Sadly, arcade games have been replaced by consoles and the like. But there’s still a whole lotta arcade love from those of us who grew up in the 70s/80s. The story goes like this. A guy goes to Japan, sees these new arcade cabinets and of course, wants one. Problem is it costs a fortune to import something that size, so he did what any geek with a toolbox would do, he built his own.

And it looks amazing too. It has a large Sony display on top, a car audio system built in, and it houses not only his PC, but a PS3, and Xbox 360 as well. Have you wet yourself yet? Good. Me too. Now, since I’m too lazy to build myself one, any volunteers?

Check out this steampunk clarinet mod, which foregoes music and adopts violence as it’s new tune. There isn’t alot of info about it, but I like to imagine that some band geek got picked on a bit too much and went all Travis Bickle while creating it. You talking to me? You must be talking to me…

Looks like it doesn’t actually fire, but is more of an art piece. I also envision a post-apocalyptic future where a trio of musicians wander the wasteland. When trouble comes, they make as if to play some music. But when they open their instrument cases…All hell breaks loose. We love the clarinet gun.

Turn signal gadgets for cyclists is nothing new, but you don’t often see them in clothing. Ph.D student Leah Buechley on the other hand, has designed several items of electronic clothing, but her signal jacket for cyclists really stands out.

LEDs are embedded in an arrow formation and they flash to indicate that you are about to turn left or right. That’s a good idea since it will warn motorists, and prevent you from becoming roadkill, which we know some rednecks eat. The LEDs are powered by the round device in the center of the jacket, which is a small, sewable computer chip that Leah also designed herself. She obviously needs to be working with clothing manufacturers.

If you want a little robot pet, here’s your ticket. Over at Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories, they created the odd Bristlebot robot using some odd supplies. Namely a battery, a toothbrush head, and a cell phone vibrator. Now, one of the website’s readers has combined those ideas and invented the new chipbot, which is a Bristlebot made from an old computer chip.

You know how geeks are, many of us are more likely to have an old computer chip lying around than a spare slanted toothbrush head. Basically, you just fold the chip’s pins down and slant them forward and follow the old Bristlebot instructions. Before you know it, you’ll have a speedy little geek companion.

The BattleBots concept is getting another shot, thanks to the robot loving ESPN 2 and ESPNU. The show will have a new format and an increased emphasis on the behind-the-scenes nerd stuff in the “pits” when the bots get hurt.

They’re doing away with the wedgebots and will also have more arena hazards. They will also have a new experimental class for featuring other bot types. The show was slated for June, but is being held back until November. So, if you are looking for a nerd come November, he’ll be in front of the TV. Then, shortly after, in the garage.

Here’s an interesting way to spice up your cubicle or workspace. It’s a miniature blank slate of an arcade gaming cabinet that you can decorate any damn way you please, using markers or pens or probably even paint.

You could have office contests to see who can make the coolest game machine. Of course you won’t actually be able to play it, but you can display it anywhere. You have to love the names of these products. Soopa Coin Op. Bros.? You can get the Soopa for $30.

We thought we’d take a little break from the usual and take a look at some cool art cars that geeks have modded into their own visions of coolness. So here’s some random pimped out tonnage of pure nerd love coming at ya. When a nerd has a car, all things are possible…Though it will usually end up having something to do with the Star Wars universe.

Over at Virtualhosting.com they’ve compiled an interesting list of 69 uses for Duct Tape. Some are practical, some silly. It’s not just for redneck car repair and kidnapping anymore. For instance, have you ever thought of using Duct Tape for Laptop Security? Just tape around your entire laptop so they can’t open it, while you are away. Use it as a band aid or wrap tape around a magazine and make your own mousepad.

If you have a use that they have not covered, it might be fun to add it below. (Thanks Amy)

Here’s a first. The world’s first Etch-A-Sketch clock. They obviously went through a ton of trouble to make it a reality as well. God bless their zelda loving geek hearts. Every minute the device draws out the time in a matter of seconds and then actually erases it to start the process all over again for the next minute. Awesome!

