Hot Gadget Hacks Posts
How To: Put Netflix streaming on your Samsung Epic
Check out this helpful video to learn how to configure the settings on your Samsung Epic so that you can enjoy Netflix streaming. The Netflix app won't work with just any Android device, unless you follow the instructions in this video.
How To: Detect Facebook Spam
Spam is everywhere and Facebook is no exception. In fact, spammers are constantly stepping up their game by tricking unsuspecting Facebook users to participate in quizzes, games, apps, or "new features" that are actually dangerous computer viruses, spyware, or other trojan horses in disguise. Their attempts even trick people into unknowingly becoming spammers themselves.
How To: Download Netflix on your HD2
How would you like to be able to watch all of the movies and television shows available on the Netflix watch instantly service on your HD2 Android phone? Check out this video to learn how to download the Netflix app.
News: Yale Opens Up Online Digital Library with 250,000 Free Images
Yale University has opened up its museum archives to the public in digital form, providing free online access to high-resolution images from its cultural collections, making it the first Ivy League school to do so in this fashion. Currently, there's over 250,000 "open access" images available from their new online collective catalog, with the goal of providing scholars, artists, students and all other worldly citizens royalty-free, no-license access to images of public domain collections with...
News: Automatically Manage and Sort Files Using Hazel [Mac]
In many of my articles, I will refer to applications designed to empower Mac users to automate various tasks on their computer. One such application is called Hazel. Like smart folders, smart playlists, and smart albums found in Mac OS X and iPhoto, Hazel can automate the task of moving, copying, or deleting files in folders on your Mac. I recommend Hazel as one of the most essential applications for any Mac user. Let's explore how it works.
How To: Mod a Nook Color to run the Netflix app
The Nook Color is great for reading books, but wouldn't it be nice if you could watch movies on it? This video will show you how to run the Netflix app on a rooted Nook Color. You can mod Netflix into playing on your rooted eReader.
How To: Hold a Building in Your Hand
Aaron Betsky, director of the Cincinnati Art Museum and previous director of the Netherlands Institute of Architecture, reports on the world's first postage stamp to employ augmented reality. Dutch advertising agency Gummo, the NIA and the Dutch postal service teamed up to present five unbuilt models by different Dutch architecture studios in 3D form. When held in front of a webcam, the illusion of a 3D building is projected in your hand. By slowly moving the stamp, you can experience the vir...
News: Apple Evolution Timeline
Apple Evolution Timeline (click to magnify) by Edwin Tofslie.
News: The Almighty Mouse
Photo credit: World header image by lastquest.
News: Seamlessly Transition Your Music from Mac to iPhone in One Click
You're rocking out to your favorite new song playing in iTunes on your Mac, and you've got to go for a run or meet your friend at the local coffee shop. But you're grooving to the music and don't want to leave until you've found the same song on your iPhone, to continue jamming your heart out. There's a few problems with this scenario though: First, it's time consuming. Second, you're most likely to start the song from the beginning, ruining the groove you had going.
How To: Get GraviBoard for free on your iPhone or iPod Touch
GraviBoard is an awesome tweak for jailbroken Apple iOS devices that applies gravity to the icons on your homescreen. If you want to download it for free and install it, check out this helpful video to learn which source to use to find GraviBoard on Cydia.
How To: Install Gingerbread on a Samsung Galaxy Tab
If you are interested in installing Gingerbread on your rooted Samsung Galaxy Tab, check out this video. You'll want to download Stock GB as well as Overcome and the ROM. You'll use Odin to install Gingerbread on the Android tablet.
News: The 5 Best iPhone/iPad Apps for Exporting and Importing Your Photos
With so many wireless iOS networking apps for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch available, there’s very little reason to connect any of these devices to iTunes, except to update the software. Besides, importing and exporting photos using iTunes has never been one of the best features of Apple‘s mobile device process. Let me introduce you to 5 useful apps for importing and exporting photos to and from your iOS device(s).
