Free Diy Zune, IPod, IPhone, PDA, Cell Phone or Gadget Holder/dock/stand
by dissident75 in Circuits > Apple
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Free Diy Zune, IPod, IPhone, PDA, Cell Phone or Gadget Holder/dock/stand
It has been said that necessity is the mother of invention. I have found that to be true often. Last week was no exception.
I've been spending inordinate amounts of time on my PC on the job hunt. Since I had recently replaced my pc with a server the sound level has gone up a lot in office. As such to cope, I had to turn up my background music. It got to the point that I had a little trouble hearing my phone.
My solution was to set it up in front of my monitor so when it rings or or email comes in I can easily see it light up and see who's calling and what account the email is coming in on.
The down side is its a bit of a precarious perch as my monitor is elevated. After a while the bass or vibrations would make it fall. That annoyed me quite a bit since it is a recently upgraded Helio Ocean.
I needed a stand for it. After sitting and looking for simple stands I found a bunch of DIY solutions. But I found them to be flimsy or required things I didn't have handy. Non marring is a requirement, so paperclip solutions are out. It's a hefty phone so business card holders were out. Binder clip arrangements are a bad joke in my opinion. I needed something better.
So while pondering what I could do I lit a cigarette. Then I took a good look at a cigarette pack.
Inspiration struck me. I'm a smoker and as such I usually have a few empties laying around. A little pondering and here is what I came up with.
This is my first instructable. My other projects are located at http://www.recklessphilosophers.com
I've been spending inordinate amounts of time on my PC on the job hunt. Since I had recently replaced my pc with a server the sound level has gone up a lot in office. As such to cope, I had to turn up my background music. It got to the point that I had a little trouble hearing my phone.
My solution was to set it up in front of my monitor so when it rings or or email comes in I can easily see it light up and see who's calling and what account the email is coming in on.
The down side is its a bit of a precarious perch as my monitor is elevated. After a while the bass or vibrations would make it fall. That annoyed me quite a bit since it is a recently upgraded Helio Ocean.
I needed a stand for it. After sitting and looking for simple stands I found a bunch of DIY solutions. But I found them to be flimsy or required things I didn't have handy. Non marring is a requirement, so paperclip solutions are out. It's a hefty phone so business card holders were out. Binder clip arrangements are a bad joke in my opinion. I needed something better.
So while pondering what I could do I lit a cigarette. Then I took a good look at a cigarette pack.
Inspiration struck me. I'm a smoker and as such I usually have a few empties laying around. A little pondering and here is what I came up with.
This is my first instructable. My other projects are located at http://www.recklessphilosophers.com
What You Need.
2 empty packs of cigarettes. Plastic must be intact. Marlboro preferable - I'll explain why. It's not brand preference. The markings on the pack actually help in the assembly.
Duct tape.
scissors.
Black paint - Optional.
Duct tape.
scissors.
Black paint - Optional.
If you look closely at the lid of a cigarette pack you'll notice it's cut to a 45 degree angle. Cut 2 small strips of duct tape. Open the cigarette pack 45 degrees. It's open to the right angle when the the bottom of the lid is at a right angle to the edge of the pack. Tape the lid in position with the strips. You'll notice that the lid now forms a nice lip to hold your Gadget in place.
Next take your second empty box and place it upside down on top of the other pack which is now laying flat. Take 2 much longer strips and tape it to the other. The placement is this, line the edge of the of the top pack up with where the graphics goes off the edge.
Next cut 2 more strips of tape. You'll notice that the graphics on the Marlboro box now form a downward arrow. Line the edges of the tape up with the edge of the graphic and wrap the tape around the side and then down to the bottom box. This is to reinforce the joint between boxes so that the top doesn't move, collapse, and damage your gadget.
You are essentially done at this point. You may want to pretty it up now, and that can be done with some black paint, steel or aluminum tape, stickers etc...
I find it a pain and since I'm not looking at the stand but the screen I don't bother. But I did thisone just for you guys.
I find it a pain and since I'm not looking at the stand but the screen I don't bother. But I did thisone just for you guys.
Design Considerations
The tape bonds to the plastic better than directly to the box. When secured in place the lid also acts to lean the whole assembly better so it looks a bit nicer. The tape is placed to on the bottom of the top pack at a 45 degree angle to reinforce the backing in such a way it's more difficult to displace than the just the strips holding it up and down.
The use of empty cigarette packs allows for a second life for a short lived product. The packs are recyclable but truth be told, most end up in landfills un recycled. This has proven to be a robust gadget mount and I currently use several of them on my desk and through out my house.
I don't encourage you to smoke, but if you do you may as well use some of the empties and save them from going to rot in a landfill.
I found that thisis handy for seeing my calls on my cell when I can't hear it. Watching movies on my Zune. Holding my PDA in landscape mode while I work with a Dos emulator and USB Keyboard.
The iPod is for Show. I prefer the Zune over it after having used both. I don't have an iPod and the one Pictured belongs to a friend. It's broken. Maybe I'll write about repairing it in my next instructable.
The use of empty cigarette packs allows for a second life for a short lived product. The packs are recyclable but truth be told, most end up in landfills un recycled. This has proven to be a robust gadget mount and I currently use several of them on my desk and through out my house.
I don't encourage you to smoke, but if you do you may as well use some of the empties and save them from going to rot in a landfill.
I found that thisis handy for seeing my calls on my cell when I can't hear it. Watching movies on my Zune. Holding my PDA in landscape mode while I work with a Dos emulator and USB Keyboard.
The iPod is for Show. I prefer the Zune over it after having used both. I don't have an iPod and the one Pictured belongs to a friend. It's broken. Maybe I'll write about repairing it in my next instructable.