Learn how to  and shows you how to link an LED sign to your Google Voice account which can physically show you your voicemails through an array of LEDs.  The video below walks you through a quick demonstration of how the LED message board system works.

What you’ll need:

Firstly, you’ll need a Google Voice account. Then you have to download some python scripts to program the system correctly with a ‘trigger word’ – that way your system can pick voice messages and display them on the screen. You can set it to display all messages or just those of your choice. You’ll also need plenty of LEDs (of course), a soldering iron, and a 9v battery.

How it Works:

A Python script accesses your Google Voice account which finds the text version of you voicemail messages.  Then, it downloads them to a text file on your system which then displays it on the LED board.

More LED Projects:

• LED “Graffiti” using LED Throwies
• Top 10 Absolutely Stunning LED Light Projects
• Top 5 Custom LED Beer Pong Tables

Find out how to build your own ‘Word Clock’ using the power of Arduino. It’s definitely unique and eye-catching clock which literally tells you the time unlike your standard digital clock.

The instructions are really easy to understand and well written. As far as materials go, a laser printer and a few electrical components like the LEDs and connectors are about all you’ll need. As you can see from the picture, it comprises mainly of an homemade stencil (which you can build using a CNC plotter we covered or simply trace it out).  The author can provide the circuit board for the project – or you can do it yourself at home.

The project instructions also include all of the source code you’ll need to get the clock working correctly, a detailed PDF schematic, and a template for the stencil. Check out more arduino and clock posts below:

Arduino and Clock Projects:

• DIY Epic Pong Wall Clock
• Top 40 Arduino Projects of the Web
• Make a Laser Sundial

With all the exceptional LED projects we’ve featured, it’s amazing we haven’t published this one yet.  Take some basic LED throwies (a magnet, an LED, and a battery) and place them into a stencil.  Then, place the stencil on a pole and you can “write” any message you’d like and stick it on any magnetic surface.  Full details can be found in the video above and detailed instructions are below (from their site):

• Buy LEDs in our store – Blue, Green, Red, White in multiple sizes.

Materials:

• 1/2-inch, 3/16-inch and 1/8-inch foam core, preferably black
• 5-minute epoxy
• Clay
• Paint Edger attachment
• 15-foot telescoping pole
• A few hundred LED throwies
• Shrink Tube or electrical tape

Tools:

• An exacto-knife
• T-square/ruler

Instructions:

Above we can see the final product.  The LEDs are positioned in the grid and the “artist” has the extension pole ready to place them on an unsuspecting build or overpass.

Above is the “stencil” to fill with LEDs for posting on surfaces.  The yellow attachment on the left attaches to the pole allowing the user to post the message well off the ground.

Step 3 (shown above) demonstrates one method for shrinking heat wrap tubing and also an assortment of blue led throwies ready to go.  For full instrcutions and detailed build photos, check out the project website.

More Superb LED Projects:

• Top 5 Custom LED Beer Pong Tables
• Top 10 Absolutely Stunning LED Light Projects
• Outstanding RGB Liquid Moods Lamps

So, you’ve got an Xbox 360 like millions of other people.  It’s white, it’s boring, and it’s begging to be customized.  It’s time to learn from the modding experts and stand apart from the average gamer.  Throw in a few game inspired themes, chrome, and LEDs to create your own custom masterpiece.

• Don’t Miss: 5 Ways to Hack your Xbox 360 Controller

1. Epic Halo Mod
   




Check out the detail as these two Master Chiefs battle it out.  There is even a plasma pistol mixed in with the realistic terrain!

2. Xbox 360 Car Mod?


First up is the questionably legal Xbox 360 car mod.  Check out the console in the dashboard – The Xbox 360 has been seamlessly fit into the car. The wireless controllers have also found a place for the driver and the passenger.  Learn 3 ways to install an Xbox, PS3, or any console in your car.

3. Hot Rock case Mod for Xbox 360


The LED on the side glows with the rise in temperature of the gaming console. It’s time to switch off but not before admiring the LED luminescence.

4. Xbox 360 Hellboy Case Mod



Comic books and movies are the inspirations for case mods this year. If it was the Wall-E case mod or the Star Wars Nintendo Wii Case Mod then, it’s a Hellboy inspired case mod for the Xbox 360.

5. Chrome HDMI Case Combo



While this wasn’t done custom (it was a kit), the High Quality Chrome HDMI Case definitely adds style to the otherwise bland, white console.

6. Master Chief Helmet Case Mod


Another Halo inspired case but modeled on the Master Chief’s helmet. The Xbox bares its innards through the cutout in the shape of Master Chief’s visor.

