But I’m really curious: how are you going to keep the part of your palm underneath your thumbs from touching those buttons? Or is that the point of this mod – to enable the customer to press all 4 shoulder palm buttons at all times? I got my own controller and realized that okay if I placed my thumbs over the analog sticks, my palms wouldn’t be mashing the buttons. But what game would I be able to play decently with that grip? Super Rub-a-Dub? And even if the buttons only worked if you pressed on them hard enough, you’d have to take your thumbs off the other buttons to press them, a dilemma that is remedied by… the default layout of the controller. Ben Heck, I know you’re talented and all, but Beyonce had one of the best videos of all time.

…

Seriously though, I must be missing something here dammit. What is the logic behind this mod?

This is the third revision of the Atari 800 laptop that Ben has built, and this one captures the spirit of the original 8-bit machine the best. I have a special place in my heart for the 800, as it’s really the first “serious” computer I had when I was growing up. Sure, I got to play with an Apple ][ for a while around the same time, but the first code I ever wrote was in good old Atari BASIC.

The design of the console is very reminiscent of the classic 800, complete with that dirty beige case color, and a real Atari 800 clicky keyboard. Check out the wonderful details like the front-mounted cartridge slot, and the flat Reset/Start/Select/Option buttons in their original hues.

While the hardware isn't actually from an original Atari 800 (it's an XEGS motherboard), it still looks like an 800 and plays all the original games, so that's good enough for me. The machine has also done away with the need for storing programs on cassette tape or floppy disk by getting itself a nice little 2.5" PATA hard drive under the hood. Heck managed to work that magic using a custom-programmed MyIDE circuit. The luggable system even owes a nod to Nintendo. That's because it's power supply came from a Gamecube. Go figure.

The pop-up angled keyboard is a really nice touch that makes it much more like the original 800 too.

Here's the 800 laptop in action, playing Lucasfilm Games' 1984 classic Ballblazer, one of my favorite 8-bit games of all time:

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

And how about a little Buck Rogers for those of you into that scene:

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

Want to get one for yourself, or just want to see how he built it? Head on over to Ben’s website for more details.

Pax-man’s got a huge forehead. Anyway as you can see Ben Heck’s put various Bill Paxton references on the machine – Bill Paxton the car dealer from True Lies, the moon to signify Apollo 13, and of course the Big Love wives. The game’s mechanics will also be Paxtonized: “…in “True Lies” mode, you’ll need to shoot combos and multipliers to I guess get into Jamie Lee Curtis’ pants.” Other modes will be based on Titanic, Aliens and Twister.

In the end, Ben Heck says that this pet project is all about “building something very complicated from scratch, so the engineering is the real star.” That, and getting into Jamie Lee Curtis’ pants. Check out the full story at Ben Heck’s blog.

The Xbox 360 Portable – Revision 5 gives the luggable gaming system a svelte new shell, complete with a 17-inch widescreen LCD monitor, running at 720p resolution. This latest version improves upon Ben’s previous 360 laptops by adding better ventilation, and adds an Ethernet port for wired network access. The previous models only had Wi-Fi, but for the ultimate in network speed, nothing beats a hardwired connection, IMHO.

The design of the latest revision includes a flush-mounted DVD drawer, and manages to keep the familiar Xbox 360 light ring intact, mounted into the surface of the console, alongside the console’s control buttons and flanked by a pair of tiny stereo speakers. Here’s a pic of the laptop spilling its guts so you can see how it was built.

But you want to see the Xbox 360 portable in action, don’t you? Ask and ye shall receive. Ben has been kind enough to post a video clip of his handiwork in action here:

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

[via Ben Heck's Blog]

Heckendorn said that he was already working on a portable Commodore 64 back in 2006, but then he decided to re-do the whole thing. His goal was to make the laptop look like it was from the 80s, and I think everyone will agree with me when I say that he succeeded, because, as the modder himself said, “It just looks so beautifully ugly it’s great, like it came out of a time machine from an alternate reality 80’s where this existed.”

It’s not just the appearance of the laptop that’s retro because Ben Heck stuffed a C64C motherboard inside the laptop, as well as a Commodore 64 keyboard. Then he used a device called a 1541-III DTV that accepts SD cards instead of floppy disks for storage. The laptop is plugged into a semi-retro Gamecube power supply.

