Hasta La Gadget!

You knew somebody would do it, and now you’re just downtrodden that said somebody isn’t you. Yes friends, the gadget you see above really is a pair of working headphones with coconut halves for earcups. We already got word that Dave Chappelle’s crack-infused twin fully approves, but we’re still waiting for Dr. Dre to give us the all-clear before we deem them “street credible.”

[Via MAKE]

Filed under: Portable Audio

Coconut headphone mod makes us long for Kokomo originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 31 Jul 2009 06:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Security researchers plan to reveal a security hole that would enable hackers to take complete control of an iPhone with a text-messaging attack.

Security researchers Charlie Miller and Collin Mulliner will publicize the exploit Thursday at the Black Hat cybersecurity conference, according to Forbes. The researchers said the hack involves sending a series of mostly invisible SMS bursts that effectively hijack an iPhone. From thereon, a hacker could control all the functions on the iPhone, such as e-mailing, dialing contacts — and, most alarmingly, sending more text messages to hijack even more iPhones.

How can you know if you’re being SMS attacked? According to Miller, one giveaway is if you receive a text message containing a single square character. If that happens, he suggests you immediately turn off your iPhone.

“This is serious,” Miller told Forbes. “The only thing you can do to prevent it is turn off your phone. Someone could pretty quickly take over every iPhone in the world with this.”

Though many customers hail the iPhone as one of the most well designed and versatile smartphones, security researchers have criticized the phone for its weak security. For example, Wired.com recently reported on forensics researcher Jonathan Zdziarski’s discovery that the new iPhone 3GS’ data encryption can be cracked in a few minutes with free software. Because of this flaw, Zdziarski recommended against the iPhone being used by businesses.

Miller and Mulliner said they contacted Apple about the SMS exploit a month ago, but the company has not released a software update to fix the issue. Apple did not immediately respond to Wired.com’s request for comment.

Though the researchers informed Forbes of the SMS exploit, it’s worth noting they did not demonstrate it to Forbes. We’ll be convinced this is true once we see it.

For ongoing coverage of the Black Hat conference, read Wired.com’s Threat Level.

See Also:

• iPhone Jailbreaking Could Crash Cellphone Towers, Apple Claims …
• Hacker Says iPhone 3GS Encryption Is ‘Useless’ for Businesses …
• Help Wanted: iPhone Hacker for Apple
• IPhone Can Take Screenshots of Anything You Do
• Hacker Will Break iPhone Security on Video

Photo: Jon Snyder/Wired.com

See, we knew those check writers in NYC had something brilliant in mind when dropping a cool million on typewriters this week! As the tale goes, they’ve contracted one Fabien Cappello to modify each and every one into a ‘Typing The Sound’ concept, which bangs away at letters whilst making all sorts of racket. Unfortunately, there aren’t any how-to details to be found (nor any real proof that a pianist isn’t behind this guy fooling us all… nor any truth to the aforesaid tale), but the video past the break is still worth a gander. Honest.

[Via MAKE]

Continue reading Video: Cacophonic typewriter doubles as piano

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Video: Cacophonic typewriter doubles as piano originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 18 Jul 2009 01:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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People who are seriously after HDR output tend to pony up the dough for a big and chunky DSLR, knowing they’ll get the highest quality possible. But if you’re short on cash, here’s a homebrewed mod that combines a gutted Polaroid x530 Foveon shooter with a Viliv to produce HDR-like imagery on the cheap. Essentially, the Viliv does all the processing and control work, while the el cheapo camera is used for its ability to save to raw format. You could instead pick up a compact Ricoh CX1 and save yourself a lot of trouble, but where’s the fun and tinkering in that? The homemade hardware might not be pretty to look at, but make your way past the break to see if the results are worth the effort.

[Via Hack a Day]

Continue reading HDR imaging for the cheap and gifted

Filed under: Digital Cameras

HDR imaging for the cheap and gifted originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 17 Jul 2009 08:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s not the fabled GSM Pre, but PreCentral forum member Cleanser has apparently managed to unlock his Pre’s CDMA radio and get voice and SMS service on Verizon — data’s still a no-go, but he’s working on it. Other devices have been flashed between the networks for years, so we’ve no doubt that this is possible, but we doubt it’ll ever be super-easy — according to Cleanser, the hardest part was getting someone to add his device’s MEID to the system, and that’s always gonna be tough, regardless of VZW’s big talk about open network access. Still, it’s heartening to see a webOS device on another carrier — Palm, you want to maybe do this up official sometime? Video after the break.

[Via PreCentral]

Continue reading Palm Pre hacked and running on Verizon

Filed under: Cellphones

Palm Pre hacked and running on Verizon originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Jul 2009 11:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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