Introducing Darkmatter, the world's first Xbox laptop that you can buy as a fully assembled product or in kit form. Now Xbox ONE compatible!
Inspired by Ben Heck and many other modders and hackers in the Xbox Community, Darkmatter is the world's first portable Open Source Xbox system that you can buy as a fully finished product, or in kit form.
The project is Open Source and once the funding goal on Kickstarter is met, all design files will be released to the public. The laptop features touch controls for eject, synch, volume etc. It also comes with built in stereo speakers, a headphone jack and an amp. The display is a 15 inch 720p pane. A DVD drive is included and the system is compatible with all Xbox 360 games as it is based on the slim version of the popular Microsoft console.
Darkmatter Xbox Laptop Features
Thin
Xbox 360 and XBox ONE (kit only) compatible
Easy to build
Affordable
Equipped with an internal DVD
Able to work with Xbox peripherals such as Kinect(r)
Equipped with capacitive touch controls for volume, mute, sync, power etc.
The Darkmatter laptop is powered off the same power brick that comes with your Xbox. When you contribute at the $999 or greater levels, you get a fully functional, ready-to-go Darkmatter unit with the power brick included. Please note, Darkmatter is not equipped with an internal battery.
Darkmatter incorporates an Xbox 360 Slim 4GB inside, which means that it supports Wi-Fi connectivity, Xbox Live and all the other Xbox 360 features. As of Update #1, we've announced Xbox ONE compatibility for the $499 reward level (complete kit).
Ben Heck has just released pics and a video of his updated Xbox 360 Slim Portable. There are some big and not so big differences to his older models.
Ben's new Xbox 360 Slim is gray and metallic throughout and looks fantastic. He is actually building 3 of these so besides the giveaway unit the 2 others are available to buy – if interested please email Ben directly from his site (linked below).
Big differences:
* About 1.5″ inches narrower left and right, 1″ narrower front to back.
* Internal power supply.
* Uses stock Xbox 360 Slim fan so it’s much quieter than my older 3 fan models.
* Touch sensitive power and eject buttons of the Slim have been preserved.
Not so big differences:
* Pushbutton control audio amplification.
* Gateway 1775W 17″ widescreen LCD display @ 1280×720.
* Fan grate design copied from PS3 Laptop design.
* PVC plastic routed case.
Click the link to view the attached video and link to Ben's own website.
Looking for more Ben Heck mods & articles?? Look no further.. We have been following Ben's adventures since the beginning. Check out some of 360-HQ's previous coverage from the links below.
Ben Heck has recently updated his site with some more interesting projects he has been working on. One of his most recent projects is a Darksiders Xbox 360 laptop for THQ. Yummy!
If you are not already familiar with Ben then we suggest you check out his official site for all his projects. We have provided links at the bottom of this article.
Here is the Xbox 360 laptop prize for THQ’s “Darksiders” game. The casing / shell design was done by myself and then Colorware (over in Minnesota - go midwest!) printed graphics on it using Joe Madureira artwork as a basis.
It’s pretty slick looking, I’d heard of Colorware before but this is first time I’ve seen what they can do in person. Very glossy! The game itself comes out later this year I believe.
For the making of story and more pictures and video, click below to visit ben's official site.
It looks like Ben Heck is at it again with yet another brilliant custom xbox 360.. We have reported previously on Ben's projects and thought our members and guests would find this as interesting as we all do here on 360-HQ.
Here's the latest info and images from his project page which also includes a cool video.
My latest project is an Xbox 360 stuffed inside of a Pelican 1490 case. The intention here to create a "tough" portable Xbox 360 that can be transported with ease.
This unit includes:
17″ widescreen LCD monitor.
Built-in speakers.
Power cable compartment.
Reworked top-loading DVD drive.
Removable hard drive.
Ethernet and USB ports.
This unit was built because I’ve had a lot of requests for game consoles that could be used overseas by our servicemen and women and I thought it’d be interesting to take a crack at the concept. It was not built on consignment, a rarity for me these days, so it is up for grabs. I’m also interested the larger-scale possibilities of this kind of project if anyone has any ideas/money.
More Xbox 360 Project "Pelican Hero" images available by following the links.
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