News: Angry Birds Now on Chrome (Plus the Epic Battle Between Man and Robot)
Rovio's highly successful Angry Birds game has generated a slew of wannabe Angry Clones and dominated nearly every device and platform known to man—iPhone, Android, PSP, Xbox 360, Windows—and now, for the first time it's available for play directly on the web (for free). It was specifically designed for Google's Chrome OS and their new Chromebook line of laptop computers, but can play on any device in almost any web browser (like Firefox).
News: Share Music Wirelessly by Tapping Two Android Devices Together
Android users are probably already familiar with the doubleTwist Player (free) from doubleTwist, available on the Android Market. They recently added AirPlay support for users with AirSync ($4.99) that allows streaming to Apple TV and DLNA devices, which is sure to provoke some cease and desist requests from Apple. But their second, newly unveiled feature is more enticing—doubleTap, which adds proximity-based file sharing for Android devices.
How To: Install Continuum v5 rom on a Samsung Captivate
If you want to flash the Continuum v5 ROM on your Samsung Captivate, make sure to watch this video first. You'll learn how to
How To: Reset your Motorola ATRIX factory settings
Give your Motorola ATRIX new life by reverting it back to its stock state. Download the correct drivers and follow the video's instructions for using RSD-Lite to flash the Android smartphone's firmware. Watch this video to learn the correct way to SBF flash.
How To: Install Gingerblur on a Motorla ATRIX cell phone
This video will explain what you need to do to successfully download and install the Gingerblur rom for a Motorola ATRIX cell phone. Watch this video if you are interested in flashing this ROM to your Android smartphone. Using ADB is optional in this install.
Obtract: Become More Productive by Wandering Through Mazes
Are you a well intentioned busy bee plagued by a lack of focus? Whether you've been diagnosed with a legit case of ADHD, or you've been plainly labeled "scatterbrain", Obtract may be just the solution for properly channeling your concentration.
How To: Create your own live wallpaper for your Android smartphone
Bring your phone's background image to the foreground by creating live wallpaper- moving wallpaper for your Android smartphone that you can interact with. This video will take you through the steps and show you how to use Ownskin to make skinlets for your cell phone.
How To: Organize widget shortcuts on an Android phone
Tired of staring at the same old widget layout on your Android smartphone? Feel like mixing things up? This video explains how to reorganize shortcuts, including creating new ones and making pages for related apps. Learn how to customize your Android home screen. Organize widget shortcuts on an Android phone.
How To: Use your iPhone to project movies
Take your home theater with you wherever you go! You can hook a jailbroken iPhone up to a projector and speakers and make any room a movie theater, with a crystal clear 52" screen. This video explains how to set up this iPhone powered mobile projecting unit.
How To: Skip the setup wizard on your Android phone
If you've just brought home a brand new Android smart phone, or you've installed a new ROM, you probably don't want to have to go through the configuration process on the 3G network. You can skip the "Touch the Android to Begin" screen and get straight to the good stuff.
How To: Access files on your iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad by SSH for Mac or Windows
Using either Winscp for Windows or Cyberduck for Mac you can SSH the files on your jailbroken iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad from your computer. This will allow you to view the files on your iOS mobile device from your computer.
News: Google Music Now Live in Beta Mode
At Google I/O this morning, Google finally announced the launch of its much awaited Google Music service. It's currently in invite-only beta mode, but they claim it will open up to the masses soon enough. To start syncing your music library with Google's Cloud now, you need make sure you're signed into your Google Account, then click here for a personal invite. It's currently free for a limited, undisclosed amount time.
How To: Make a stand for your iPod Touch or iPhone with a cassette case
If you've got an iPhone or an iPod touch, there's a good chance you've also got a bunch of old cassette tape cases laying around. This video will show you a clever way to turn a cassette case into a stylish stand for your iOs device so you can watch movies, tv shows, and youtube videos in comfort.
LeafSnap: Identify Tree Species in Just One Click
Being a Southern Californian, I typically miss out on the incredible springtime bloom of flowering trees in the East. But not this year. By some stroke of luck, I was in Boston early last week, and witnessed the most spectacular trees and foliage at their prime—lilac, magnolias, crabapples, dogwood, and many more.
News: Geocaching Made Easy with Garmin's Android and iPhone Apps
In the past, geocaching has been an activity overlooked by most. Partly because nobody really knew what it was and partly because you needed a GPS-enabled device to participate, like a Garmin. But now, thanks to GPS-enabled Android and Apple devices, geocaching will finally be noticed by the masses in Garmin's own OpenCaching.
