DIY Viking PC Case: Ragnar’s Revenge

Posted on 24/12/2015 by Lambert Varias

It’s that time of the year again. No, not Christmas, but Bit-tech’s annual awards for best casemod and custom case. They’ve got a lot of great entries this year and I don’t have a strong favorite. That said, I wouldn’t be surprised if Ali Abbas’ project receives the custom case crown.

Ali calls his creation Ragnar’s Revenge, a computer in a Viking-themed wooden case. It’s bursting with details, from its mechanical swiveling wings to the sail that covers its power supply. It’s not what you would call an organic or intuitive design, and I’m sure Ali knows that. His primary goals were to hide the PC’s modern parts, and give the impression that everything was handmade. Check out the video and photos below and you’ll see that he succeeded.

Even if Bit-Tech’s readers and members don’t pick Ragnar’s Revenge, the PC already has several awards from this year’s German Casemod Championship, including the best constructed case.

Congrats Ali! I’m sure the Vikings would’ve loved to steal your creation. Head to Bit-tech to check out Ali’s build log and the other nominees as well.

DIY Fallout-inspired Tube Radio PC Casemod Plays More than Just Galaxy News

Posted on 20/10/2015 by Lambert Varias

Popular YouTube gamer Robbaz scratched his Fallout 4 itch by turning an 1940s GE Musaphonic 221 AM radio into a case for his new PC. He also made replicas of Fallout food items to complete his desktop setup.

Robbaz says the radio’s case was surprisingly rock solid. The PC is based on a Gigabyte Mini ITX board, with a Core i5-6600K CPU, GTX 970 GPU, 16GB RAM and 250GB SSD. He mounted a small monitor where the tuner used to be to display the PC’s temperature and other metrics.

I wonder if you can craft a computer in Fallout 4.

Tube Radio Computer

[via Reddit]

Captain America Xbox One Laptop & Iron Man PS4 Laptop: Console War

Posted on 10/09/2015 by Lambert Varias

Console laptop expert Ed Zarick keeps pushing his modding skills. His latest finished casemods are based on the upcoming Captain America: Civil War. One is a Captain America-themed Xbox One laptop and the other is an Iron Man-themed PlayStation 4 laptop. Ed’s eyes on the other hand seem to be Winter Soldier-themed.

While both laptops look really nice and have layered accents on their lids, Ed mirrored Cap and Tony’s identities in the respective mods. The Xbox One laptop is spartan and has two major practical features. Two of the stars on its front panel double as vents and it has a built-in Hauppage capture card for recording gameplay sessions.

The PS4 laptop on the other hand is flashy and geeked out. Aside from the Iron Man-HUD inspired black and blue front panel, there’s a 10″ Android tablet embedded in the laptop. You can use it to navigate the PS4’s home screen, as a keyboard or as a tablet. But mostly it’s there for style, as evidenced by the Jarvis soundbites that Ed added to it.

You can skip to 1:07 in the video below for the Xbox One and to 2:49 for the PS4.

As Ed mentioned in the video he’s put up eBay auctions for both console laptops. You can bid for the Captain America Xbook One here and the Iron Man Playbook 4 here. As of this writing there’s about two and a half days to go before the auction ends. Head to Ed’s blog for more on the laptops and his other work.

Wood Kubb Mini PC: Interchangeable Form over Function

Posted on 02/09/2015 by Lambert Varias

Last July, we checked out Mike Schropp’s Micro LEGO computer. Here’s another custom made but more discreet mini PC. Made by French company Kubb, the Wood Kubb is a 4.9 cubic inch computer with swappable handmade wooden shells.

The Wood Kubb is actually the latest in line of Kubb’s eponymous Mini PCs, but the previously released models had plastic or steel shells. Wood Kubb’s shell can be made of white ash, brown ash and elm.

The electronic components are all mounted on a chassis that can be separated from the shell just by removing a single hidden screw.

Aside from the three wooden shells, the components’ chassis will also fit in Kubb’s steel shells.

Like other PCs, Wood Kubb will come in different configurations: Intel i3 to i5 CPUs, 8GB to 16GB RAM, 128GB to 1TB SSD and Intel HD 4400 to 5000 IGPs. Pledge at least ~$520 (USD) on Kickstarter to receive a Wood Kubb as a reward.

[via Cool Things]

Raspberry Pi-based PDP-8/1 Replica: PiDP-8

Posted on 25/08/2015 by Lambert Varias

Released in 1965, the PDP-8 was the first successful commercial minicomputer, making it a coveted piece of computing history. In other words, it’s rare and expensive. So to celebrate the PDP-8’s 50th anniversary, Oscar aka Obsolescence Guaranteed opted to make an affordable replica using a Raspberry Pi and the SIMH emulator.

Oscar’s PiDP-8 is based on the PDP-8/I. Oscar painstakingly recreated the labels and logos on the acrylic front panel based on a photo of the computer. The 92 LEDs and 26 switches also accurately reflect the (virtual) PDP-8’s CPU states. He didn’t bother recreating the computer’s tape and disk drives, since he wanted to keep costs down and because that would be insane.

