Siri Hacked - Cheaper iPhone4s' Incoming

Unless you’ve been living under a rock you probably know about Apple’s newest iPhone - the iPhone4s. The name really hasn’t changed much besides the ‘s’ slapped on the end and to be honest the hardware isn’t a huge jump either. The 4s has a better camera (8MP up from 5MP), a slightly faster processor (dual-core), and a better battery (allthough recently the battery life has been significantly worse due to buggy software). So what makes the iPhone4s better? The ‘s’ is exactly what; Siri.

Siri is Apple’s new voice command software which is built into the 4s. It can do tons of cool things and save tons of time. But Siri is software, and that’s all. Therefor there isn’t any logic reason as to why Siri couldn’t run on older iPhones, except maybe due to a possible lag. Below I have a video from 9to5mac.com which shows Siri hacked to run on an old iPhone4 and working! 

When Siri first came out it was hacked to run on an iPhone4, but the servers that do Siri’s commands wouldn’t respond to the outdated iPhone. Assuming that this video is real, there is a lot of hope to iPhone4 users out there and could hopefully save a lot of money down the road. Now to just get the guy to release the programs he used and a walkthrough (although, I’m sure that he intends to and is working on it as afst as he can right now). Check back here in the future for when the walkthrough is released and hopefully you too will be able to get an iPhone4s at the cost of the regular iPhone4.

Arduino Based Computer Temp Sensing

The Problem

I bought a new graphics card for my computer recently, just to realize I didn’t have a power supply large enough to properly power the new card - causing it to overheat (temporarily, I opened the side of my computer and used a desk fan to cool it). After buying the correct power supply, I decided I needed some type of temperature indicator on my computer...Hello Arduino! (I actually used my Uno32 for this project, to view my review on it click HERE)

Now, this hack is very simple, versatile, and easy to implement. All you need is a general purpose temperature sensor, an RGB LED (or more if you want your computer to look really flashy), and some appropriate resistors so you don't blow up your LED. The Arduino fades an RGB LED from blue to red depending on the temp of your component. When it is over 50°C, the LED will be red. (50C is close to what most NVIDIA GFX cards can handle). I also have a processing sketch in progress to read the value of the temp sensor and store it into a .txt file, and a C++ program (in progress) to alert you when the .txt file says that your computer is too hot.


The Set-Up

Below is the schematic. I know that it isn’t standard, but it’s much easier to read for electronics beginners. I recommend giving yourself a pretty good length in wire so that you can attach the LED(s) wherever you need to. Also, HEAT SHRINK ANY VISIBLE METAL so that you don’t end up messing up your computer. Often, your computer will use the casing as a ground, so any visible wires would be really bad. 

Once you’re all soldered up and ready to go, you’ll want to attach the temp sensor wherever you think has a chance of overheating. To attach it I recommend using electrical tape, and just taping it down (If you have better ideas then let me know). Then put your LED anywhere you think will be easily visible. I recommend taping the wires down with electrical tape as well, or zip-tying it down. You then want to zip-tie all loose wires and attach them to the Arduino somewhere that you have free space. I recommend putting electrical tape on the bottom of the Arduino AND Velcro-ing it down, that way your Arduino doesn’t short, and it won’t move.

I was lucky enough to have a working USB port INSIDE my computer, so that I could leave my Arduino plugged in. The unlucky one’s out there will need to upload the code before they put it in and power it off of a battery, or find some way to get a programming cable inside of their case. After the Arduino code (below) is uploaded, everything should work fine. I set the default room temperature as 17C because that’s how it is in my boiling dorm- but that could easily be changed.
int bluepin = 5; int redpin = 6; int tempPin = A0; int blueout = 0; int redout = 0; float conv = 0.55555; //Wouldnt let me do 5/9 float tempC; int limitinC = 50; void setup() { Serial.begin(9600); pinMode(bluepin, OUTPUT); pinMode(redpin, OUTPUT); } void loop() { float tempVolts = (analogRead(tempPin) * .004882814); //Reads temp sensor and converts it to a voltage level float tempF = (tempVolts - .5) * 100; //Converts the voltage level into a temp(F) float tempC = (conv * (tempF - 32)); //Converts the temp into Celcius //Serial.print("tempC ="); //Commented out for testing //Serial.println(tempC); //Serial.print("tempF ="); //Serial.println(tempF);
float CelConstraint = (tempC - 15); //The average temp of my room in C (limiting the colors to be blue at 15 and red at 50) float CelCtoVal = (CelConstraint*29.68);//converts the value //Serial.print("CelCtoVal = "); //Commented out for testing //Serial.println(CelCtoVal); 
redout = CelCtoVal; blueout = ((512 - CelCtoVal) + 512) //Inverts the colors so 1024 = 0 and 0 = 1024 //redout = ((redout+CelCtoVal)/2); //Use these lines instead of the above if the sensor sometimes is flickering (averages the values) //blueout = ((((512 - CelCtoVal) + 512)+blueout)/2); //Serial.print("blueout ="); //Commented out for testing //Serial.println(blueout); //Serial.print("redout ="); //Serial.println(redout); analogWrite(bluepin, blueout); analogWrite(redpin, redout); if (tempC > limitinC){ Serial.print(1, BYTE); //Send 1 to Processing sketch if too hot delay(100); } else{ Serial.print(0, BYTE); //Send 0 to Processing sketch if cold delay(100); } }

