Episode 10: Charge! [Discussion]

[jackierulesall]

Ben Heck builds hand-crank chargers for Android phones, continues work on his new pinball machines and brings an LCD back from the dead.

Watch or download now!

[haku]

I have an identical wind-up torch, but it didn't last 5 minutes before the handle snapped where it grips onto the pin on the axle - you'd think they'd make the handle with thicker plastic or out of metal!

Didn't Ben say something about solar power charging at the end of the previous episode? This section of the show kind of fizzled off after he discovered leg motion can't easily be turned into electricty with a wind-up torch, shame that as it was getting interesting.

If you're going to buy rechargable AA/AAA batteries, get the low self discharge (LSD) type as they hold their charge for much longer than older types, something like 60% of a full charge after a year of not being used, meaning the batteries charge will work as good next week as they will tomorrow. I don't buy 'normal' rechargables anymore.



On the LCD backlight segment I was hoping he was going to use a bunch of LEDs in place of the original backlight, that way it would be much more compact.


Enjoying the pinball wars

[cupajo]

This is a bad idea. Batteries need a consistent charge or you will SEVERELY reduce their lifespan.

The lcd segment did nothing for me. I did like at least the idea behind the charger segment. Went to Frys to get the parts to experiment with an extra charger we have. If he used a capacitor, it might have helped that voltage be more constant. I also would have hooked up the the leg sling differently.

[bstory2001]

I love the shows. Nothing like learning creative techniques and mods, especially someone who has as much experience and resources as Ben. Building a new tv frame and mounting the components back together and plugging in a work light doesn't do much for me either. It reminds me a Youtube clip I watched about peeling an orange that just didn't make me think "Why didn't I think of that?" How's about converting that lcd into a table top multitouch! Woo Hee pardener now we're talking.

Got this charger from the Dollar store. All you have to do is squeeze it. Great for charging things when your hand is in a coat pocket or wherever hidden away. The Dollar store always has neat stuff to hack, I visit Harbor Freight too.

[psychomike]

in practical application, how did the wind up charger work? could you have a phone call with a dead battery while rotating the charger?

great episode, btw. I love seeing the inner working of devices. one of your best episodes!

[replica9000]

Do people really think Android phones use that much power?? Compared to my last 2 WinMo phones, battery life has been great. My Incredible gets 2 days on a charge with decent usage!

[shadfurman]

I just saw this show, I've been dangerously neglectful of my rev3 since I started this term of school. The whole reason I started watching on rev3 was SYSTM, since they shut down, My interest was greatly reduced. I'm glad to see a similar show! I'd really like to see more device bending; if my vote counts for anything. :-)
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Zeke Shadfurman

[matthewdurepos]

I have a few screens that still work, although their backlights are dead. A few months ago, I decided to take one apart (a 20" Acer I believe) to see if I couldn't do anything with it... Turns out that at work, I had a shelf that had fluorescent lights directly below it, above my workspace. Originally, this was intended to be a temporary setup, to test the screen with different light sources, as it was an ideal height. Much to my delight, I discovered that not only was it decent, but it was extremely usable!

Pictured below, is my current setup, minus one layer of film that I added afterwards. It's plugged into a 4 port KVM, and I use it all day long. The whites are a little washed out in the picture, but they look much better with the added filter. The bulbs that illuminate it (two of them) are white, which helps a lot, I guess. The perfect circumstances gave me an almost flawless display (the top inch and a half of the screen is a little dark, but I use this to plug in computers to fix, so that point is moot.)