Oscar already sold a batch of PiDP-8 kits last June. He’ll make more again for release this October and is taking orders on his website. Prices start at $135 (USD). But if you want, you can refer to Oscar’s build log and hardware schematics for a full DIY job. Aside from the small profit, for his efforts Oscar is currently one of the 10 finalists in the 2015 Hack A Day Prize, which could net him $100,000 and much more.

[via Hack A Day]

Redstone Block PC: Blood + Sweat + Tears

Posted on 11/08/2015 by Lambert Varias

Redstone is a key component for making virtual computers in Minecraft. It’s also Spencer Kern’s key inspiration for his meticulously crafted mini ITX PC.

Spencer built the 8.5″x 8.5″x 8.5″ case almost entirely out of acrylic. The outer shell with the design is separate from the frame.

The shell and lights alone would be cool enough, but Spencer went all out. He customized the power switch and had the fan cables and PSU cables custom made to fit the red and gray color scheme. He also applied matching decals and graphics to his Xbox One controller, chatpad and mouse. Finally, he designed and ordered custom printed keycaps for his mechanical keyboard.

Check out Spencer’s full build log for more:

[via Kotaku]

Micro LEGO Computer Has Stackable Modules: NUCs and Bricks

Posted on 29/07/2015 by Lambert Varias

Back in March, Mike Schropp unveiled his Mini LEGO Computer. It went viral and is now a commercial success, but many people asked him for a smaller and more affordable LEGO PC. So Mike came up with the Micro LEGO Computer, a modified Intel NUC PC.

The Micro LEGO Computer measures 4” x 5” x 5”, 75% smaller than the Mini LEGO Computer. It has a Core i3, i5 or i7 CPU, up to 16GB of RAM, up to 1TB SSD storage and has 802.11ac and Bluetooth. It also has an Ethernet port, four USB 3.0 ports, a mini-HDMI port and a mini-DisplayPort. Mike also added a Noctua fan to keep the PC’s components cool.

What makes the Micro LEGO Computer extra special is that it incorporates LEGO’s stacking and modularity. It has optional external hard drive and a memory card reader and USB hub modules with LEGO enclosures. He designed their cases such that you could stack the Micro LEGO Computer and both modules into one unit. Each module connects to the Micro LEGO via a USB 3.0 port.

Finally, like its predecessor you can customize the Micro LEGO Computer’s top cover; Mike offers the same three top cover variants that are available for the Mini LEGO Computer. He can also add minifigs and other decorative details to your order. The Micro LEGO Computer’s case itself is also available in different LEGO colors. Head to Mike’s website to order; prices start at $599 (USD).

[via PCWorld]

R2-D2 PS4 Laptop: The Console You’re Looking for

Posted on 22/07/2015 by Lambert Varias

Ed Zarick made a name for himself cramming current gen consoles into a laptop form, but so far the case mods he’s done have basic decorative details, mostly the 3D printed corner pieces. He must have realized that too, so he built this R2-D2-themed PS4 laptop to show off what he can do.

Instead of using decals, Ed filled the laptop’s case with 3D printed replicas of Artoo’s parts with the help of the guys at Astromech. The R2-D2 specialists also helped Ed acquire the droid’s sound effects, which he loaded on an Adafruit WaveShield.

Ed didn’t say if he’s selling this particular case mod, but you can contact him on his website for commissions.

Xbox One & PS4 Combo Laptop Case Mod Mk.II: All in One Greatness Awaits

Posted on 19/06/2015 by Lambert Varias

Earlier this year we checked out Ed Zarick’s Playbox, a laptop that contains both the Xbox One and the PS4. That was supposed to be a one-off, but Ed got a lot of requests for the console combo that he decided to add it to his list of products on sale.

Ed says he couldn’t find enough 22″ Vizio monitors, so for the PlayBox Mk. II, which is the version he’s selling, he’s using Vizio’s 24″ 1080p smart TV that has built-in Wi-Fi for media apps like Netflix. Like the original PlayBox, both consoles retained all of their functions. You still can’t turn both of them on at once, but that’s fine because that would be pointless anyway and would only generate a lot of heat.

Ed buddy, we love your work, but you gotta get some sleep man. You can pre-order the PlayBox Mk. II for $2,595 (USD), or $1995 if you send him the consoles to be modded. The HDMI out will cost you an extra $50.

Wii U Laptop Case Mod: Nintendo NW

Posted on 16/05/2015 by Lambert Varias

Last year, professional modder Ed Zarick figured out how to make laptop versions of the PS4 and the Xbox One, and then topped both efforts by stuffing the two consoles into one laptop. It turns out the current gen console laptop trifecta was completed around the same time, thanks to ModRetro member Anthony aka RedmagnusX.

Anthony used a 17″ 1920×1200 Samsung laptop screen and the bezel from a Dell Inspiron 9300 for his mod. He stuffed the rest of the electronics – including the disc drive and stereo speakers – into a wooden case, which he then joined to the display using a pair of hinges. After some rewiring and soldering, Anthony vinyl wrapped the laptop to tidy up its appearance.

Here’s Anthony playing a bit of Super Smash Bros. on his Wii U laptop:

It’s well put together isn’t it? I bet Anthony is getting lots of requests for commissions. You can check out his build log and showcase threads on ModRetro for more on his project.