Prototype R2-D2 robot controlled by iPhone accelerometer

Here's a cool little find, still in the developmental stage. A prototype R2-D2 robot has been built to respond to movement of an iPhone's accelerometer.

Currently, R2-D2's head moves round in one direction or the other based upon the accelerometer.

Pretty neat. Here's a short video of the robot in action.

Posted by Andy Merrett on May 13, 2009 4:32 PM in iPhone hacks
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iPhone News: 3G unlock coming, AT&T survey, OS 2.2 Google Maps

Latest iPhone News: Monday 27th October 2008

iPhone 3G unlock coming?

It seems that the iPhone Dev Team is still trying to work out how to hack the 3G iPhone so that it can be used on another network. They've now managed to break in to the baseband processor on the iPhone.

How close that means they could be to a complete break is another matter. How much you care depends on how much you want to break free from your current network provider. Simply jailbreaking the iPhone so you can use unapproved applications is already possible.

Posted by Andy Merrett on October 27, 2008 1:40 PM in Latest iPhone news| iPhone 3G| iPhone hacks
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O'Reilly launches "iPhone Forensics" - see what's going on in your iPhone

O'Reilly has announced its latest publication for the iPhone. "iPhone Forensics", written by well-known hacker Jonathan Zdziarski, lets anyone find out what's hiding in underneath the iPhone's bonnet, even if it's supposedly been deleted.

"Any given iPhone is likely to contain sensitive information belonging to its owner, and some types of information that may belong to others: corporate email, documents, and photos, to name a few," says Zdziarski.

"As the dark side of such a versatile device becomes more evident, so does the need to recover personal information from it."

Posted by Andy Merrett on October 10, 2008 12:39 PM in Latest iPhone news| iPhone hacks
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Surfing with iPod Touch out and about with another 3G phone

OK, strictly this isn't an iPhone tip, because you've already got network access, though I suppose you could use it if you have a Nokia phone on another contract and want to use up some of that provider's data plan.

By loading the Joiku application onto the Nokia phone (in Mitchell's example it's an E71), you then effectively create a Wi-Fi hotspot with that phone. The iPod Touch (or iPhone, or laptop, or any other wireless-enabled device) can then connect to that network.

The advantage for Mitchell is that he can purchase songs from the iTunes Store even when not on a "real" Wi-Fi network. It doesn't require any jailbreaking of the iPod Touch or iPhone, either.

More information over at Gear Diary.

Posted by Andy Merrett on July 23, 2008 7:00 AM in iPhone hacks
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iPhone Dev Team close to making iPhone 3G hack public

According to reports online, the iPhone Dev Team could make hacks for jailbreaking the iPhone 3G public, thus continuing to piss off Apple and the mobile carriers, and potentially risking sanctions on future devices for those of us who just want to use the iPhone as it is.

A number of users want to do one or both of two things: break away from the authorised mobile networks (AT&T in the US, Rogers in Canada, O2 in the UK, etc) and run their own applications on the iPhone without having to via the App Store.

Posted by Andy Merrett on July 16, 2008 4:42 PM in iPhone 3G| iPhone hacks| iPhone mods
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iPhone gets VLC software

Good news for anyone wanting to play a variety of media files on the iPhone rather than the standard MP3, AAC, and QuickTime formats supported by Apple's standard software.

VLC (Video LAN Client) beta software has been ported to the iPhone, as developed by schoolkids in France. It requires a jailbroken iPhone, and I'd be surprised if this kind of application would make it as a sanctioned third-party application.

It's only available as a private beta at present, though it is expected to become available in due course.

(Via WIRED)

Posted by Andy Merrett on June 6, 2008 10:23 AM in iPhone applications| iPhone hacks
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iPhone gets handwriting recognition hack

While Apple may be looking for a handwriting recognition engineer, a Chinese developer has had similar ideas, releasing a beta version of their handwriting recognition software for jailbroken iPhone.

HWPen can recognise the Latin and Chinese alphabets, but doesn't yet work in landscape mode, nor in the Mail application.

It can be downloaded through the Installer.app by going here

(Via Power Page)

Posted by Andy Merrett on April 17, 2008 6:03 PM in iPhone applications| iPhone hacks
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