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All of us have experienced spotty wireless connections at some point. Too many times have I wanted to toss my PS3 controller across the room because of those nasty red connection bars while playing Call of Duty. Thankfully, there are a few good ways that you can easily achieve increased signal strength and stability.
NOTE: I strongly recommend you use only one of these solutions at a time, using more than one will put tremendous stress on your router and WILL significantly reduce its lifespan. Use these solutions at your own risk, I am not responsible for any damage you may cause to your router.
Solution 1
If you are not very tech savvy or generally prefer a quick-fix approach, Solution 1 is for you. All you have to do is steal one of your moms aluminum foil pans (the bigger the better), and simply stand it up behind your PC/PS3/360. Thats it, your done! Sounds stupid, but it works. The pan will concentrate the signal around your device, resulting in roughly a 10% boost in signal. If you want to take things further (or if your mom needs her pan back), you may want to adopt solution 2 or 3.
Solution 2
Solution 2 involves creating your own antenna out of paper and aluminum foil. I wrote an article on this a while back, check it out here. You can expect a 12dBi gain with one antenna. To further increase this gain you need to either use more than one antenna, or increase the size of the antenna.
Solution 3
This solution is the most advanced of the three, however it has the potential for the greatest gain in signal strength. First things first, you will need to download and install Tomato Firmware (you will need either 7-zip or WinRAR to unpack the files). Tomato Firmware is replacement firmware for your router (see compatiblity list), featuring an easy to use GUI, bandwidth usage, and many customization options. Once you have installed the firmware, you will need to go to your default gateway (192.168.1.1 for Linksys). If you do not know your default gateway, go to START -> RUN -> type CMD and hit OK. Command Prompt will open, type ipconfig and hit enter. Your default gateway will be in the list of results. Once you have entered your default gateway and logged in to the firmware, go to Advanced -> Wireless. Look for the field “Transmit Power” (value should currently say 42mW or so). This value can be increased up to 251mW, but your router will likely turn into molten plastic. I recommend a 10-20% increase in the value, so about 5-10 mW. Thats it!
If you run into any problems read over the readme.htm file or check out the FAQ’s.
NOTE: The FCC has guidelines with regards to the strength of wireless signals, thus increasing your signal may be breaking them.
Click here for two more methods of increasing your wireless signal!
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This update isn’t much to write home about, but I’m doing it anyway.
Update 2.60 is meant to enhance the PS3’s media capabilities, mainly with a new Photo Gallery Application. Pictures can now be organized in various groups, such as the camera that was used to take the pictures, the colors in the photos (kind of neat), facial expressions, and of course date and time. Slideshows can also be created with music and playlists. Oddly, the application has to be installed AFTER you complete the update to 2.60. For those PS3 owners who use their console as a digital photo album, you will enjoy this feature. For those like me, you will be more interested in additional video codecs.
With this said, the update also adds the ability of non-psn accounts to browse the store, as well as DivX 3.11 support (can never have enough support in this area).
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And I thought I was the only one who flipped my pillow searching for cold spots. After coming across this article it became clear that not only was I not the sole pillow flipping freak on this planet - Maverick Marketing actually believes there is potential for this sort of product- and so here it is, the Chillow.
This pillow does exactly as you would assume - stays cool. The pillow has an enclosure composed of gel; the user fills it up with water, closes the fill cap, and places it in their pillow. No freezer necessary! The Chillow will pull heat away from your head, dropping the surface temperature. It can even be used in place of an icepack, as its cooling features are perfect for burns, sore joints, and strained muscles.
The Chillow retails for $29.95 at Smarthome dot com.
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Alpay Kasal of LIT Studios has created the Interactive Mirror, using an LCD projector, and you guessed it – a mirror.
This mirror gives a user the ability to draw, interact with animations, play games, view photos, or even show how a custom t-shirt would look if you were wearing it. The device operates via touch technology; however it does lack a multi-touch feature. Besides having a little fun when you’re bored, the device has little purpose other than to impress your friends.
Check out the video below to see The Interactive Mirror in action.
Weak wireless signal? Check out my latest post on how to boost its strength!