7. Xbox 360 Laptop Mod



Why go back to being a computer when you are an Xbox? Because you get to be portable with a 17? 1280×720 progressive-scan LCD VGA monitor and Water-cooled custom-built radiator. A keyboard and Wi-Fi gives you the best of both worlds. Created by Ben Heck.

8. The 360 PC



This modder added keyboard and mouse functionality to his Xbox making it a compact, powerful “PC” but has the power of the Xbox to play cutting edge games.

9. Water Cooled Xbox Mod




Play your favorite games without worrying about the Red Ring of Death.  It’s temperature controlled with cool blue water.

10. Half Life Mod



An Xbox case mod with a game theme is common, but what’s not common is the detail that goes into this Half Life inspired mod with cut away windows and raised HL2 logos.

11. Rockstar Case Mod



This one is for the GTA buff. All in silver and orange, with controllers to match, the case mod gives a transparent peek into its guts.  It’s a special edition Xbox, not a custom case mod, but it looks stunning so we’re including it on the list.

12. The Joker Inspired Xbox 360 Mod
    




The Joker’s face pokes out accompanied by the now famous line, “Why so serious?” Creepy, but definitely a fantastic mod for Batman fans.

13. Gear of War Case Mod



This one looks evil and wicked. Blame it on the Gear of Wars addict who wants to kick some ass with this deadly mod.

14. The Xbox Millennium Falcon



If you know your Star Wars, you would want this to play your favorite Star Wars classics.  Although it’s the original Xbox, it’s still worthy of being added to the list for inspiration.

15. Texas Longhorn Case Mod



A tribute to the University of Texas, this burnt orange stylish Xbox mod features a Longhorn logo as a window.

Dig deep into our archives of our past Xbox 360 mods:

• DIY Xbox 360 Arcade Style Controller
• Simple Xbox 360 Case Mod using Bondo
• Xbox 360 Hellboy Case Mod

No honorable hacker or modder can be satisfied with a simple candle inside of a pumpkin.  How boring!  Us proud nerds step up and create unique, appealing, and downright stunning pumpkins complete with lasers, LEDs, robotics, motion sensors, whatever it takes!  Here are some of our DIY Halloween favorites:

• If all else fails, just build a gigantic pumpkin cannon and launch them.

Lasers and LEDs:

Learn to stuff a laser light show inside your pumpkin or stuff it full of LEDs which flash to music.  Check out the laser pumpkin featured at the top of the screen.

The SteamPunkin:

Based on the super popular steampunk craze, this pumpkin is fitted with plenty of gadgets including LEDs and motion sensor which shoots steam out of its ears when someone walks by.

Silly String Motion Sensor:

A simple motion sensing circuit using infrared LEDs and a servo motor sprays silly string at unsuspecting trick-or-treaters.  A superb, simple project to make your house unique.

Wireless Surveillance Pumpkin:

Although this project barely made the list since it involved little hacking, the concept is still pretty unique and worth a mention.

Super Mario 1-Up:

Instead of using the complex circuit in the pumpkin below, this project keeps it simple by flashing some RGB LEDs to create multicolored mushrooms from Super Mario brothers.

Color Changing Pumpkin:

Instead of buying store bought merchandise like the surveillance pumpkin above, this guy built a completely custom infrared sensing circuit to control the color of his pumpkin via a universal remote.

The Classic Cylon:

The classic “knight rider” circuit is a great edition to any pumpkin and is a simple, straightforward circuit to build.

The SpiderBot Pumpkin:

Even though this is a basic hexapod robot with a pumpkin on top, it’s still guaranteed to freak out trick-or-treaters.

Honorable Mention:

While these don’t involve electronics or circuitry, they’re still incredible and deserve to be part of this list.  Be sure to subscribe to HacknMod because you dont want to miss out on future DIY posts!

Above is a photo of the LED array beneath the table. Definitely a superb job of cable management to say the least.  More info on the project can be found on the author’s flickr page.   Finally, below is a video of the table in action.

Do not miss out:

• How to Build an LED Cube
• Outstanding RGB Liquid Moods Lamps
• DIY Super Powerful RGB Laser System

Here’s another fantastic tutorial from Jay, a DIY lasers expert. See all of our DIY Laser Projects. I modified this very nice Stainless Steel flashlight into a 50mW green laser. It is very heavy duty, and super small.  Below, I will show the modifications that have been made to the host and module.

Important: This is a class 3B laser and should be used with care. Proper eye protection for 532nm wavelength recommended. It can instantly damage the eye if it is pointed directly into the eye. Even reflections can cause eye damage.

• Stainless Steel UltraFire C3 host
• 50mW Green Module
• CR2 batteries

Here are the pictures that show the modifications:

These are all the basic parts you really need for the project. It’s a super simple setup really, just the laser module, the battery, and housing. That’s it!

