TechCrunch » benheck

Ben Heck Show Airs, Is Geek-tastic

Contributor — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 02:29:44 +0000

The king of all modders, Ben Heckendorn has his own online tv show. You might remember Ben from his Xbox 360 mods, or when we interviewed him last summer. Ben’s show features tips and tricks for doing your own mods, as well as a long term project that he presents each show. Viewers can even submit requests, which presumably Ben will answer or address in some way on the show. You can check out the show here, it’s produced bi-weekly and has quite the active forum. I wonder if Yoshi drops by?

[via Make]

Benheck's PS3 Slim laptop has blast processing

Nicholas Deleon — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 20:15:29 +0000

Well well well, look what Benheck has come up with. It’s a PS3 Slim laptop. It’s everything you need to play God of War III in one handy package. And, if you’re a wealthy person, Mr. Heckendorn will happily construct you one!

So, it’s a PS3 along with a 17-inch 720p widescreen display, built-in speakers and a headphone jack, and “stylish pin striping to make games run at blast processing.”

If you youngsters don’t know what blast processing is…

Um… awesome? That’s probably the most appropriate word right now.

via TechLand (HI, DOUG!)

Handheld PS3 device for fanbois to cuddle at night

Contributor — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 00:30:43 +0000

So here’s a somewhat interesting gadget. Instead of converting a PS3 into a hand-held device, a crafty modder named techknott built a custom transmitter. The transmitter allows a player to not only control their PS3 remotely, but also to view the output on a small video screen.

Essentially, you’re combining a controller with a wireless video device, and a small LCD screen. Sounds simple right? Well, it’s might be simple, but looking at the fabrication quality in the video, it’s obviously something that required quite a bit of time and effort.

[via GEARFUSE]

Video: Benheck's Xbox 360 Portable Revision 5

Matt Burns — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 13:46:14 +0000

Ben Heckendorn is no doubt one of the greatest computer modders of our time. Doug just interviewed him and we have featured his work numerous times on CrunchGear. He’s back with yet another incarnation of a portable Xbox. This time around he used a newer Jasper motherboard and added more features like a built-in Ethernet, digital volume controls, and a flush mounted optical drive.

This version uses a 17-inch, 720p Gateway 1775W monitor and has the standard assortment of WiFi, USB ports, and memory card slots. We just wish that we were as talented to create such a device. Access to his assortment of tools would be great too.

[PSGallery=82lrgn3cke]

Benheck via Techeblog

Ben Heckendorn finishes second version of C64 laptop, will be auctioned for charity

Contributor — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 14:00:59 +0000

Modder extraordinaire, Ben Heckendorn (see our interview) has just finished version 2 of his Commodore 64 laptop. This one will be auctioned for charity and features an SD card reader for loading up various software (games!).

Per Ben:

It is very similar to the first C64 laptop I built, with the key difference being it uses the newer 1541-III Ultimate SD-card based storage solution / disk emulator. USB and Ethernet ports for this device are open and available on the front of the unit.

Other features include dedicated 1541 menu buttons, dual joystick ports, and an original Commodore 64 keyboard.

You won’t be able to buy one unless you bid in the upcoming charity auction for this item. Proceeds will go to benefit the American Cancer Society. No details about the actual auction yet, unfortunately.

Commodore 64 Original Hardware Laptop Revision 2 For Charity! [BenHeck.com]

C64 in a laptop case: Benheck has outdone himself

John Biggs — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 09:12:09 +0000

Mr. Benheck has done it again. He dumped a fully-working Commodore 64 inside a laptop case that looks like it came out of a copy of Byte magazine circa 1989. He began by shaving down all the extraneous ports and inputs and even pulled off the power supply, making something that was 15″x10.5″. He then stuff it in with a 15″ LCD screen and then stuffed in a real C64 keyboard.

Then he blew our minds by adding in an SD card reader and firing up Golden Axe. True genius. Watch the video to see how fun this guy really is.

BenHeck's 3600 Controller: Part Xbox 360, part Atari 2600

Nicholas Deleon — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 16:27:07 +0000

Benjamin J. Heckendorn—that’s BenHeck—transplanted the brains of an Xbox 360 controller into an Atari 2600 shell. The result is this, the 3600 Controller.

Mr. BenHeck calls this latest creation a “quick, fun project.” That is, it’s not one of his more “epic” deals.

You can’t use this for proper Xbox 360 games—I don’t see the trigger buttons, but the rest are there—but it should be useable on those more simple Xbox Live Arcade games. I recommend World of Goo if you’re looking for one of those.

via Xbox-Scene

BenHeck's one-handed Xbox 360 controller

Nicholas Deleon — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 19:30:10 +0000

[photopress:benheck36000.jpg,full,right]

World class modder Benjamin J. Heckendorn—BenHeck—has “dropped” a new Xbox 360 controller mod for us all to admire. It’s a one-handed controller that’s still powered by two AA batteries. You may recognize the D-Pad on the controller—that’s because it’s from the PlayStation.

Mr. Heck is currently working on a mass-produced version that looks quite a bit different than this model.

How ’bout those Rockets?

New single-handed controller [BenHeck via Xbox-Scene]