Coming Soon: Charge Your Cell Phone by Screaming at It
The Telegraph reports that a team of researchers lead by Dr. Sang-Woo Kim of the Institute of Nanotechnology at Sungkyunkwan University in Seoul have developed a method for converting the energy from sound into electricity. They've applied the research to the charging of mobile phones, and while you don't have to yell with all the emotion and fear exhibited above by Drew Barrymore in Scream, it sounds like the more energy the better. Dr. Sang-Woo Kim says:
Inventables: A Store for Superheroes & Hackers
Founded by Zach Kaplan, a "serial entrepreneur" with a B.S. in mechanical engineering, Inventables is a futuristic online hardware store based out of Chicago. The company sells innovative materials at much smaller quantities than typically available—largely to artists, inventors, developers, and researchers. If you've got a brilliant idea and cash to spare, careful, you just may go hog wild. My premature "Dear Santa" wishlist-in-progress:
News: Planetary Transforms Your iPad's Music Library into a Solar System
Browsing and displaying your music library on the iPad is a cinch with Apple's iPod app. But by no means would it be considered exciting. Thankfully, there's another option for sorting and playing your iTunes library. It's a unique iPad-only application for those of us who want something more visually stimulating, something otherworldly—something galactic.
News: Google's New "Search Globe" Visualizes Search Volume by Country
Want to see which country or city uses Google the most? Try Google's new eye-stimulating tool, Search Globe.
News: Wearable Electronic Displays Coming to Your T-Shirt Soon
E Ink technology is nothing short of amazing. It recently contributed to the world's first bend-sensitive flexible smartphone, and now it's capable of something even cooler, not to mention astonishingly simpler—flashing digital displays on cloth.
News: World's First Bend-Sensitive Flexible Smartphone
Apple's iPhone is considered one of the best smartphones in the world. Many cell phone makers have tried to take down the juggernaut, with some Android-based devices coming close, but in order to become an actual iPhone killer, something revolutionary needs to happen in the mobile world. And Human Media Lab (HML) may be the ones to make it happen.
How To: Recycle an Old Vinyl Record into a Warped 'Salvador Dali' Analog Clock
This recycling project would surely make Salvador Dali proud. Kipkay outlines the process, from old vinyl record to cool analog clock. Just pick out an appropriate record, place on cookie sheet and soften inside the oven. Then take the clock mechanism from an old cheap clock and attach to the record. This may not fit with all of your décor, but who cares?
How To: Find out if you can jailbreak your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad
This video will introduce you to a couple of websites that will let you know whether or not your Apple I device- iPhone, iPod, or iPad can be jailbroken. Check out this site or this site if you are interested in jailbreaking an iPhone 4, iPod touch, or iPad 2.
How To: Password Protect Apps with Locktopus on Your Jailbroken iPhone
Want to show a friend something on your iPhone but don't want them messing up your Angry Birds game or peeking at your private emails? Enter Locktopus, the perfect solution to locking your iOS apps from prying eyes. The only catch—you need to jailbreak your iPhone.
News: Angry Clones Are Taking Over the App World
In December 2009, Angry Birds was released to the public. The iPhone and iPod touch were the first to take on the demand, then a devoted HD version for the iPad. Since then, it's transcended iOS devices to appear on Android, Nokia, Palm phones, and many others. Next, it broke away from mobile devices with versions available on PSP, PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, Nintendo DS, 3DS, Windows PC and Mac computers. Facebook and Windows Phone 7 apps are in the works.
How To: Set up your Facebook account on your Android phone
Can't get enough Facebook? Take your "friends" status updates with you wherever you go by syncing your Facebook account with your Android smart phone. Having access to Facebook on your cell phone will keep you in touch, and come in handy when you need to look up a phone number or email address.
Protect Your Facebook Profile: 10 Ways to Increase Privacy
Don't want one of your Facebook "friends" knowing your status updates? Prefer to keep a few of those "friends" out of your photo albums? Would you like to prevent a few "friends" from accessing your address?