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PS3 System update 2.5 was released for the console earlier today. The update offers new support for the official Sony Bluetooth headset, such as an on screen indicator showing volume, battery charge, and mute functions. A High Quality mode has also been developed, which enables wide band voice communication with the PS3.
The update also adds in-game screenshot capability, which is a feature I have been anxiously awaiting for. Game developers will have to implement this feature when creating the game. In terms of existing games, hopefully patches will be released that add this feature.
The PlayStation trophy system has also been enhanced as a result of the update. Now when you earn a trophy, the in game message will include a specific trophy icon created by the game developer. Trophy comparing with friends has also been expanded, including an icon representing the trophy level. The trophy system is a new concept for Sony, and is something we can expect to see developed further in future updates.
Video playback has also been improved with the update; users now have the option to search scenes with corresponding thumbnails.
The information board now contains direct links to the PlayStation Store, making it easier to download content.
Another one of my favourite improvements is the redesign of account management. You no longer have to leave the XMB to load that incredibly slow PlayStation account management page. Now when you click Account Management in the XMB, four new options come up – Account Information, Redeem Codes, Transaction Management, System Activation. All of these options can be changed right in the XMB, making things much cleaner.
Lastly, the update adds an auto shutoff feature, allowing users to turn off their system or controller after a selected time.
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We all know about the famous iBeer app for the iPhone - the one that makes our iPhone/iTouch look like a glass of beer that empties when we tip it into our mouth. This useless, although oddly neat gimmick, sold for $3 in the Apple Store. Recently Coors came up with a free knockoff, called the iPint, which is basically the same application except with the Coors logo imprinted in the glass. The result, developer of iBeer, Hottrix, is suing Coors for $12.5 million – over a beer app.
I feel for Hottrix, however I have to admit, I would not dish out $3 for such a pointless app, especially when theres an exact replica available for free. We shall see how the beer brewing giant fares in court.
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YouTube has just announced that it is going to start offering full-length TV episodes on its site.
Many internet users already watch shows online with sites such as Ninjavideo and Joox, while nervously awaiting them to get shut down for copyright infringement. YouTube has made deals with TV companies including CBS, which will allow you to ‘legally’ watch shows such as ‘Dexter,’ ‘Beverly Hills, 90210,’ and ‘Star Trek’ on their site.
For those of you who are unaware, YouTube is owned by dot com giant Google. Google intends to run advertisements in longer videos, before and after each episode. YouTube owners prevented this from being implemented on shorter videos as it would deter viewers. They are probably right, who wants to watch a 15 second commercial before a 30 second video clip? Instead, for the short videos they have come up with in-video overlays, which are basically banner ads that will appear frequently over the bottom of videos.
Hopefully YouTube continues to sign deals with TV companies and is able to provide us with a decent selection of shows.
For more information check out this article.
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Twenty-three year old Michael Calce aka ‘Mafiaboy,’ the famous internet hacker from Montreal, has just written his own memoir. Mafiaboy is known for his feat of temporarily shutting down some of the biggest sites on the web and leading the FBI and RCMP on a manhunt when he was fifteen years old.
The book is titled ‘Mafiaboy: How I cracked the Internet and Why It’s Still Broken.’ It is said to be a ‘cautionary tale’ about how the teen learned to hack from other online rebels. Michael also wants it to be used to help businesses and people protect themselves online.
Mafiaboy’s took down sites for several hours, including CNN, Yahoo, Amazon, eBay, E-trade Financial, and many others using his denial-of-service attacks. Calce ending up pleading guilty to over fifty charges.
Ironically, the book can be purchased at Amazon, for just over $20.
For those of you who purchase this book, I would not recommend following in his footsteps. I would also appreciate it if you do not experiment with his hacking methods on my site – as if you are successful I will no longer be able to provide you with all of this fantastic tech news.
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Sony has recently unveiled its sexy new OLED prototypes. This OLED TV is absolutely gorgeous, measuring in at a mere 0.3mm thick (that’s about the thickness of a playing card). The prototype also has a curve shape to it – so long to flat screen LCD’s. Not only is it thin, it looks great, boasting sharp images and unbelievable contrast. Check out some of the pictures below.
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