Hasta La Gadget!

The original Nintendo Entertainment System’s controller lends itself so well to geeky reinterpretations thanks to its simple, rectangular form. And now, here’s another cool use for the iconic controller – a night light.

This nifty night light was put together by DIYer lonesoulsurfer, and is basically an old NES controller outlined with LEDs, and set into a clear resin shell.

The circuit is triggered by tilting the controller, and tilting it multiple times can switch it into a blink mode too. And if you’re wondering how you change the batteries in this thing, you don’t. It’s powered by a solar panel.

It’s pretty nifty, and you can check out the full build instructions to make your own over on Instructables. Since the whole thing is cast in resin, I don’t see a reason why you couldn’t do this with other game controller either.

As projectors continue to be a big business in an industry ripe with mobile devices, Canon’s newest hardware has appeared with a foot in both camps. This is the LE-5W Multimedia Projector, coming in any color just so long as its black or white, working with 3LED technology to ensure the photos users have taken with their Canon cameras are projected with as vibrant and color-correct a light as possible. Of course this device isn’t a camera in and of itself: instead you’ll be running content through an HDMI cord or USB thumb drive.

Made to be “ultra-portable”, Canon has introduced the LE-5W projector as a 9.76” (w) x 7.60” (d) x 2.16” (h) unit weighing in at 3.5 lbs. This projector is able to work with multiple different input methods for the multi-device modern user. In addition to HDMI and USB thumb drive availability, this machine works with built-in 1.5GB storage and SD card slots as well.

The Canon LE-5W works with 500 lumens of brightness and a throw ratio of 1.2:1. This means you’ll be able to project a rather large picture in relatively small spaces. 3LED technology is employed to bring on what Canon describes as superior quality: “because the LED light source for each primary color (red, green, and blue) is used without splitting light through a color wheel, images and video with pure, highly vibrant colors can be projected.”

Native resolution is WXGA (1280 x 800) while several different projection modes exist for the many different kinds of users that’ll be making use of the machine:

• Presentation mode – this default mode matches the colors generally displayed by the screens of PCs and notebook computers.
• Standard mode – designed for optimal projection in rooms with minimal ambient light.
• Movie mode – delivers saturated colors, and is perfect for presentation in darkened rooms.
• sRGB mode – optimized for the colors as seen in a calibrated sRGB color space. This mode is best used for displaying graphics, AutoCAD diagrams, and other computer-calibrated presentations involving critical colors.
• User mode – enables customized settings of brightness, contrast, color, tint, temperature, and even sharpness.

While the machine does work with two built-in 2.5-watt stereo speakers, you’ll also find basic audio in and out ports for external speaker hookups. Also included is a mini-USB for data transfer, standard video-in, and standard VGA in for full-sized PC connectivity.

Tripod mount on the bottom, a four second startup time, and “scratch-resistant” surfaces all around round out the package. This machine will be available in stores in the Summer of 2013 for an estimated retail price of $799. Sound like a deal to you? Built-in media support includes H.264, WMV, MJPEG, MPEG1/2/4, and RMVB video; BMP and JPEG photos; MP3, WMA, AAC, OGG, and WAV music; and Adobe PDF 1.2-1.7 and Microsoft Office (PowerPoint, Excel, and Word) – so you know you wont be left out in the cold when you plug your USB stick in.

Canon LE-5W portable projector set for summer with 3LED technology is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
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This scarf will never go out of style for one reason: because it adapts to match your outfit, whatever pattern or color you’re wearing. I think the concept behind this fashionable piece is pretty self-explanatory. The scarf is embedded with LED lights all over that changes color automatically based on what it’s wearer currently has on.

You can’t buy this scarf anywhere, although you can make one of your own. The tutorial is posted online on Adafruit Learning System, which explains that the scarf uses “the Flora color sensor and 12 color-changing LED pixels diffused by a ruffly knit scarf.” Check it out in action below:

How’s that for convertible and interactive fashion?

[via Softpedia]

Aside from its functional uses, mirrors come in pretty handy when you’re trying to achieve some cool optical illusions. A good example of this is the classic infinite effect. It looks like a pretty complicated effect, but it’s easily achievable and only requires a mirror, glass, and a light source.

Employing this effect to create an uber cool computer desk is Redditor Jacks_RagingHormones. His setup makes it look like his keyboard is on the surface of an abyss that has no end, which is what makes it so awesome.

Want to try and do what Jack and his raging hormones did? Head over to Imgur for more details on the build.

[via Obvious Winner]

We’ve seen a ring box that lights up, but this one’s even better. Engineer/jeweler/lover Ben Kokes made an engagement ring with LEDs for his now fiancé Julie. As if making an engagement ring wasn’t awesome enough, Kokes also made it so the LEDs would light when he’s near his fiancé.

Because he couldn’t fit a battery on the ring, Kokes designed the LEDs to be powered using an inductive charger. He attached a coil of wire on the ring using kapton tape. The wires were in turn attached to a capacitor and the three LEDs on the ring. Then he built an arm-mounted inductive transmitter.

Here’s a demo of the tender and loving charging:

Men, this is what’s known as raising the bar. Head to Kokes’ website for a thorough explanation of his build. Also Ben, we hate your guts. Signed, the rest of the men on Earth.

[via Hack A Day via Neatorama]