The only major modification we have to make is to simply shorten the barrel of the laser.  A simple mod to get everything to fit in our steel housing.

Final Results:

It is a very heavy and solid design with good heatsinking for the module. This design offers the option of using CR2 primaries, or RCR2 rechargeable batteries. I am using a CR2 primary and am very happy with the results, so I will not need to push the module with the slightly higher voltage that the rechargeable battery has.

More Exceptional Laser Projects:

• Powerful Blu-Ray Laser on a Keychain
• Fantastic DIY 7 Color Laser Tutorial
• Mindblowing LED, Light and Laser Photography

Lian Li PC-A01

The site from Germany features some of the ‘world’s most beautiful computer systems’. Dare we disagree? Sleek with an aluminum finish, the photos show an advanced work in black and white tones. And what looks like some good cooling capabilities. Here are two snaps to draw your wows.

Lian Li V1200

We don’t know about the ‘most’ but these same guys do make ‘some’ of the beautiful computer systems. The stylish case mods from Lian Li combine beauty with looks and the V1200 is an example.

Dark-Bade

With this mod we make it a three in a row display of PC Mods from the guys at Million Dollar PC. This one is a surreal creation on four legs.

SubsCover Custom

This looks like a cool work in blue.

Russian Wall-E Case Mod

Are you awestruck? So were we, when we did a post on it some time back. This Wall-E inspired case mod is all in metal. Carefully put together in 18 days with some heavy duty workmanship. The Wall-E build is close enough to be a twin.

R2D14m

Dubbed the R2D14m by designer Pavel Rafalovich, this beast lives in a shiny sleek enclosure.

War-Scarred Look

A galactic war scarred computer meets alien cube from space? Inspired by Portal, of course.

Edelweiss PC

The stunning build in white complimented by and orange-red LED glow is one of our favorites. This is another dream case mod from Million Dollar PC.

Sleek Blue LED Case Mod

A geeky rendering of a Beijing building, this case mod is about ambient effects using LEDs. The picture below on the left is of  the building; the case mod is on the right.

• Get some more examples of geek art in our Fantastic DIY CaseMod Pics.

Massive Heat Sink

A case mod that becomes a passive cooling device using heatsinks and clever design.

DIY Oil Cooled PC

A video how-to on how to cool your PC using mineral oil.

Bonus: Build a Fridge in your PC

Okay, so it’s not a stunning, sleek mod like the ones above but it was too incredible to leave off the list.  An overclocked PC that feels, looks and does like a mid tower mini fridge. It’s a PC that dispenses cold beer!

As we continue to feature what’s cool in case mods, don’t miss out on our gallery of case mods.  Don’t forget to send us tips of cool projects you find on the web for extra cash.

Ah… the warm ambient lighting of retro chemistry lab equipment…Designer Benjamin Huber created these exceptional custom lights out of hand-blown glass.  While I’m sure they cost an arm and leg, you could easily just pick up some flasks and beakers for dirt cheap on eBay.  Then, grab some glass frosting spray paint, shove some white LEDs inside, and you’ve got your own custom lighting creations.

• Don’t miss: Top 10 Absolutely Stunning LED Light Projects
• More custom ambient lighting projects: Outstanding RGB Liquid Mood Lamps

Beer Pong…The sport of choice of college students.  While we would never, ever support over consumption of alcohol, we must admire the engineering and creativity of these outstanding illuminated tables.  If you’re new to LEDs, check out our getting started guide, buy LEDs and view LED project inspiration.

Plexiglass, Sound Meters, and LEDs

Here’s a table fully illuminated table featuring neon, a sound meter, and LED lights.  You’d probably end up nauseated playing on this thing for too long, especially after a few drinks.  The creators posted two video demonstrations you can see here and  here.

West Virginia LED Table

One of the original LED tables on the web, this custom design by engineering students in West Virginia includes a sound meter, ball washing, and LED logo in the middle.

LEDs with Sensors

Although it’s simple looking, this table packs some serious hardware including force sensors and wireless communication.  Check out a quick video demo.

Neon Glow

Although his one is illuminated by neon and not LEDs, the cool glow and exceptional design still deserves the number two spot on our list.

Sleek and Sexy

Finally!  The perfect combination of design and lighting.  Just enough light to give it that cool LED feel, while not overwhelming the player with too many distractions.

Honorable mentions:

• Classic LED Table Design
• Red vs. Blue Theme with Monitor
• Simple Arduino based table

So! Enough staring at the glory of other people’s fantastic creastions.  Get out there, buy some LEDs and create your own incredible LED projects and get them featured on HacknMod.