Joel Johnson, a good friend and friendly rival over at BB Gadgets, has been tinkering with some LEDs for his latest project. Using a wireless Xmas light set, you’ll see that Joel has rigged it so when a special wand-like transmitter is waved over the lights, they shine with all their might. Each light has a wireless antenna inside that reads from the transmitter. A very novel idea, especially when Joel plans on debuting his finished project at Burning Man.

(more…)

If you want your friends to think you’re a cheap bastard (and you know you are) and want to give your laptop the WiFi capabilities it so desperately needs, Ublog has a step-by-step DIY tutorial to make a simple and cheap Yagi antenna. Who would’ve though a piece of wood and a series of rods were all the components you need for some hot wireless action.

The antenna is a retro-looking thing, so finding the right direction to point it towards for it to work effectively could pose some problems. If you’re still not getting a signal, wrap it in aluminum foil. Unlike other antennae, you’ll have WiFi but you’ll still feel like you’re adjusting the antenna of a ’60’s TV.

Link (via)

Unsecured networks, get ready for your worst nightmare (if you imagine this said in the voice of the movie trailer voice-over guy it’s much more funny.) No signal is safe from… The WiFi Predator.

The Predator is basically a modified wireless router connected to a high powered antennae, which runs off of a custom honed firmware, scoping out Wifi signals from a distance, and tapping into any unsecured wireless connections. If more than one signal is found, the Predator automatically chooses the one with the highest signal. This summer… no Starbucks is safe. (more…)

One of the reasons of choosing a cellphone operator over another would be coverage, but no matter how good the network is there are always blind spots, this is especially true when you are 3G users (higher frequency lower diffraction), out of the city center, or even in your own room sometimes. NTT DoCoMo has got it figured out and started selling this box-like household antenna for you to put next to the window, dragging a 3.5 meters long cable and attach to your phone. There should be no chance of missing any calls anymore, if you are a frequent mobile internet user, this would speed things up a bit too. The model itself measures 10×10x4cm and weighs just under 300 grams. The best part is that the suggested retail price is only 25USD so you should seriously consider picking up one of these if you live in Japan and are users of the latest 903i/703i series. The antenna can take signals from the usual 2Ghz as well as the 1.7Ghz FOMA-plus area coverage at the suburb. For users with older phones including the PDC ones, you can pick up some of the older and less attractive models. –Sam Chan

Accessories [NTT DoCoMo]