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

1. DIY Multi-Room Wireless Music Remote

   
   With the help of some external hardware and a handheld wireless device such as an iPhone or iPod touch, you can build your own wireless music remote. It’s a bit spendy if you don’t already have an Iphone/iTouch and a router, but there’s a step by step tutorial to guide you through the setup build.

2. DIY iPhone Controlled Car (Complete Control)

   These guys took an iPhone and using a special app, the onboard GPS and Wifi along with some serious modding they managed to make a life size R/C car. I bet it was difficult to drive using the six-axis in the iPhone but it’s still a great mod. Learn how it was done in an upcoming post. Subscribe so you don’t miss it.

3. iPhone Controlled Mazda (without gas and break)

   By tapping into his car’s onboard wifi and diagnostic systems, this hacker can control his car from anywhere in the world.  He’s able to start the engine, pop the trunk, lock/unlock, and view all vehicle diagnostics from his iPhone. As seen in the video, electronic controls are housed in the trunk along with an Arduino to help process commands.

4. How to View your Webcam on your iTouch or iPhone

   

   In this tutorial, we’ll be showing you how to watch a live feed from your webcam on your iPhone or iPod touch from anywhere in the world. Setup is pretty simple, basically just download and install a windows program and the necessary app and you’re ready to stream live.

5. Build a Solar-powered iPhone Charger

   

   How many times has your cell phone died in the middle of the day because of its lousy battery life? You have several options: you could recharge via wall socket, via USB, through an external battery or the green way, with a DIY solar iPhone charger. Don’t forget to pick up any needed supplies for this build (including solar panels) at our store!

6. Make a Laser Matrix Projector for the iPhone

   
   The idea is to add some kind of projector capability to mobile phone (e.g. iPhone) that isn’t too complex or expensive. Instead of using an expensive mini projector, I decided to use lasers instead to any bitmap font using a matrix of laser points, which is controlled by iPhone.

7. How to: iPhone as a Wireless Router for your Laptop

   Transform your iPhone into a wireless router, allowing you to connect your wifi deprived laptop to the internet anywhere phone service is available. It’s also perfect when you’re browsing the web but the small screen is too cramped. Now you can easily switch over to your laptop for a larger viewing window.

8. RC Car Controlled Via the Web

   

   Strap on a standard Linksys router to an RC car and you can wirelessly control it through the web from up to 1640 feet away. It’s also equipt with a webcam and operates through a brain comprised of PIC microcontrollers or the Arduino’s ATmega168. The in depth tutorial will guide you through the build.

9. Home Automation Using the iPhone and X10

   Like most people, we’re huge fans of home automation. We’ve even covered quite a few ways people have used Twitter to automate your home. This time, however, we’ll be automating our homes by managing SmartHome’s X10 home automation modules using the iPhone.

10. The Rockband Robot iPhone.

    This guy obviously wanted to break a world record in Rockband because he built a robot to attach to his iPhone that plays it perfectly for him. It works by light sensors telling the prosthetic fingers when a note is coming up and driving a motor to press the screen and thus play the note.

Honorable Mention: How to disassemble the iPhone and unleash your hardware hacking skill.

More iPhone Projects:

• Jailbreak and Unlock iPhone 3.1.2
• iPhone Controlled USB Missile Launcher
• How to Build a Simple iPhone Tripod Mount

Step-by-Step Tutorial:

1. Sign up for Google Voice – Google Voice allows you to consolidate multiple phone numbers, but it also allows you to make free calls!  You can request an invitation to Google Voice to sign up for the service.
2. Once you’ve signed up, adjust your settings as shown in the picture above.  This displays your Google Voice number on all calls, enabling free calls.
3. Depending on your carrier, this still will vary

   Verizon: Currently they offer a friends and family plan allowing you to pick 5 to 10 numbers you can call for free.
   AT&T: A new feature for AT&T, the “A-list” is just like Verizon’s offer, allowing you to call 5 to 10 numbers for free.
   T-Mobile: myFaves is T-Mobile’s version, allowing you to call 5 numbers for free.
   Sprint: Sprint created a similar service called Pick 3 which may only be available to some customers.

4. That’s it! Just add your Google Voice number to your carrier’s free calling plans to access unlimited free calling!

Definitely an incredibly useful hack with potential to save you a ton of money.  For more cell phone hacks, check out our favorites below:

Our Favorite Cell Phone Hacks:

• How to Make your own Ringtones
• How to Shutdown your Computer with a Cell Phone
• Email Text Messages to AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, etc.

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Since Apple’s newest upgrade, not even the iPhone dev team (the group who is famous for jailbreaking the iPhone) has been able to crack it…Until now.  Now you can crack the newest version of the iPhone OS 3.1.2 and you can jailbreak previous versions as well, allowing you to use the iPhone with Verizon, Sprint, T-mobile, or any network of your choice.  If all else fails, you can actually unlock the iPhone by hacking the hardware, but that’s quite a bit more complicated.

*Update* Correction: You can jailbreak it and not unlock it quite yet.

You may also enjoy:

• Build a Solar-powered iPhone Charger
• How to: iPhone as a Wireless Router for your Laptop
• How to View your Webcam on your iTouch or iPhone

1. Ripped DVD Videos on your iPhone
2. iPhone Controlled RC Car
3. All of our iPhone projects

Stay tuned and subscribe to HacknMod for more exceptional hacks, mods, and DIY projects.