Heckendorn added a tiny LCD screen at the bottom of the laptop just for kicks, although he said that it also serves an aesthetic function as it fills up the empty space below the keyboard and makes the layout symmetrical to compensate for the irregular shape of the keyboard.

Although he can use the SD card to play games or use programs on the brand new old machine, Heck still added a cartridge slot at the bottom of the laptop. Here’s a video of the C64 laptop in action:

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

You can check out Heckendorn’s site for more pics and vids of his latest Frankenmod.

Heckendorn says that it’s a prize for THQ’s Darksiders game. A prize for winning what exactly he doesn’t say, but I already know that I’m not ever going to own one of these so I don’t care. Here are a couple more shots of the Joe Madureira art on the shell:

That’s the Horseman WAR and his phantom steed RUIN on the bottom half of the laptop. In Darksiders players will control WAR as he is sent to find out why the Apocalypse arrived prematurely  as well as search for your mates, the three other Horsemen. Awesome plot. Not if you’re a mere mortal.

There’s WAR again, in Joe Mad’s bulky-anime style. As always, the Heck posted a detailed walkthrough of the creation of the Darksiders Xbox 360 laptop for THQ. Let’s just call it the Boxtop 360, Darksiders edition.

Wonder who’s stronger, the God of War or WAR itself?

With the help of electrical tape, PVC pipe, and a little rubber tubing, Ben Heck set up a breath-controlled workaround for the drum set’s kick pedal. The better to keep your hands free for what’s important: playing the drums.

The entire process has been documented–even down to tips for dealing with cuts sustained in the process–so that you can try this one at home. And Rock Band fans have a reason to rejoice: it’s apparently easier to pull this off with the Rock Band kit.

[BenHeck.com via hackaday]

Awesome. If you ask me, it’s what a Fallout mod would be like as well. Ben Heck praises the mod not only because of it’s functionality, but because of the neat cosmetic touches on it, like the phone and the strap. This obviously a labor of Liebe. Take these gauges for example:

The gauge on the left measures amperage, while the one on the right measures voltage. Heck says, “This [sic] can be  implementing [sic] by simply buying some cheap multimeters that use a needle, mounting them into the case and attaching their leads to the system’s power inputs.” I don’t know what “simple” means anymore.

There’s the classic logo. Look at the rust patches. Lovingly made rust patches. Another neat touch is the antenna at the back,  completing the radio operator look.

I’ve never played any of the games in the ‘Wolf series so I wouldn’t know whether FuG-01/ET is a reference to it or if it’s just Sheyr’s name for the mod. Would’ve liked to see what a matching monitor looks like, but I think it’s safe to say that Sheyr’s done more than enough for his mod to be showcased at Make.

[via wonderland]

The mod master took an Xbox 360 controller, added a lot of buttons to an Atari 2600 joystick, and thus the Atari 3600 was born. But it wasn’t just any Xbox 360 controller he used. Oh no, it was a controller from Guitar Hero 3. You might wonder how he managed to fit all of that into this. Here’s a hint: it helps if you’re a magician. Also, he only really needed one circuitboard, which made things much easier.

The final product won’t work with regular 360 games–there’s a few things missing–but you can use it with some downloadable Xbox Live Arcade titles, where it will feel right at home.

[Ben Heck via Hack-A-Day]

The portable PS3 features a slick, glossy black case, and a nice big 17-inch LCD screen running at 720p resolution. The Blu-Ray drive has been retrofitted to be a front-slot-loader, and there’s a full USB keyboard built-in as well. Ben hasn’t revealed too much more about how he built this system yet, but if it’s anything like his past works, it’s a real masterpiece under the hood.

This beast weighs in at a whopping 16-pounds, so it’s arguably more of a luggable than a portable. Regardless, I wouldn’t turn it down if someone wanted to give me one. Ben plans on auctioning off the PS3 laptop for charity, so you might actually get a chance to own this bad boy.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

As is usually the case when Ben launches a new mod, his website is taking a bit of a beating. But when the dust settles, head on over and check out all the details.

[via Engadget]

The portable Xbox 360 features a Halo 3 theme, and is based on the Elite’s internals. Under the hood, the laptop offers a 120GB hard drive, the new 65nm CPU, and a special direct DMI-to-DVI connection which keeps the video signal digital all the way to the laptop’s ample 17-inch LCD screen.