Work In Progress

Below, I have a processing sketch that will read whether or not your Arduino is overheating and write a ‘1’ into a .txt file if it is. I also have a C++ program that will read that file. This is a work in progress. I just started to learn processing and only know very basic C. I hope eventually to make a program that will print the temp in C, F, and to pop-up when the temp is greater than a certain temperature.


Download Everything


Let me know how this works for you guys! If you have any comments/questions be sure to post below or tweet me!

Onlive Gaming Review - Better Than Expected

Okay, so soon after writing my recent blog post about the OnLive game system, I couldn’t help but caving in and dropping the money. At the sale price of 66 bucks, it was either buy a whole game system with access to hundreds (well, maybe like 40 at the moment) of games, or buy a single game that I will get bored of in a week. Not too hard of a choice. What really amazed me was, as soon as I ordered the system, I instantly had access to the whole game library on my computer. Instantly, with no additional fee. Pretty Snazzy eh?

The whole computer gaming thing has never really been my style, probably because I have a pretty sad computer with almost no graphic card (its integrated). So playing high end games such as Assassins Creed on my computer made me skeptical. But as soon as I downloaded the OnLive client, I was playing Assassins Creed with minimal lag (I’ll say there was lag simply because I kept dying). Instantly, no download and no wait. But the issue remained: I’m not a computer gamer. A mouse and keyboard either confuses me, or causes me to hit the wrong buttons at the worst times. So I had a theory....What if i plug my wired XBox controller into my computer...And yes they still make wired controllers. It worked like a charm, and immediately everything came together. I now have high end games on my computer, and soon on my TV (whenever the box gets here).

Overall I am pretty impressed with the OnLive game system. There is minimal to unnoticeable lag, no high end processing, unlimited game demos, game renting, and all at the price of a new game. I’ll give it 4.5 / 5 gears just because my college Internet is too slow to let me play a game...which you'd figure wouldn't be an issue with the tuition price.

Check out my post below for more info on it! Or click HERE

OnLive - Streaming to a Device Near You

Yeah, I know I’m a bit obsessive, but seriously, the cloud has invaded our lives more than we know. And OnLive gaming is proof of that. OnLive is like a not-so-powerful XBox, or PS3...or a more powerful Wii (Sorry couldn’t resist). It streams gameplay online, so that your piece of hardware doesn't do all of the computing. What does that mean for you and me? No more scratched discs, no more expensive hardware, and no more annoying game updates.

So, there is a disadvantage to this epic game system (if it even qualifies as a game system). The current library of games is...less than expected. There are a few major titles like Borderlands and Assassins Creed, but overall there are just so few games that grab my attention. But, the system is new, and it must be hard for a new system to earn rights to popular titles, so one can only hope better games get adopted as this becomes more mainstream. And at a price of $66 through Jan 9 ($99 normally), how could a person NOT try it out? Think about it, the new Dead Space, or a new game system? Which I might add, allows you to play the games on your computer as well....umm...Maybe Dead Space was a bad example.

Oh yeah, must I add, it is unofficially going to bring these games to the iPad. Kind of cool considering the iPads low processing capabilities. Check out the video below, and make sure to check out their website HERE. Oh yeah, and if you get it or have one let me know how it is! I just bought it, and will soon be posting a review!

Chrome OS: Free Netbook, Please!?

Everybody and their mother (seriously, even my mom) has applied for Google’s new Chrome OS beta testing, or as they call it ‘Pilot Testing.’ This new revolutionary netbook is simple; nothing but a web browser, and lacks end-product  functionality, like USB Support, and printing (which you can expect in later updates). It sports an Intel Processor (said to be ~1.6GHz), 2GB of RAM, and also comes with fully built in webcam support, Bluetooth, and a free 100mb of data a month courtesy of Verizon. Not a bad gig for free, eh? And for you fellow nerds out there who are planning to ‘jailbreak’ it, no worries; It comes with a built in mode to allow you to edit the source code (probably because Google is looking for easy solutions to the initial issues).


It is said that Google has around 60,000 to send out to people. Yes, that is 4 zero’s. And best of all, the application takes a total of 20 minutes; no jumping through flaming hoops, or giving Nigerian bankers your bank account info. Not only that but it’s rumored that you get to keep the netbook after the trial, which should be an incentive to almost anybody.


