Gadget Hacks How-Tos
How To: See Every Single Bikini Pic from Your Facebook Friends on Your iPhone with Badabing
We all know the real reason why Facebook was created. No matter what Mark Zuckerberg says, or how many commercials about chairs the company makes, it all comes down to one thing—boobies.
How To: Share Photos from One iPhone to Another with Just the Sound of a Chirp
There are several ways to send pictures to others on your smartphone—picture message, email, Bluetooth, and even by bumping phones together. Now there's an even more unique way to transfer pictures from one Apple device to another—with sound. Chirp for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch
How To: Get Windows Media Center for Free on Windows 8 Pro
Can't play your DVD movies on your brand new Windows 8 system? That's because Microsoft decided to omit Windows Media Center from Windows 8 this time, instead making it available as an extra download—and it's not free anymore. At least, it won't be next year.
How To: Bring the Classic Start Menu Back in Windows 8
Microsoft's most anticipated OS has finally arrived, and there's no doubt that all of you out there who snagged a copy of Windows 8 are excited to see what's new. But while Windows 8 has received plenty of rave reviews, some users are upset about one controversial change—the missing Start menu. The implementation of the new Metro interface has rendered the old Start menu unnecessary, but some folks just want what they're used to. If you're one of those users who wants the classic Start menu i...
How To: Replace the Cracked Screen on Your Samsung Galaxy S III
Many people drop their phone, resulting in the dreaded cracked screen. Luckily for you, a few of those people end up replacing the screen themselves, and sometimes they even leave behind detailed instructions on how to do it.
How To: Track the Super Storm Hurricane Sandy Live
As Hurricane Sandy barrels towards the East Coast, 50 million people are expected to be affected in the nation's most populated corridor. The behemoth super storm is a cause for concern, evident by the massive evacuations. The picture above is an eerie snap of the mostly crowded Times Square subway station in New York. Government officials have warned over half a million people to evacuate their homes and head to higher grounds. To help prepare for this storm, the internet has provided severa...
How To: Block Annoying Political Comments from Your Facebook and Replace Them with Cute Kittens
Election day is less than two weeks away and the political rhetoric is at an all time high. From the constant political commercials to the endless cable news coverage, it's hard to escape the noise. And nothing is worse than your social media sanctuaries being invaded by some clown's personal political insights.
How To: Bought an iPad 3 in the Last 30 Days? You Could Get a Free iPad 4 Upgrade
The announcement of the iPad 4 has made a lot of third-generation iPad owners very angry. After all, it's only been seven months since the third one was released, and it's now "obsolete." If you bought one really recently, though, you could be in luck. Some Apple stores will offer a free upgrade to the iPad 4 for customers who bought a third-generation iPad in the last 30 days. According to CNET, a rep from an Apple store in San Francisco confirmed that her store would be offering an exchange...
How To: 5 Lesser Known Jelly Bean Features on Your Samsung Galaxy S III
Sprint has announced that it will be the first U.S. carrier to release Jelly Bean 4.1 for the Samsung Galaxy S III. The over-the-air updates have already started, with users receiving a notification on how to update on their phone. The reason Jelly Bean has garnered so much attention is due to several, well-known features like Google Talk, Project Butter and expandable notifications.
How To: Preserve Battery Life on Your Jelly Bean-Powered Samsung Galaxy S III
With Sprint already rolling out their Jelly Bean updates to Samsung Galaxy S III owners here in the United States, international users have already had a chance to check out Android's newest OS on their S3, but all is not gravy.
How To: Build a Deadly Motion-Activated Airsoft Turret Gun
It's tough out there on the battlefield, especially when your stuck in the trenches and your comrades are dropping like flies. There's no hope. At least, until the next airsoft battle.
How To: Connect Your PS3 Controller to Your Samsung Galaxy S3 for Better Mobile Gaming
Playing advanced games on your phone can be pretty frustrating sometimes. Touchscreen devices are great for everyday apps and games designed solely for them, but when it comes to games that require multiple actions in conjunction with directional movement, it gets ugly.
How To: It's Raining Sweets and Treats! How to Make Your Own Pneumatic Candy Cannon
In this project, you'll learn how to re-purpose low-cost sprinkler parts into a high-powered CANDY CANNON. Be the coolest person on the block by building a pneumatic device that will launch candy 100 feet in the air—you can make it rain down all kinds of sugary treats!!!
How To: Increase Storage Space on Your Samsung Galaxy Note Tablet Using a Flash Drive
Monitoring your storage space is always a nuisance, whether you have a desktop, tablet, or smartphone; having enough space for all of your files, music, and videos is a constant battle. One movie file can take upwards of 1GB of memory, and for people who travel a lot, it becomes extremely impractical to have those huge files on your portable device.
