Last year, Dave Findlay built a simple Arduino-based iPod remote to make it easy to start and stop his music while in the car. The remote worked well, however it didn’t support any of the advanced features of the iPod. Ever the vigilant developer, he decided to remedy this issue, and expanded his orignal example into a fully-featured iPod remote control library. The project is available for download from github, and he has a nice explanation of how to use it.
If you’re looking for an easy way to play music or sounds using an Arduino, this could be a great way to go Older generation iPod hardware should be available for cheap, and paired with this library and an Arduino, you have a great platform for that next interactive sound (and video?) project!
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When I first saw this proof of concept synchronized grid of iPods I wondered why somebody would go through all the trouble. I have to catch myself when I think like this. Sometimes it’s best to just appreciate the polychromatic glow and short staccato chirping for what it is. [via Gizmodo]
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If you’ve ever shopped at an Apple store you’ve probably experienced their relaxed point of sale (POS) system. You walk in, try out new gear, talk to a sales rep, swipe your card, sign a screen, blurt an email address, and you’re out of there. Usually you skip the register, yet your wallet always seems lighter after each visit. It’s all very smooth and thought out. But something has always bugged me about the whole process. The sales reps have always used a third-party mobile device to complete the transaction. It just didn’t go well with the jeans and black turtleneck vibe.
Well, it would seem that Apple has picked up on customers pestering them about this minor user experience discrepancy and are about to remedy the situation with a new POS system based on their wildly popular iPod touch mobile entertainment device. Dubbed EasyPay, each unit will consist of a iPod touch and a special case which houses a barcode scanner, card reader, extra battery and mini-USB connector. The system runs custom POS software and uses a Pogo Sketch stylus to capture cardholder signatures.
Apple’s new iPod touch-based EasyPay checkout [via AppleInsider]
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Maker David Findlay gets his Arduino Nano talking AAP to his iPod using a SparkFun PodGizmo connector, BOB-08745 Logic Level Converter, and a ginormous red button.
Of course, hooking up wasn’t going to do much without some code to talk Apple Accessory Protocol, so that was the next task. I wrote an Arduino library for the parts of the Apple Accessory Protocol that I was going to need, and a bit more besides. I posted it on github in case anyone else wanted to use it. It comes with a couple of example sketches: a play/pause one using Simple Remote mode (wonder where I got that idea from); and one for Advanced Remote mode that pulls back information for the track that the iPod is currently playing. The latter could form the basis of an Arduino-based dock that showed track information on an LCD display, for example.
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Originally designed to be a mobile media playback device, the iPod now resembles a workstation that fits in your pocket. It may seem passé now, but there was a time when real-time 3D meant desk-sized workstations that cost as much as a luxury car, now it fits in your pocket and costs as much as a decent night out. Of course you’re not going to design an engine or skyscraper with an iPod, but with this proof-of-concept instructables you can start to see some of the creative potential of modern hand-held devices. Low-cost paint apps, music apps, video apps, 3D modelers; they may not replace the workstation anytime soon, but creative people are starting to notice the tools laying dormant in their pockets and are starting to use them.
[via James Hudak]
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With iPod rumor season upon us (videocams? microphones for VoIP calls!), it’s time to gaze back fondly on those quaint iPods of yestermonth. And the quaintest has got to be Mister Jalopy’s World’s Biggest iPod hack, as seen in MAKE, Volume 04.
Who doesn’t love MJ’s fat little iPod (is that a 3rd Gen?) grafted into a lovely 1940s radio cabinet, complete with a Panasonic turntable and Mac mini to rip old vinyl to MP3s, and the original working radio buttons hacked to control the iPod. Journalist and author Kurt Andersen, the host of public radio’s Studio 360 (and former editor of Spy magazine), recently visited Mister Jalopy’s Garage for an interview and grabbed this video of the World’s Biggest iPod in action.
More at Hooptyrides.com.
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Instead of letting it fall by the tech wayside, Josh D recased his old iPod in lovely wood & brass -
My finished wood ipod mini. This has been such a fun project for me. It’s handmade (with special thanks to my 8yr old dremel) from Australian red cedar, Camphor Laurel for the clickwheel, brass plates, brass screws and the guts from the first ipod i ever had.
[…]
I wanted to not use any glue at all with the wooden shell, and fortunately i was able to secure it all together just using the brass screws. Especially because I’d like to be able to replace the ipod’s battery in the future, and possibly add a higher capacity flash hard drive.
The wooden clickwheel is simply stuck down on the sensor with very thin double sided tape.
More pics in the Flickr photoset.[via Boing Boing Gadgets]
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The Linux on iPod developer blog says the 5.5g iPods can now run Linux -
Many thanks and cheers to the hard work by DataGhost et al. in figuring out all of the final little bits in getting 5.5th gen iPods working with iPod Linux (Winpods and Macpods, 30 and 80 gig units). His various patches have been checked in, and integrated into the current nightly build of the kernel.
There’s a minor patch being integrated today that will allow 30 gig units to work properly… look for that kernel tomorrow!
More information can be found on the 5.5G Wiki Page with respect to installing these experimental builds on your 5.5th gen iPod.
Linux on iPod » Blog Archive » 5.5g iPods are working! – Link.
More:
Linux on iPod projects @ MAKE – Link.
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