Geeks can be pranksters too. If you’re a little mischevious, an RF Jammer is a must have gag tool for the belt. Think of all the pranks you could pull off by blocking radio frequency signals using a jammer, even blocking cell phones from functioning.  Interested? Then take read more about RF Jamming on this wiki page.

An RF jammer can be built as a DIY project as Adafruit’s Wave Bubble, a self-tuning portable RF jammer shows. The Wave Bubble calls itself a self-tuning, wide-bandwidth portable RF jammer.

Self tuning is via dual phase lock loops which nullify the need for a spectrum analyzer. Multiple programmable frequency bands make it work across a range of RFs. Tuned antennas give it a range of 20 feet. Output power is .1W (in high bands) and .3W (in low bands). Two hours of jamming work over dual frequency bands (as used by some cell phones) with a rechargeable internal lithium-ion battery should be enough for your dirty deeds. Or you can get more hours over a single band as used by cordless phones, GPS, Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. All this can be crammed in a palm sized cigarette pack. That’s about 7″ x 4″ x 3.2″.

The Wave Bubble site backs-up the project with details under Share-Alike so go ahead and make yourself one.  As the site warns, this is advanced stuff asking for lots of circuitry savvy.

Note: Using a RF Jammers to block communication by disrupting the signal is an exclusive right of the authorities. Among other things they are extensively used to prevent remote activation of explosive devices by terrorists. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules apply and they take a dim view against illegal use of RF jamming devices.

1. Makeownringtone.com. With this site you have a variety of options when it comes to uploadable formats. You can choose from MP3, MP4, QCP, OGG, AAC, and MMF.
2. Audiko.net. This is one of the most popular services for creating your own ringtone. Upload your song, take the excerpt that you want to act as your ringtone, and start the download process.
3. Mobicious.com. By offering a free service, Mobicious.com has a leg up on the competition. All you have to do is upload your MP3, clip the portion that you want to use, and turn it into a ringtone that can be instantly sent to your cell phone.

Once you find a service you enjoy, you can create as many ringtones as you want while being assured that each one is 100 percent unique. If you want to learn to edit MP3, wav and other audio files, use audacity to create custom ringtones.

School is back in session shortly for most college students.  While you could be an average Joe and and buy all your back to school goods, you’ll be far better off building your own DIY projects to pimp your bland dorm room.  These fantastic tutorials will walk you through creating custom, outstanding dorm rooms to show off your DIY skill.

Incredible Lighting:

1. The Emergency Party Button will help make friends quickly.
2. How to Display Audio as Light (Make LEDs Flash to Music)
3. Make Custom RGB Mood Lights
4. DIY Abilight for your PC, TV and more
5. Need more inspiration? See all of our LED and Light projects.

DIY Security:

1. How to Use RFID to Protect your Beer, Valuables
2. DIY Motion Sensing Laptop Security Cam
3. Build your own Laser Security System
4. RFID Door Lock Mechanism
5. All of our security projects

Save Money:

1. DIY Continuous Ink Printer = Unlimited Free Printing
2. Get Free Internet by Making a Wifi Repeater
3. Build Your Own Open-Source DVR

Gaming Hacks:

1. Rapid Fire Mods Make you the Halo King
2. Burn copies of PS3, Wii, and Xbox 360
3. Play all your favorite NES games online, and emulate the Wii and other consoles.
4. Select a console from the categories on the right for more.

Custom Transport:

1. For the outgoing types:  Setup and make your own custom transportation like the Enicycle and iShoes.
2. Video Tutorial: Build your own Self-Balancing Segway
3. Build a Speedy Motorized Shopping Cart

DIY Entertainment:

1. Make your own HD Projector (another version)
2. Stylish High Quality DIY iPod and iPhone Speakers
3. Stream any Video to your PS3, Xbox 360, or Wii
4. DIY Wireless Music Remote

Extra Awesome!

If you’re ready to go all out and stand out you need to go the extra mile:

• Beer Launching Fridge
• iPhone Controlled USB Missile Launcher
• Shut Down your PC with a Cell Phone

Helpful Tips:

1. Hack College always has plenty of great tips to help you survive the year.
2. Check out this fantastic dorm layout and use of space for inspiration
3. Put all those extra beer bottles to good use. (another option)
4. Access your PC from Anywhere on Campus for Free

As always, be sure to subscribe for free to receive our hacks for daily.  Be sure to send in your projects and earn cash too!

While iPhone’s have just about any feature you could possibly want, they may not always produce crisp photos.  By using a few parts from an old Nikon camera mount, this modder created their own tripod for their iPhone 3GS.  Full build details are available for you to follow and we have plenty of other camera and photography projects for you to enjoy:

• Incredible LED and Laser Photography
• DIY Heltmet Cam Inside Ski Goggles
• EyeBorg: False Eye Camera Implant

Although you have to laugh at the absurd demo vid above, you still have to admire the great engineering work. The pneumatic bed shaking alarm clock is for the deepest sleepers you know. The contraption works by an air fed valve from two compressors which jolt the bed and your bones in that order.

The video shows a pneumatic valve attached to the bed. The valve is like a pneumatic lift which lifts the bed with intake of air. The valve is fed air from two sources – a large liquid cooled air compressor under the basement stairs and a secondary source of pressurized air (at 150psi) from the car compressor. A computer controls the valve and triggers the bed bouncing action dot on the programmed time. The pneumatic force can be turned on and switched off with a keystroke.

Catch three more of our pneumatic hacks below:

• DIY Spy Gadgets: Build a Net Launching Gun
• Pirate Cannon – Pneumatic Style
• DIY Pneumatic Guns

via HG