element14 Presents

We don't know why Ben does the things that he does sometimes, but he keeps on licking. Discover what we mean as Ben, Karen and Felix tear down the new Nintendo Switch games console and Joy Con controllers. How does it compare to a laptop or tablet computer? Is it designed for easy maintenance or upgradeability? Let us know what you think on the element14 Community.

You asked for bigger, better, longer term builds with detail, so the team are going to design 3 things that can be brought to market or to crowd funding such as kickstarter!

You asked for bigger, better, longer term builds with detail, so the team are going to design 3 things that can be brought to market or to crowd funding such as kickstarter! Starting with Logic Bomb, a refactoring of the Hackmanji board game. How can it be made durable, smaller and help to make digital logic as easy to learn as using a speak and spell? Next up is the Super Glue Gun, with Ben's obsession with these things can the team compare existing products and embed a microcontroller to design something suitable? Finally the choice of the element14 Community, a Mini Pinball machine, can this build be made into a kit? is 3D printing suitable? Follow the team as they work on the builds and have your say in guiding the projects on the element14 Community!

Get a window into the world of the Ben Heck Show MST3K style! The team is now focused on longer term builds to ensure a more robust design and detailed build!

Get a window into the world of the Ben Heck Show MST3K style! The team is now focused on longer term builds to ensure a more robust design and detailed build! With this in mind, the team looks back on previous builds, and makes plans to build them again from the ground up! Could they actually bring one of these builds to market?

Karen has the idea to repurpose laptop screens to create a Legend of Zelda inspired lamp, however not just any laptop screen will do.

Humans by nature can be more than a little bit wasteful, thanks to the introduction of recycling we can minimize this a little, but some things are too good to throw away! Now a new trend is beginning: Upcycling! Karen has the idea to repurpose laptop screens to create a Legend of Zelda inspired lamp, however not just any laptop screen will do. As the team rip apart old hardware they soon discover the different types of screens which have been used in old personal computer laptops and Apple MacBooks over the years. With the correct screens identified, Karen gets down to business with Adobe Illustrator and designs suitable laser cut frames, watch the episode to find out the little tips and tricks to make the perfect design! Have you upcycled any old hardware? Think you could enter your project into a design competition? Find out more on the element14 Community!

In this episode, Ben shrinks down the size of the controller, embeds the RAM expansion, and begins to design the case with design inspiration taken from the Nintendo Switch.

When Ben began with the Nintendo 64 build, we knew it wasn't going to be easy! In this episode, Ben shrinks down the size of the controller, embeds the RAM expansion, and begins to design the case with design inspiration taken from the Nintendo Switch. To embed the controller we have to get creative with the notorious analogue stick. It needs to be re-worked, and thanks to an Arduino Pro Micro it can be replaced with a joystick from Sony's Playstation Vita. Further hackery comes in the form of a custom made printed circuit board to house the controller chip, as the one from the original joypad is far too big. Unfortunately, there's one final problem to overcome, you'll have to watch the episode to find out what it is! Do you have any ideas on how this portable could be made differently? Or have you made your own? Let us know on the element14 Community!

Of all the build requests the team receive on the element14 Community, there has been one that has repeatedly came up: Build a Nintendo 64 portable! The Ben Heck Show team has finally decided to give it a go.

Of all the build requests the team receive on the element14 Community, there has been one that has repeatedly came up: Build a Nintendo 64 portable! The Ben Heck Show team has finally decided to give it a go, starting with the Nintendo 64 that was torn down in the Console Wars episode. As unforgiving as the N64 hardware is, Ben is going to manipulate the components to make the portable fully featured, while Felix gets the battery management up and running. What other consoles would you like to be made into a portable version? Let us know on the element14 Community.

It is time to learn the Essentials. Ben helps Karen with a project and explains and designs a circuit using active and passive components, from resistors, capacitors and transistors.

It is time to learn the Essentials with Karen and Ben this week, Karen has a project that requires a bit of intelligence and discrete electronics can provide just that. To make the laser cut Star Wars BB8 art light reactive, Ben helps to explain and design a circuit using active and passive components, from resistors, capacitors and inductors to diodes and transistors. These components make the basis of smart electronics we experience today, from video cameras to smart phones. Watch now to find out how you can make your project light reactive with a photoresistor and discrete logic! Let us know what art work you have been creating, or how you would want add that bit more control on the element14 Community.

The team decided it's time for a retro-fit, using the intel Edison, with thanks to its Arduino compatible breakout board, and a USB soundcard it's time to make the Boombox smarter while keeping with its original parts.

In the 1980s and 1990s, ‘Boomboxes’ were very popular. The sight of a person carrying a huge music player on their shoulder was iconic, until the Walkman came along. The team decided it's time for a retro-fit, using the intel Edison, with thanks to its Arduino compatible breakout board, and a USB soundcard it's time to make the Boombox smarter while keeping with its original parts. After all, the more parts that's kept, the easier it is to modify! Find out how Ben and the team powered the intel Edison using standard batteries and kept the good times rolling, what tech' would you retrofit with modern hardware? Let us know on the element14 Community.