The laptop even features a built-in Xbox Live camera and Wi-Fi, so it’s totally ready for a serious round of Halo 3 or UNO.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

Thanks, Ben. That was so much better than any dumb old Superbowl ad.

You can check out the full build log over on Ben’s Website.

Other than a little Xbox Guide button he added between the “Back” and “Start” buttons and the built-in headset jack, you’d never know this wasn’t just a plain old Xbox controller.

Now as a player with fairly large hands, I never really had a problem with the old Xbox behemoth, known in circles as “The Duke.” But after many marathon gaming session with the 360’s excellent controller, I’m not sure why anyone would want to go back to such a weighty thing. I guess sometimes Ben just does stuff to show that it could be done.

If you’re longing for that retro controller feeling, Ben is accepting offers and will let this beast go to the highest bidder.

Like a Frankenstein’s monster, the NESTari portable can play cartridges from either Atari’s or Nintendo’s classic 8-bit systems. Rather than trying to use original NES and Atari 2600 parts, Ben’s latest mod uses the gut out of an Atari Flashback 2 console and a NOAC (NES on a chip) in order to keep the system portable and power-efficient.

The handheld has a built-in 3.5-inch LCD screen, runs on rechargeable batteries, and has all the controls needed to play all your favorite 80’s console games. These days Ben usually builds his systems on commission, but he decided to just build this one on a whim, so he’s willing to let it go if the price is right (You can contact Ben here if you’re interested.)

There’s a full walkthrough of the build process over on Ben’s website in case you care to see all the gory details.

Currently in the prototype stages, the pocket-sized Gameport will be capable of emulating multiple classic 8-bit systems, currently the Atari 2600 and Colecovision, with additional systems to come in future. You’ll be able to connect the Gameport to your computer via a USB port, and transfer game ROMs to the device’s SD memory slot. The system will even be able to output to a television, thanks to built-in A/V outputs. The current build measures 3.5″ x 5″ x 1″, but Ben thinks the final version will be a little less chunky.

Gameport hasn’t yet announced any retail outlets, a launch date or price, but I’ll let you know if and when that changes.

This time out, Ben has implanted the brains of the 360 in a black laptop case with green accents, versus the white case of the original. He’s also trimmed out a lot of the heft of his first attempt, so it’s much more portable. Ben documented the entire project in gory detail, and plans on releasing a series of “how-to” documents including all of the necessary art files and diagrams.

Additional photos of the 360 laptop can be seen over on Engadget.

There’s something that’s oh-so-wrong but oh-so-right about the strange bedfellows coming together to form a single mutant controller. He’s even modded the “Ring of Light” with PS3 red LEDs.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

You can check out all the gory details on how Ben did this mod here.

The portable features a 7-inch widescreen LCD monitor, and even has a built-in “sensor bar” replacement at the top of the screen. The console is a totally self-contained system with stereo speakers, A/V ports and a built-in power supply and storage bay for the cord. The whole thing measures just 8.5 x 7.7 x 2 inches. The guys over at Engadget are also going to be posting a “making of” series for the mod in the coming weeks, so if you’re handy and have a spare Wii lying around, you might want to give that a look.

[via Engadget (cool video after the jump)]

Ben’s latest endeavor was to take his original Atari VCSp (his first portable 2600,) and update it into a cleaner more modern design. Inspired by the Nintendo DS Lite, the new VCSp Revision 7 is a true thing of beauty. It features a fully-functional Atari 2600 system and a 3.5″ color LCD screen, all running on 4 rechargeable AA batteries.

If you haven’t visited Ben’s website before, it’s well worth a look. The man is a genius.

Ben’s latest challenge: turn an Atari Jaguar console into a portable. As usual, the result is quite stunning. He managed to cram the entire system into a box about 1-inch thick with a built-in LCD panel and the ability to run it off of a (somewhat unwieldy) battery pack. The Jaguar was known as one of those “ahead of its time” consoles, even touting a 64-bit processor architecture when it was released all the way back in 1993.

You can view Ben’s full project page
here.

[via engadget]

The “portable” has a beautiful aluminum case with a 17-inch widescreen LCD, built-in keyboard, wi-fi and USB ports on board. Dimensions are a “svelte” 16.75″ x 10.75″ x 2.8″, so it’s actually not much larger than a stock Xbox 360. Onboard water cooling with a custom built radiator should allow the system to run significantly cooler than an off-the-shelf system.

Video:

Keep up the good work, Ben!

[via Makezine]