker sheets that allow yourself children to customize R2D2 to their liking. Electronically, we see DC and servo motors, 9V battery, proximity sensor that detects hand movements for Force Drive and also detects objects in its path and more.

The most interesting part is the control hub, effectively the Droid's brain that allows communications with your smart device using Bluetooth technology. With the use of the free Droid Inventor Training app, users can view video instructions ,program secret missions by drawing maps for their droid and simply control their droid, making this app an essential tool.

Samsung is just days away from unveiling its new Galaxy Note 8 smartphone, with what looks like a big emphasis on the rear-facing camera, which I think will be one of the first big tease of Qualcomm's next-gen camera tech.

Qualcomm held an intimate conference at SIGGRAPH a few weeks ago, showing off what I think will be one of the larger steps in smartphone camera technology (something you can read here). But now Samsung's marketing hype train is in full swing for the Galaxy Note 8, which is being unveiled on August 23... next week.

In the embedded video above, you can see the 'infinity' zoom that Samsung should bake into the Note 8. Samsung will be using a dual camera rig on the Note 8, and I'm sure there will be some impressive tricks up Samsung's sleeve.

AMD launched its new EPYC 7000 series processors last week, and now GIGABYTE is one of the first to unveil its new MZ30-AR0 motherboard that supports AMD EPYC 7000 series processors, and has a ton of awesome, server-grade features.

GIGABYTE's new MZ30-AR0 packs 8-channel DDR4 support with 16 x DIMMs, supporting up to 1TB of RAM through LRDIMM/NVDIMM modules, while 64GB of DDR4 support is provided through RDIMMs. GIGABYTE includes 2 x SFP+ 10Gb/s LAN ports, M.2 with PCIe 3.0 x4 ports, and more. Storage wise we have 16 x SATA 3.0 ports, 4 x SAS, 7 x PCIe 3.0 x16, and 1 x M.2 capable of 32Gbps. The board supports CPUs with up to a 180W TDP, eating up the new EPYC-based CPUs with 32C/64T of power.

An Iron Man glove created by laser gadget maker Patrick Priebe is 3,000 times more powerful than a typical laser pointer. As shown by Wired in the demo video below, that's enough to let you indulge your inner pyromaniac a little by igniting cigarettes, ping pong balls, and matches. You can also show up to children's birthday parties and make them cry by popping balloons with it (that's a win my book).

If you want to get your hands-on one, contract Priebe through his official website. Although after the press he's been getting, you may have to wait awhile for a response.

Water cooling can be a pretty fun process, but also somewhat scary if you don't quite know what you're doing. And that's why ASUS partnered with INWIN, Bitspower, Kingston (HyperX), NVIDIA, Intel and Cooler Master during the ASUS Australia 2016 PC water cooling event in Sydney, Australia at the University of Sydney this past weekend to give Australian retailers and Sydney-based PC enthusiasts all the info they need to be water cooling professionals. We prepared a video from the event, embedded below.

The whole event had a great turnout, with a lot of different examples of water cooled PC's, from the more extreme, modded variety all the way to the other end of the spectrum with modest examples of what can be done with proper water cooling parts.

It was all about showing off the different ways in which it can be used and how efficient it can be, and how complicated it is not. Really, the scariest part is wondering if the tubes you connected were done so with a proper seal. But other than that, water cooling, as this event showed, is a splendid idea for everyone. And now a variety of retailers all have the knowledge and power to help just about anyone plan their build, no matter how complex it might be.

Is will most likely not improve the sound, but at least it looks quite cool. This little 'build log' video on Facebook outlines how you might go about re-shelling your beloved earphones with two spent bullet casings.

This handy 'guide' goes through the process step-by-step, showing how you can use simple household tools in order to complete the job. With the tool list including things like a drill, hacksaw and pieces of sandpaper with various grit ratings, doing it yourself shouldn't really take more than an hour.

If you're interested in doing this yourself, watch the video posted by Best Knives above.

Packed with 118 parts and the capability to construct three different chassis types depending on your needs, the AeroCool Dream Box DIY kit is a seriously interesting invention.

While you're provided with a plethora of parts including aluminum frame pipes, various connectors, mounting C-rings and more, this creativity kit comes at a price - being $149.90 MSRP. Released as part of AeroCool's 'Free Your Imagination' contest, this pack also comes with in-depth manuals and an installation video for those looking for some inspiration.

While not completely unlimited in use, this three-chassis kit may be a sign of things to come. Interested? It's available to buy right now.

If you're a prospective tinkerer or modder of all things PC, and you live in Australia, then you'll love the AMD Modder Manifest project that's set to kick off next month.

The project is designed by two very prolific modders in the community that want to show off relatable and realistic examples of modding, park picking and really how modding is done. They're focusing on entry-level gaming to show that modding can be an activity for everyone with every budget.

The project will run for six weeks and have weekly updates showing off the progress they'll make. You can sign-up to participate right here. After the first project, more will happen for six weeks at a time with appropriate increases in value and performance of the parts. The winner can win a modded gaming system.

To celebrate the release of its WP100 chassis, Thermaltake has announced the '2016 Modding Fighting Championship' (MFC).

The first round will see world-renown modder and winner of the 2015 Thermaltake CaseMOD competition (season one) Suchao Prowphong from Thailand take on Jesse "JP Modified" Palacio, the winner of Thermaltake's 2015 CaseMOD season two.

This mod-off involves these two master artists creating a system build that suits their styles and will be showcased in the Tt Community forum starting from March 2016. Both of these experts will be using Thermaltake's liquid cooling, digital power supplies (RGB models) and a Core WP100 Super Tower each.