Now, I know that by informing people of this will lower my chance of winning, but I want to see Google succeed with the best users more than I want the netbook...Well, that’s half true, but I could use a little competition seeing as I’m Google’s biggest fan. So, want to see what Chrome OS is all about? Check out the video below for a demo of what you can expect. And if you’re already sold, click HERE for the application.


Update: Yeah! My friend (Not me :(  ) , so feel free to check out his blog on his Chrome experience. Appropriately named 'The Chrome Chronicles.'

The Kinect - For Kids and Hackers Alike

Remember when the Wii came out? It was the hottest new tech toy on the block, and was said to revolutionize modern gaming - not so much. But I guess it was a step in the right direction, considering both Microsoft and Sony have followed suit. The new Xbox Kinect is the hottest thing on the market and it has been reported that it sold just over 2 million within the first week (a lot of cash at $150 a pop).

Well this revolutionary camera is redefining casual gaming all together, and has become the new fad for household hackers. When the Kinect came out, one underground hacker had a $1000 reward for the first person to successfully hack it enough to where a computer could control it, and use it as a peripheral.  Within the first 2 days there was a video of someone controlling the Kinect's internal motors through a terminal window. Now there are a seas of free open source 'jailbreaks' online, each unlocking nerd fantasies.

Anything you can imagine can be done with this person tracking camera. From playing Super Mario, to Minecraft. Yes, even Minecraft has been reported; so would it be wrong of me to want it, but just for the sake of computer games? I don’t think so, I think it would be wrong of me NOT to hack it. Seriously...Minecraft.

iOS 4.2: So Close to Being Done Right

I am personally against apple, and am definitely a Microsoft fan-boy, but there are some things that apple just does right. And one of those is their portable devices. iPads, iPods, and iPhones dominate the market, and deservingly. My iPad is the best thing I've ever owned, and recently it got a little bit better.

A few weeks ago iOS 4.2 was released across all devices, allowing for multitasking, folders, as well as a bunch of other new installments (most of which were released in the earlier update for all devices, minus the iPad). And although I previously jail broke my iPad to get pretty much all of these features, I decided to update it, breaking my old jailbreak. And it was a great choice, minus the lack of free open source apps.

Pros

Multitasking: The first huge advantage of updating to iOS 4.2 was the ability to multitask. It is used the same way it previously was during my jailbreak, but now it has a much prettier UI to go with it. A simple double-click opens up a tab at the bottom, with a series of apps that I can switch between easily, and more successfully than previously (Pandora would crash every couple of minutes, or in between app-switches before). This new feature has become natural for me quickly, and was one of the reasons I previously jail broke my iPad.

Battery: With all of my old applications, my processor was constantly clocking at almost full power; which caused quite a strain on the battery. Now I'm not sure how Apple got around this problem, but with the addition of multitasking, they somehow were able to reduce this ridiculous battery drain. Multitasking does drain it quicker, but it's not very noticeable considering I use my iPad all day, and charge it twice a week with almost no battery issues.

Folders: Not much to comment on here. They should have existed from the start. They're super late, but are well done and extremely handy.

Printing: Using an iPad for business can be smart depending on your job, but as a student it completely replaces the need for a laptop. Printing is a necessary function, which really is defining the iPad as a business tool. Being able to print papers wirelessly is a huge advantage now, and I'm glad it's native now...no more stupid 10 dollar apps that have a 5% chance to work with your printer.

Cons

The Mute Switch: There’s few things apple did wrong, but one of them is HUGE. They changed that button on the side, from a screen lock...to a mute switch. I'm sadly disappointed with apples decision to do this; why fix something that's not broken?

Multitasking: I noticed this right away, but every app you open automatically stays opened in the background...causing someone like me who plays like 1000 games for 2 minutes at a time to kill their battery fast. Many non computer savvy people wouldn't ever even notice this, reducing their performance significantly over time. If using iOS 4.2 you have to remember to force shut down your unused background apps when you can, unless you want Nazi zombies to be taking up memory while your on Facebook....

Google Chrome OS

Haven’t heard of it yet? Well, you will. Google Chrome OS (Google’s using Chromium as a working title) will soon become a well known operating system. Google released the opened-source beta over a year ago, with the genius idea of letting the online community develop it. Not only does this idea provide free cheap labor (not like Google needs it), it also allows them to get ideas from thousands of brilliant computer programmers. But what is Chrome OS, and why is it so great? Simply put, it’s our first step into the cloud.

Chrome OS is only a web browser, with all of the functionality of a high powered PC. With a crazy fast 4 second boot up time, it allows any person to log in to their Google account, and have access to all of their files; anywhere. This may not seem too appealing now, with desktops already able to do that-but it will be a powerful addition to netbooks. And with wifi available almost anywhere, the cloud is starting to look a lot closer.

Check Out the Chromium Blog!