Console modding extraordinaire, Ben Heckendorn, is up to it again; reminding us that, yes, he is still selling his sexy revision 5.1 Atari hand helds for $350 and a sacrificial 2600. The Atari Rev 5.1 really is his most complete system yet, including built-in paddle controller, difficulty switches and player 2 port for multiplayer games. And it's a mere 1-inch thick—no small feat when you realise there's an entire vintage console in your hands. All in all, the 5.1 really may be Ben Heckendorn's definitive Atari 2600 project.

So we thought it was about time we looked back on over 18 of Ben Heckendorn's fantastic Atari projects that got him to this point, so we've put together this awesome, spectacular, fantabulous timeline fit for any console modder's wet dream.

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T3 got their hands on the new European iPhone, and to their delight (and dismay), the phone is pre-installed with firmware 1.1.2—which is newer than the 1.1.1 firmware we currently have in the states. Believe it or not, it's actually packing some new features. But before you ask, their early testing shows that current Jailbreak software is no longer functional. So that whole saga continues!

The biggest standard consumer-oriented change is probably that the phone supports 12 languages out of the box, along with special keyboards for French and German languages (we guess that the other languages see a more limited level of support).

There's also bundled free access to The Cloud Wi-Fi hotspots, which we've already seen in the European iPod Touch.

And like we said, no more iPhone hacking for a little while. [t3]

*We brought you news about OLPC's Give 1 Get 1 initiative previously. Under the scheme, buyers will purchase a XO laptop for $399, and included in the price will be the cost for a second laptop, which will be donated to a third world child on the consumer's behalf. To back the plan, T-Mobile shall be offering one year's complimentary Wi-Fi HotSpot access for those participating. We think that this is a great offer, as HotSpot access for a year would normally cost $359.98 on its own. Now you can grab a XO laptop for yourself / buddy in a third world country and bag T-Mobile HotSpot access for a whole year for an extra $40.01, only. That's (kinda) a XO laptop for $20! The buyers will be sent the details for HotSpot access once they have made a qualifying purchase. Good on T-Mobile. Well done—keep it up, chaps. [Businesswire]

Consumer Reports' Annual Product Reliability Survey will be featured in their upcoming December issue. Its news? Flat panel displays are far more reliable than their rear-projection counterparts. Just how much more reliable? Around 15% 500%.

The study showed that both LCDs and plasma displays needed repairs, on average, of only 3% of the time. Meanwhile, rear-projection sets had an overall necessity of repairs of 18%. And the worst culprates in rear-projection were DLP TVs. Yeah, apparently those millions of tiny mirrors need millions of tiny fixes—which is really too bad, since my eye favours good DLP over LCD and plasma any day.

Consumer Reports' other conclusion was that neither repair prices nor rates on either type of TV warranted warranties. So don't let that punk kid in a wrinkly blue shirt scare you out of your money better spent on hi-def content. [informationweek]

Two 8-year old geniuses have invented wedgie proof underwear—more than a decade too late for us. Simplicity is the key to all great design, as the inventors showed when they presented the Rip Away 1000 on the Ellen DeGeneres Show, which is the most unlikely platform for the display of the 8-year olds prodigious talents.

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Every week is a crazy, unbelievable Battle Royale between companies, PR, reporters and consumers. Like this one time, a guy at the bar was in line in front of me for the bathroom. Another guy left the bathroom, but the guy in front of me was too engrossed in some conversation he was having to step up. So I politely asked, "Hey, could I go ahead?" And then he stuck his chest out and wanted to fight.

OK, that isn't like the gadget wars at all, but let's just say I went to the bathroom without a hitch (and not in my pants).

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Without trying to stuff the ballot box or anything, the 2007 Weblog Awards ballots are now online, with November 8th being the last day you can vote Giz for Best Technology Blog. We've been a good little Gizmodo, haven't we? And you, well, you're the best little readers, yes you are. Yes you are. If we win, we promise to give each of you a ride in our private Gizmodo jet, taking you to a week-long frolic at the Gawker recreational compound, and then you'll each walk away with your own pony, complete with iPhone holster. That's right, we'll buy you a pony. Vote here. [2007 Weblog Awards]

The great guys over at Navigadget just heard word of an entry level phone with GPS functionality. The new cellphone, called the Hop1883, will be offered by Hop-On Wireless, and has the classic candy bar form factor. Beyond being cheap and not bad looking (like Lindsay Lohan), the Hop1883 will be tri-band 900/1800/1900 MHz, with a 240 x 320 QVGA screen, 2MP camera and will have a SiRF Star III GPS receiver chip.

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A mystery carrier in the UK will soon be partnering with Challenger Mobile to offer free VOIP from normal phones without the annoying necessity for a Wi-Fi network. The prospect would allow a mobile phone user to call any country in the world for completely free if the other party supports the techology. So how does it work?