If you've been overwhelmed by the sheer amount of press releases and news articles to come from CES 2016 in las Vegas, soothe your eyes on this slightly old yet stunning build called Project Grey.

Created by Malik Customs, this build was spotted on the Ocaholic Facebook as part of its 'Rig of the day' series, featuring a Phanteks Enthoo Primo Ultimate chassis, housing an ASUS Z97-AR motherboard.

This grey and blue highlighted system is simplistic and packs a cooling punch thanks to EK Water Blocks fittings throughout, further incorporating an ASUS Xonar Essence STX II 7.1 sound card to ensure it's not only just for looks, it would make a stellar gaming PC too.

Someone has created a working lightsaber using laser-light as it's basis. Well, it's not quite a light-saber, but just a really bright and powerful 7W blue-diode laser that doesn't really resemble a lightsaber at all. But he's calling it one, so there's that I suppose.

In reality the individual in the video, styropyro, actually built his own laser using a rather 7W Nichia made GaN diode that runs at a maximum of 4.6A. His design uses a wavelength that just happens to be highly visible to the human eye. This laser definitely can cut, though slowly, through a variety of materials. Just don't expect it to be able to lop off limbs.

The great thing is that all of the parts used to make this pseudo-saber are actually publicly available in most regions. You can theoretically make a very powerful laser all on your own, well beyond the 7W power-envelope of the one in the video. But just be very safe if you do, and always wear eye-protection when playing with lasers.

Adidas has partnered with its environmental group Parley for the Oceans to design a 3D-printed shoe created in part with garbage found in the ocean.

As of now, it's in the concept stage and comprises an upper made with plastic sourced from the ocean, and a 3D-printed midsole made with recycled polyester and gillnets (specialized nets used to catch fish and sometimes left in the ocean).

"World leaders forging an agreement is wonderful, but we shouldn't need to be told to do the right thing," says Eric Liedtke, adidas Group Executive Board member responsible for Global Brands. "The industry can't afford to wait for directions any longer. Together with the network of Parley for the Oceans, we have started taking action and creating new sustainable materials and innovations for athletes. The 3D-printed ocean plastic shoe midsole stands for how we can set new industry standards if we start questioning the reason of what we create. We want to bring everyone from the industry to the table and create sustainable solutions for big global problems."

If you're thinking about making, downloading or tinkering with a 3D-printed gun file, you might want to think again. Reports have come to light stating that the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW) doesn't take to this kindly, offering hefty jail time to anyone who might want a gun file of their own.

Last week, the NSW Government passed its Firearms and Weapons Prohibition Legislation Amendment Bill 2015, with one section stating that simply owning a 3D blueprint of a firearm can land you up to 14 years in jail.

With incarceration also extended to owning plans for "electric milling machines," this new legislation marks further action against illegal real-life weaponry, offering up harsher penalties to those with stolen guns or others who are keen on making illegal firearm modifications.

During the Intel Developer Forum (IDF) in San Francisco, Intel spent a lot of time promoting the "Maker" craze in the current world. Intel corporate strategy officer Genevieve Bell believes it's a great time in the maker movement, with Intel interested in supporting new technology ecosystems created by developers.

Intel is a supporter of the Maker Faire and of Make magazine, with growing popularity in the print publication and global maker events.

"It's never been a more exciting and accessible time to invent the future," Bell said during IDF. "It's about changing the world, in small ways and big ways. It's about breaking the rules. Possibilities and disruption. Hard work. Solitary or collaborative. It's not always clear what you are doing. It involves curiosity. It certainly involves failures. It is exhilarating. Sometimes people resist it. To me, that is making."

Tech modding expert Dave Bennett is a kind of emulation wizard who is responsible for many improbable wonders like running PlayStation 2 games on a smartphone as well as playing Valve's epic puzzler Portal on Android. Bennett's latest achievement let's you play Half-Life on a smartwatch. Not that most of us would ever want to play Valve's epic FPS on a smartwatch, but it's still a pretty impressive spectacle nonetheless.

According to the modder, the SDLash3D app is able to emulate Valve's old-school GoldSource game engine that powered classic titles like Team Fortress Classic (which is also playable on Android). While working on making Half-Life run on a phone, on a lark Bennett tried it on his Android Wear-powered LG G smartwatch.

And it worked. As you can see for yourself in the video, Half-Life's unforgettable monorail scene starts up and runs on the tiny 1.65-inch screen. The framerates flux anywhere from 2FPS to an impressive 30FPS, and of course, the game is practically unplayable in itself, but it only goes to show you how versatile Android really is.

Set out to ensure your AMD Radeon R9 Fury X is single-slot in sizing, EK Water Blocks has designed and announced its new full-coverage water block.

Set for sale soon, this water cooling block is rumored to be released in two different materials according to TechPowerUp - exposed copper and nickel-plated copper. These materials will sit alongside clear acrylic and acetal covers.

Featuring a single-channel for the GPU and VRM, there's an included micro-channel lattice for the GPU and the extended option to purcahse a single-slot bracket for the Fury X display I/O.

Computex 2015 - Complete with a G1 Gaming battle elephant and a GIGABYTE titan, this motherboard and video card manufacturer has joined the modding movement, adding a few alternate and awesome builds to its arsenal in Taipei, Taiwan.

The Elephant offers a Z97-XUD5H motherboard and was designed and built by Suchao Prowphong from Thailand, featuring a great yellow and black color scheme complete with a top-mounted cannon. Known for his amazing ThermalTHOR and Core X 2 Furious mods in the past, this is another fantastic rendition by the Thai modding master.

As for the Titan, we unfortunately don't have much information beside that fact it looks incredible.