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IPhone 3G: Under The Hood

July 15, 2008 by 6 Comments


TechOnline has cracked open the iPhone 3G to find out what makes it tick. They’ve released detailed diagrams as well as some videos of the dissection.

Calling this an incremental update, they note that the changes seem to be additions and improvements rather than a total rebuild of the original platform. They get into the nitty gritty, discussing not only the layout and structure, but even the importance of each chip manufacturer.

Some of the improvements are obvious, like 3G. Others include the battery not being permanently attached, and the headphone jack being flush mounted. Most of the changes were in who manufactured each chip.

[via TUAW]

IPhone Dev Team Shows Ssh Access

July 15, 2008 by 2 Comments

They still haven’t released the jailbreak yet, but the iPhone dev team hasn’t been sitting idly by either. They recently posted this video of ssh access on the iPhone 3G. Not only have they succeeded in hacking into the phone, they say that apple can’t fix it without a hardware change. Having root level access to the device opens up many more possibilities than just hooking an API.

Mister Jalopy On NPR

July 14, 2008 by 2 Comments


[Mister Jalopy] is an outspoken recycler. He believes it is wrong that we live in a “throw away culture” and we here at Hackaday tend to agree. There is so much potential left in products, long after they may have given up their original purpose. He has been pushing to get companies to work with the public, to encourage re purposing and hacking. The belief is that it can only improve a company’s relationship with their customers.

[Mister Jalopy] appeared on National Public Radio today. They discussed the benefits of making your own stuff, as well as the legalities involved with modifying off the shelf products.

We covered his open house last October. Tons of fascinating stuff there.

[via Hoopty Rides]

Science Fiction, Help Or Hindrance?

July 14, 2008 by 8 Comments
[Annalee Newitz] from io9 has written a piece about how science fiction can impact the public’s perception of scientific research. She’s covered stories ranging from Frankenstein, for showing the negatives of humans “playing god”, to The Diamond Age, for showing an inspiring use of nanotechnology.

We wonder what direct impact science fiction has had on research. Depictions of a 3D metaverse have always been compelling, but is pouring effort into half measures like Second Life a waste of time compared to serious computer interaction research?

We discussed this for a little while and concluded that whether inspiring or hindering, the very act of critically thinking about technology was beneficial. What books have inspired you in the past? Was it because they showed a better world or were they a stern warning?

Radiohead Releases Laser Music Video With Data

July 14, 2008 by 8 Comments


Radiohead has released their music video for “House Of Cards.” We’ve already covered some of the tech involved. If making an entire video without cameras wasn’t edgy enough, they’ve released all the point data for people to play with and remix. The band is encouraging people to post their creations to their YouTube group.

Head over to their Google Code page to watch a making of video as well as view some of the datasets in 3D. There is a link to the entire dataset for download as well.

Will It Blend? Tests The IPhone 3G

July 13, 2008 by 27 Comments

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLxq90xmYUs&hl=en&fs=1]
The Will It Blend? host, [Tom Dickson], is at it again. This time, he blends the new Apple iPhone 3G. We’re completely in awe of how efficient the blender is at the destruction of electronics, and this time, it’s no different. Watch in fascination (or horror) as [Dickson] turns the latest iPhone into ashes.

[via Neatorama]

Music And Visual Arts At The Last HOPE

July 12, 2008 by 3 Comments

[Peter Kirn] from Create Digital Music has an article up highlighting many of the great music and visual performance pieces planned for The Last HOPE on Friday night. If you are around New York and not accustomed to hacking conferences, this could be a great excuse to go check it out. Here are some of our favorite projects.

Continue reading “Music And Visual Arts At The Last HOPE” →