It's a SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) based service, meaning that it's compatible with most cellphone service standards already. When I call you through SIP, your number would be converted to an email-like extension automatically and be sent to a central server. That server would then contact us both to establish the connection. And in the case that your service isn't SIP supported, calls can be appropriately routed to standard telephone networks.

We'll keep an eye on the potentially excellent service. But as many of you already know, anything promising to save you money will probably cost you. [challengermobile via informationweek]

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed a method of arranging cells on a microchip using what they call "optical tweezers." These optical tweezers consist of a fine tuned beam of laser light, which moves cells around on the chip.

Scientists say this could have may beneficial applications in the fields of biomedical and materials research. In the picture shown, they used said tweezers to arrange the letters "MIT" on the surface of the chip. Now if they could do that with Harvard's marching band at a football game, I'd really be impressed. [AP via Science Daily]

Cnet is reporting that as part of Monday's big press conference, Google will unveil their iPhone killer gPhone OS, tentatively codenamed Android. Sources are calling the OS a "a complete mobile-phone software stack" that will be followed shortly after by a SDK (Translation: this isn't just an ad system and will have more than a bunch of lame web apps).

As we mentioned before, CNET affirms that the OS should be open-source and Linux based, but we shouldn't expect to see it in stores soon. The number of companies involved (over 30) will make it difficult to move quickly on this. I'm just glad that this thing is moving out from the shadowy depths of rumorville. [Cnet via Gadget Lab]

We have already declared our love for wooden keyboards, but Geeks.com's offering has stolen our hearts without defiling our wallets. At only $20 for a mouse and keyboard, made from the original hard stuff, we are not too sure what more you could ask of the fine people at Geeks.com, nay, of life. Though the product description seems a little misleading, with the entry of "wood coloured keys," the chaps at Wired are seeking the real down-low as we speak. We can only wait with bated breath as the news comes in. We pray for real wood...nightly...we have problems. [Product Page via Wired]

The Gamerator has been the first successful technology to combine our two favourite pastimes: video games and binge drinking. Because while it initially appears to be a drool-worthy 24-inch flat screen MAME arcade cabinet with 180 preloaded titles, the Gamerator's alter ego is that of a kegerator, keeping a pony keg chilled and on tap for your enjoyment at all times. Sounds like heaven? That's not all, my friends!

The Gamerator can also be customised to fit your console of choice or even a fully functional PC. Browse the web with a beer, and when you need a break in the chugging, just store your glass in one of the two built-in cupholders. You know, just like when you're cruising the strip in the minivan.

Remember the old days when you were stuffing more quarters into machines before time ran out? Well this is the new, over 21 and way more awesome version—though no one can predict just how many glasses will fall victim to "slip and shatter" as we try to booze up before putting the finishing whoop arse on M. Bison. And the $2,000 pricetag really isn't that bad when you consider...uhh...yeah, it's a bit pricey, even for a MAME cabinet. But we're sure it's worth every penny. [ebay via technabob]

We'd heard of the NY Jedi School before—for those who haven't, it's pretty much exactly what it sounds like—but we'd never seen a class in action until we spotted this clip on ABC. Given that lightsabers don't actually exist, we were confused just how the...logistics...worked out. Now we know. And yes, it's every bit as dorky as we dreamed (or nightmared) it would be. [nyjedi via abc & neatorama]

Drymer has produced a working three wheeled electric bike prototype, and the way electric bikes go, theirs looks pretty snazzy. The three wheeler, named the v0.5, boasts a motor capable of producing 250 watts, which will reach a maximum speed of 25 km/h. If your face tends to melt at such speeds, purchase with caution. Check out the gallery below:

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Well, we didn't have to wait for anyone to crack open their PS3 to check, because Sony has squashed all rumours that the new $399 40GB PlayStation 3 SKU is featuring 65nm chips (shrunk from their 90nm standard). While we'll save you the copy and pasted rough auto translation, Sony essentially said that 65nm is not here yet but that they were working on it for the future.

Most of the speculation stemmed from the new model needing 65W less to operate—a power savings of around 30%. So while we're still interested to see where Sony found all this energy savings, it wasn't from a smaller chipset. And ultimately, all this matters a lot more for Sony's profits than it does our enjoyment. Ratchet & Clank, anyone? [heise.de via engadget] [image]

The Computer Game Museum in Berlin has accomplished two things to make fanboys, such as ourselves, very moist. Firstly, they have created a museum dedicated to computer games and secondly, the institution has produced a mahoosive reconstruction of the classic Donkey Kong game using scaffolding. That is large. Lap it up fellow fanboys, lap it up. Oh, imagine how burly that large cardboard Donkey Kong would be—I wish he'd pick me up and hold me in his muscular primate arms... [UrbanRetroLifestyle]