How To: Use Gestures to Control Windows 8 Touchscreen Devices
Windows 8 has been reimagined to take full advantage of touchscreen devices as the "future" of computing. A few years ago, touchscreen devices were super buggy and only played well with smartphones, but with the advent of the iPad and a ton of other tablets, touchscreen capabilities have spread to full-sized desktops and even televisions.
How To: Hide All of the Social Numbers on Your Facebook Page with the Demetricator
The reason that Facebook is so popular is because it connects us to people that we could have never been connected to before. When people log on, they look for messages, comments, likes, and any other notifications that connect us to those people. These same notifications, though, distort our view of Facebook. We tend to appreciate statuses (I prefer stati) that have more likes. We're geared towards people that have more friends, so we tend to like pages that already have hundred of thousands...
How To: Keep Your Mac's Display from Dimming on You While You're Reading Using Audio and Voice Detection
Sitting in the Powell Library at UCLA was a constant thing for me. Directly after class, I would streamline my way there to study all night until my eyes shuttered to sleep. For the most part, my classes and professors managed to keep my studying online via PDFs, emails, long essays and journal entries.
How To: Set Up Parental Controls with the Family Safety Settings in Windows 8
The internet is full of information and entertainment, but if you have children, you might want to put a cap on what sites they have access to. While it may be a free world out there, it doesn't mean that little Mickey should be free to roam the web during his downtime (or uptime, if you know what I mean).
How To: Add, Delete, and Modify User Accounts in Windows 8
Configuring user accounts is extremely important for those with a family shared computer or anyone using a work computer. Assigning different accounts with their own distinctive accessibility, customizations, and applications is the best way to manage a computer with multiple users.
How To: Light Up Your iPhone's Apple Logo in Old School Rainbow Colors
As far as logos go, few are as iconic and instantly recognizable as Apple's old-school rainbow emblem. No matter how sleek their products get, people are still nostalgic for the old, colorful logo, and this mod from Adafruit basically proves it. If you have some pretty decent soldering skills, you can make the Apple on the back of your iPhone light up like the old rainbow logo. In the video below, Becky Stern from Adafruit uses a kit with a replacement glass back, tweezers, screwdrivers, and ...
How To: Manage Your Live Tiles in Windows 8
The new Windows 8 is only days away from its mass public release on Friday, October 26th. And there's a ton of new features you'll need to get used to, either on your computer or your tablet. One of them is the Live Tiles, which provide users with live information and is way more aesthetically pleasing than the traditional Windows layout. The new Tiles system adds another level of functionality and information for the user, but it definitely takes some getting used to. The video below by Pure...
How To: Root and Unlock the Bootloader on a Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) 4G LTE from Verizon
The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0) 4G LTE on Verizon has only been released for a couple months now with good reviews. It comes with dual cameras, memory expansion, and very quick 4G LTE speeds, without needing a contract. While most users are satisfied with the tablet as is, there are others that prefer rooting the tablet in order to install their own custom ROM. Now you can do it with the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2.
iPhone Quick Tip: Add Color to Make Your Broken Rear Glass Panel Look… Less Broke
The iPhone is probably one of the best looking phones ever made, but that beauty comes with a price. If you have a 4S or previous version, all it takes is one drop and the back glass is shattered (unless you're incredibly lucky). Replacing it yourself is pretty simple and cheap, but if you're not into DIY repairs, here's an easy alternative solution, as long as you have a white device. Redditor skrillexisokay used highlighters to transform a broken back glass into a work of art. And the best ...
How To: Hack Your Mini-Fridge into a Vending Machine to Take Care of Freeloading Friends at Your Next Party
It always sounds like a good idea to throw a party... until the party gets there. Next thing you know, you're running around hiding anything breakable, and once everyone leaves, you're stuck cleaning up the mess. But the worst part is footing the bill for everything, and if you don't charge at the door, your chances of getting anyone to chip in are slim to none once the party starts.
How To: Build a Programmable Robot with Snap Circuits
Want to learn how to build a robot out of Snap Circuits? I'll show you how to combine Snap Circuits parts from three different sets (the Snap Circuits rover, Snap Circuits Micro, and the Snap Circuits motion detector) to make a simple programmable motion activated robot. For a complete step-by-step build of the robot, visit my project at Instructables: http://www.instructables.com/id/Hack-the-Snap-Circuits-Rover/
How To: Send Encrypted Spy Messages Through Gmail on Google Chrome
Have a super secret spy communication you'd like to send out, but don't have the funds to hire your own trusted operatives to deliver the message? Then stick to what you're used to—email it. SafeGmail is a browser extension that allows you to send encrypted emails right through your regular Gmail account. While this may seem a bit unnecessary for most messages, encrypting your email can definitely be useful.
