That Nintendo Wii sensor bar isn’t what it’s all cracked up to be. Alan Parekh explains it’s simplicity by exposing it’s composition of just a few IR LEDs. Then, he manages to turn an ordinary TV remote control into a working Wii sensor bar. All it requires is a few holes drilled in that old remote of yours. And if it turns out that the remote has some extra IR LEDs inside of it, then you’ve just saved yourself from making a trip to the store to get more.

For the finale, you just disconnect the existing battery connection to the remote control circuit and connect it to the LEDs you just mounted in the drilled holes. With that, you’ll have the most unique sensor bar around town, but you won’t be able to switch the TV to input.

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Kevin Fu, an associate professor at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, and his team have been working with pacemakers for quite some time. Having reverse engineered a pacemaker, the team found a frightening loop hole. It turns out that a built-in test mechanism for the device includes a bug that can be exploited by hackers.

There is no cryptographic key used to secure the wireless communication between the control device and the pacemaker. This makes it real easy to build your own wireless device that can control the pacemaker. And by “control the pacemaker,” I mean shut it off. Hopefully, this discovery will lead to defense mechanisms put in place that’ll defend those who wear a pacemaker from any remote attack on their heart. Until then, you might want to keep your pacemaker on the DL.

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We’ve seen a lot of neat stuff made with the Arduino processor, like that Mad Hatter top hat or the gigantic keyboard. With the infinite possibilities the Arduino offers, where are all the games made for this development platform?

Enter the ArduGame, a hand held device that runs a small game that has yet to be named. Using an OLED display and the controls of an old Sony PSP, the folks at BricoGeek have crafted a fine piece of gaming hardware that could potentially put the portable Atari 2600 to shame. It finally proves that the Arduino is a fun and flexible tool for game programming.

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With all the DIY arcades out there like the Powerbook arcade or the Metroid themed MAME cabinet, you’d be crazy not to take a crack at building your own. Now if you just so happen to be rich, you won’t mind living by the motto, “can’t someone else do it?” Yes, someone else can do it and that someone is Zombie Arcades, a high-end arcade machines manufacturer based in the UK. These cabinets are are built from the ground up and designed for home use to bring back that classic arcade gaming experience you can only find if you traveled back to the ’80’s.

Each unit comes chock full with over 300 of the greatest arcade games from the past and present. With a 24″ Samsung LCD and two player arcade controls (with LED buttons), you must be wondering about the price. I hope you’re sitting down because these gaming rigs don’t go for anything shy of $4,400. Yowza. Time to put the house on a second mortgage.

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This kid has managed to render OnStar obsolete and he’s all the way on the other side of the world doing it! The self taught gadget wiz, Morris Mbetsa, has managed to create an anti-theft device and tracking system for vehicles that’s cellphone-based. The owner can take control of their vehicle’s ignition and disable it with his/her cellphone at any time. Locking the car remotely as well as the ability to listen in on any conversations taking place within the vehicle all via your cellular phone are two other features Mbetsa has added to his invention.

Sometimes stickers that make your car look beat up or fake head units just won’t do the trick to prevent would-be thieves. We like what this young man has done and we look forward to seeing more of his amazing hacks.

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Japanese mobile phone operator, NTT DoCoMo is experimenting with this mind boggling approach to mobile device control that’s sure to give anyone an eye headache worse than TV coming through your glasses. How does it work? Firstly, no hands are needed. Simply move your eyes up or down to raise volume, accordingly. To skip a track, look right twice. Currently, they only have this technology controlling a mobile music player by sensing the electric fields eyes make when they move. In the future, who knows what this form of control could be used for?

Listening to the latest and greatest Josh Groban hits? Turn that shit up. All it takes is looking up. Say there is a bird flying overhead and you just so happened to be listening to the loudest death metal, ever. You look up, the volume raises and you’re officially halfway to becoming Helen Keller. You’ll then be forced to listen to tunes with the Shake-Up headphones, which is more buzzing and vibrating than any Justice song you’ve ever heard.

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When you’re carrying a ton of groceries, you just don’t have that extra hand to twist the knob to gain access to your house. Well, door knobs are a thing of the past. No Design’s Sao Paulo was obviously tired of the run-of-the-mill front doors found on every house so he designed the Max Door. Simply put, it’s a door with no door knob. What’s unique and special about it is a few of its perks:

It can be opened via remote-control device, much like your car or garage. It’s even got a mailbox built-in to the door, eliminating morning walks to fetch your paper like a dog. And to top it all off, it has retractable guillotine at the base for sound insulation. We’re hoping that it can be used for decapitating trespassers, but no word on if and when this door will be commercial.

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No one likes hauling ridiculously heavy bags around the airport. LiveLuggage’s Power Assisted series uses a special wheel to make your traveling a heck of a lot more lightweight. This luggage is designed to distribute 85% of the total weight directly upon the wheels, making you feel you’re only carrying a fraction of it.

The intelligent torque control powers the wheels and the pressure is applied to the handle, leading to the concentration of force sensors at the base. The tilt switch/sensors power the wheels at specific angles between 15% and 35% incline.

This torque control activates manually or automatically when necessary and in the event that you drop your luggage, it’ll automatically deactivate so your stuff won’t resist gravity and fly away.
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I must admit, I was a bit skeptical of a man living in the clouds watching mankind like a lousy Nick at Night sitcom. However, news of a remote controlled floating tray that delivers refreshing beverages is proof that there is a god and that he isn’t a dick.

Like the floating speaker, relaxing by the pool just got a bit more - well, relaxing. This remote controlled float can hold up to five drinks and has a center bowl perfect for nachos. Just don’t shit in the pool. Like a shitty raft, it’s just begging to be sent down the Nile. You know, like Moses.
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Nothing beats seeing the New York Giants take a huge shit on every team in the NFL and then watching Dan Marino freak out on ESPN. It’s just a wonderful thing. ESPN keeps a lot of us glued to the TV and now we have yet another reason not to buy our wives anniversary gifts: The Wi-Fi-enabled ESPN Ultimate Remote.

It has a screen with an Apple-esque menu system, built-in Wi-Fi, home theater management, control of IP-based equipment and one-touch access to Internet content. Oh, did I mention you can send text messages with this thing? Yeah, and you can browse the Internet and check your e-mail with it. Christ.

Now that every guy on the planet has a boner the size of Texas, you can rest soundly knowing that the Ultimate Remote will be available in time for Father’s Day. The only problem with this amazing device? The price: $300.

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