Now if I can only finish my Lite Brite version of Dogs Playing Poker, my place will be all decked out in useless geek tech. Video of the clock below.

If you happen to have a love for molding clay, or making pottery by hand, this DIY USB Pottery Wheel project is for you. Maybe you just want to re-enact that special scene from the movie Ghost, while splashing clay all over your keyboard and monitor.

Lucky for you, all you need is a dead hard drive which you can turn into a pottery wheel. Okay, you’ll need to know a tad about electronics too. And you’ll need to follow the link and watch the video. Soon after, you’ll be humming the Ghost theme and pretending that you are making pottery with a hunky ghost. Someone like you really should get a hobby, so this is a good project. The ghost of Patrick Swayze will never do crafts with you.

Looking eerily like something out of old low budget Sci-Fi movies, this pyramid electric car weighs 8,000-pounds and is powered by 80-batteries, with four engines. It can supposedly reach speeds of up to 45mph. I love how the canopy pops open like a Colonial Viper from Battlestar Galactica. It was built by a Father and his two sons. Check out a video after the jump.

The “Dream Car” is solar powered, on four wheels. The vehicle can run for 80 miles on a single charge, taking about four hours to charge the battery. It’s got some extras too. An in-car heating system for one, electric brakes, gel-filled tires and cool neon lights. This was obviously a labor of love as it cost the Zanises $60,000 in supplies, and a ton of hours to build. They’re now looking for financial backers, because they need $40,000 to build a Mark 2 prototype. They would like to get the range up to 500 miles.

Still have that iPhone box laying around? Have some spare time? I have just the project for you. Create a box camera. Scot Hampton did just that and thus the iHole was born, a pinhole camera created using his roommate’s iPhone box. In a scene that must have made MacGuyver proud, he used nothing more than the iPhone’s packaging, some tape, tinfoil (for the lens), a piece of foam, and a leftover screw and tightener from an old Ikea desk.

Congratulations Scot, you have created a low tech camera from the world’s most high tech device. He also used the cardboard lining from the inside of the original box to construct the film holders you see on the back. It should also be mentioned that Scot is very considerate. He left the serial numbers intact, so that if his roommate ever needed to return it he could.

If you don’t know Ben Heckendorn, the man will modify any game console. Nothing is safe from his artist’s hands, whether he’s making an old Atari 2600 into a portable unit or making an XBox 360 Elite laptop. Basically, the man is a modding God.

Now, he’s turned an Xbox 360 Elite into a laptop, a portable gaming system that can be taken anywhere. The screen has a resolution of 1280×720 which allows for 720p HD viewing, and it has an Xbox camera built in. I’d love to own one, but it’s a custom creation. You won’t be able to buy it anywhere anytime soon. Unless of course you were to commission one.

When going for that authentic game feel, sometimes it’s not enough to just slap your Wiimote into a fake plastic(And often silly looking) gun. We’ll, the modder that came up with this one obviously would agree. And he did something about it. He lovingly stuffed the Wiimote’s innards into a custom-built Colt .45 case.

Why settle for the Nyko pistol when you can have a Wii weapon that will actually get you shot by the police? Very nice job, but I have to wonder if they are a tad too much in love with the Wii for their own good. After all, it must have taken some serious time and geek devotion to complete this project. Those hours could have been spent playing, with any off hours devoted to the search for some geek goddess who might actually understand their obsession. So goes the familiar tale of a geek and his passions…Truth is, sometimes they use guns to compensate for having a tiny Wiimote.

The mission for “Star Trek” has always been to boldly go where no one has gone before, to seek out new life and new civilizations but really, we all just wanted the cool gadget that Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock got to play with. We’ve turned our mobile phones into things that resemble those neat palm-sized communicators the Enterprise crew had and we’re working on the transporter next. For those fans that really want to own a piece of the Enterprise there are models, props and toys made to resemble Starfleet’s best including a toy model of “Star Trek”‘s futuristic gun, a phaser. But why hasn’t some toy company made a phaser that actually emits a laser beam when you fire it? You think that with the low cost of today’s lasers that some toy manufacturer would have leapt on this idea. Leave it to one creative individual to make our geek dreams come true!