How To: Root and Flash Omega ROM onto Your Samsung Galaxy Note 2
The new Samsung Galaxy Note II is a powerful and sleek device that begs for some customization, and there's no better way to customize your Android device than installing a custom ROM of your choice. One of your choices is the Omega ROM, which is just one of many that you can download and flash to your Galaxy Note 2. Before you begin, you'll need to root your Galaxy Note 2 and install Odin and CWM Recovery. You can get a toolkit of everything you need over at XDA Developers. Then follow the v...
How To: Un-Root Your Samsung Galaxy S III and Flash Back to Android 4.0.4
Rooting your device gives you all-powerful administrative access to your phone and its system settings. Of course, with such power comes great responsibility, and sometimes that responsibility becomes to burdensome or just plain unnecessary.
How To: Install Flash on a Samsung Galaxy Note, Nexus 7, and Other Android 4.1 Jelly Bean Devices
Samsung's Galaxy Note and Note II phablets have been hailed for their large displays and responsive systems, making them ideal for gaming and movie watching. But if you've recently upgraded to Jelly Bean (Android 4.1) from Ice Cream Sandwich (4.0), you'll be sad to know that some Android devices running Jelly Bean no longer support Adobe Flash Player.
How To: No Jelly Bean for You? Motorola Offers Trade-In Program, Gives Credit for Newer Android 4.1 Devices
Thousands of Android users have been disappointed to learn that getting the latest firmware update isn't as easy as it sounds. Some really popular phones like the Samsung Galaxy S III just started getting the Jelly Bean upgrade, with the update continuing to roll out over the next couple of weeks overseas. All of the stateside S3 users will have to wait even longer for Android 4.1.
How To: Get the Windows 8 Picture Password Unlock Screen on Your Android Smartphone
One of the more innovative features about the new Windows 8 operating system is the ability to unlock the screen via a picture password. This new feature allows the user to select any photo they would like and use taps, circles or straight lines to unlock the device. The video below shows the picture unlock in action.
How To: Turn an Automatic Air Freshener Dispenser into a Silly String Launcher
The electric air freshener is one of those devices that seems like it could only have one possible function, but can actually be repurposed in a few different ways. If you're looking for a practical use, you can turn it into a bug killer, but it's also perfect for pranks.
How To: Install Siri on Your Jailbroken 'A4' Apple Device Running iOS 6
When the new iOS 6 came out a few months ago, I was pumped because I finally would get Siri on my iPhone 4. Having the automated voice assistant readily available on my phone would be cool, even if I probably wouldn't use it all that much.
How To: New to Windows 8? See How the Start Screen, Charms Bar, and Quick Access Menu Work
Microsoft's newest operating system, Windows 8, will hit stores everywhere on October 26th, and they hope this new version will shift the way we think about computers and their interfaces. In an effort to get as many early adopters as possible, Microsoft is even making their OS cheaper than usual, offering upgrades from previous versions for as low as $40 for a limited time.
How To: Recover or Restore a Bricked Samsung Galaxy S III Smartphone
There is no better example of a risk-versus-reward scenario than jailbreaking your iPhone or rooting your Android phone. While both jailbreaking and rooting undoubtedly has its advantages, this possibility of something going wrong and you ending up with a 500-dollar doorstop is never too far out of mind.
How To: Uninstall Applications in Windows 8
Windows 8 and its new Windows Store have simplified the process for uninstalling and cleanly deleting applications from your computer. Removing applications in older versions of Windows required a few more steps: My Computer -> Control Panel -> Add or Remove Programs -> Find the Program -> Click Uninstall.
How To: Build a Laser Tripwire and Alarm with Snap Circuits
Want to learn how to build a laser tripwire and alarm out of snap circuits? I'll show you how to build both circuits— the laser tripwire circuit and the alarm circuit.
How To: Don't Be Duped by Malicious Short Links—Here's How You Verify the Destination URL Before Clicking
Link shorteners like TinyURL and Bitly are great for Twitter (or anytime you're limited on space), but they're also great for hackers. It's easy to hide a malicious link in an innocent-looking shortened URL, which increases the chances that people will click on it.
How To: Not Getting the Jelly Bean Update Yet? Here's How to Flash Your Samsung Galaxy S III to Android 4.1.1
The newest firmware update for Android, Jelly Bean 4.1.1, has been out for a while now, but not every device has gotten it yet (some never will). One popular device that has recently gotten it is the Samsung Galaxy S III, only they'll be pushing the update out overseas during the next couple weeks, with the UK already seeing Jelly Bean from the cellular provider Three (if you're on Three, see how to update your device here). Unfortunately, stateside users will have to wait a bit longer. There...
How To: Get All the News, Tips, and Tricks for Your Specific Android Device in One Place with Drippler
There are thousands of articles published every day about smartphones, tablets, eReaders, and any other kind of gadgets you can think of. The problem is that most people only really care about news related to the devices they actually own. So how do you filter out all of the stuff you don't care about? That's what Drippler does. It pulls news, tips, and app reviews and recommendations from all over the web and puts them all in one place, but only for the devices you want to read about. You te...