Check it out, part 1 of the Wii Laptop “Making Of” is up at Engadget…
Parts 2 and 3 are coming on the next two Tuesdays. (Say that 5 times fast) Enjoy!
In other news, I’m working on a new, much better, site layout which will hopefully go up in about a week. Wish me luck!
Lots of crap for you all today, starting with the Wii laptop!
Wii!!
I’m hoping people have forgotten my “Request for a Wii” back in November so this comes as a surprise but if not oh well. For more photos and a video of this sucker in action check out Engadget (a site I write for) using this link below:
Quick specs, this unit has a built-in close-range sensor bar, stereo sound, Gamecube port, 16:9 widescreen LCD, A/V jacks, port for external stock sensor bar, built-in power supply and even a compartment for the cord. It measures 8.6″ wide, 7.7″ long and 2″ total thickness.
I am also writing a 3-part “Making Of” to cover the process of building this thing. It will be the most detailed web-based “making of” for one of my projects yet and will appear episodically on Engadget starting this Tuesday, AKA January 23rd. Hope you find it insightful.
The Wii Laptop is one of my more “mechanical” looking designs.
Next up is our latest podcast, episode 11. Quite the doozy, we have a guest on from the Benheck.com forums, recap gaming news, talk about our HD-DVD and Blu-Ray first impressions and of course, discuss what we would do during a zombie apocalypse. We also talk about what game we thought kicked the most butt in 2006.
Visit the Benheckpodcast.com web site to download this and other episodes! (On average each episode sucks up about an hour of your life) You can also check out this page to see some companion photos for Episode 11 if you’re listening to the audio-only version.
Finally, Jones and I put together a video for some reason. I don’t really know what to say about it, I guess it speaks for itself. It’s on the front of the podcast or you can download a higher resolution copy below.
Article Links:
Video – “Wand of Confusion” 640×480, MP4, about 7.5 megs
Benheckpodcast.com Site
Well that was quite the year, wasn’t it? I’m sorry I wasn’t able to make more portables, between finishing the music for Port Washington and doing the Xbox 360 laptop a lot of my time was eaten up. Also the Ghost Documentary is still in the works, sigh… And I never made any “mass producible” portables like the Phoenix either. (Venting my regrets)
However we had over 1 million visitors this year, which I think is a record, so that’s pretty cool. Top projects were the Xbox 360 laptop and the single-handed controller. (I’m making another version of that BTW)
2007 should be better. For starters I always enjoy odd-numbered years more, not sure why. Probably because I always have the difficult projects on even numbered years (Lizard of Death 2000, Port Washington 2002, book 2004, Xbox stuff 2006) Strange how I become more superstitious as the years go by…
I’ve got several projects in the works at the moment that will emerge during the first few months of the year. The new makings-of for my projects will include about 75% more detail than before.
Also later this week we’ll have our first new podcast of the year which will cover our impressions of all the new systems and HDTV.
So thanks for the ride, be reasonably safe for New Year’s and have a great 2007!
Why not make a show about people who go around modding and building things? They could take viewer requests to make things as “challenges” and there’d be a couple teams to allow 2-3 projects per episode. Thus if a project fails and is unusable there’s always a backup. Naturally the teams are assembled in such a way to create drama and arguments along the way.
Everything they build would then be auctioned off for worthy charities. So basically it’d be like American Chopper in that you see things being built, with a healthy dash of Mythbusters since everything is by viewer request. Then of course throw in deadlines to create a “ticking clock” a la Overhaulin’. It would also create a great community of people following the work and trying their own versions of it.
Of course I’m suggesting this here on my site because I would want to be involved. Maybe I’m off my rocker but I think it would be interesting – I’d certainly watch a show like that. Let me know what you think.
Do you like my creations and wonder how I design them? (Hint: with a computer) Well if you’re interested in learning some of the techniques I used, I’ve written a short (as in not book length) CNC tutorial on Engadget, specifically for designing a robotic hand! Check out the link below…
Article Links:
OK well I’m back from my amazing north woods adventure, which actually had more action than the movie I reference in this update title. Anyways, here’s what’s up:
The teaser trailer for the documentary I’m helping with – “Echoes of the Past” – will debut in late July/early August. For more information please visit One Man Down Productions.
That’s about it for now but fear not – some interesting stuff is on the way. Stay tuned!
Last week Gamespy was kind enough to ask my input for an article about next generation gaming in relation to the old school days. Here’s a link:
Hear from several people on the Xbox team and… me. Strange, I know. But there it is. Includes fun photos, enjoy!