X

Photos: At SXSW, Dorkbot fetes geekery

Hundreds turn out for Dorkbot, a celebration of makers and electronic geekery that takes place in cities around the world.

CNET Reviews staff
Arc_Attack_Tesla_Coil.JPG
1 of 11 Daniel Terdiman/CNET

Arc Attack's tesla coils

At South by Southwest in Austin, Texas, on Saturday night, hundreds of attendees turned out for Dorkbot, a celebration of makers and electronic geekery that takes place in cities around the world. Its motto is "People doing strange things with electricity."

Among the projects on display was Arc Attack, an Austin group that has rigged tesla coils to a DJ system, making it possible for the electricity shooting out of the tesla coil to be timed to the beats of the music.

Working_on_Tesla_coil.JPG
2 of 11 Daniel Terdiman/CNET

Working on tesla coils

A member of Arc Attack works on one of the group's tesla coils in preparation for its synchronized electricity and electronic music performance. The group also does its show with much larger tesla coils, but it was not able to use those in the tent SXSW had made available to Dorkbot.
Robotic_Etch-a-Sketch.JPG
3 of 11 Daniel Terdiman/CNET

Robotic Etch-a-Sketch

The CNC Magic Screen Machine by James Delaney is essentially a robotic Etch-a-Sketch. The device rigs a computer to an actual Etch-a-Sketch and can automatically draw almost any image that is loaded into the computer.
Rubiks_Cube_robot.JPG
4 of 11 Daniel Terdiman/CNET

Rubik's Cube robot

A Lego Mindstorms robot built to solve Rubik's Cubes was on display at Dorkbot in Austin, Texas.

The machine, built by high school students, relies on sensors that can distinguish between the colors of the individual sections of the cube. This individual device was not able to solve the cube, because of problems with the sensor that made it difficult to distinguish between similar colors, but it was representative of a device that can finish the task.

Ping_pong_ball_printer.JPG
5 of 11 Daniel Terdiman/CNET

Pingpong ball printer

A pingpong ball printer from The Robot Group prints messages onto normal pingpong balls using standard inkjet ink.
Printing_a_ping_pong_ball.JPG
6 of 11 Daniel Terdiman/CNET

Printing a pingpong ball

A close-up of the process of printing a pingpong ball.
Chris_and_the_Mule.JPG
7 of 11 Daniel Terdiman/CNET

Demonstrating Ocarina

"The Mule," an employee of iPhone app maker Smule, shows Chris Taylor (left) how to play Ocarina, the company's most popular app. Ocarina lets anyone with an iPhone simulate a flute-like instrument called, yes, an ocarina.
Bre_and_3D_Printer.JPG
8 of 11 Daniel Terdiman/CNET

Bre Pettis and 3D printer

Bre Pettis, one of the founders of Brooklyn hacker collective NYCResistor, shows off his 3D printer kit. The kit makes it possible for anyone to build their own 3D printer at home and print small 3D objects.
3D_printer_close-up.JPG
9 of 11 Daniel Terdiman/CNET

3D printer

A close-up of the printing element on Bre Pettis' 3D printer.
Telepresence_Rover.JPG
10 of 11 Daniel Terdiman/CNET

Telepresence Rover

The "Telepresence Rover" is a three-wheeled device designed to rove around the ground autonomously. It has sensors that allow it to avoid running into objects. When it encounters them, it turns itself away from them. The project was built by Bob Comer and David Comer.
Telepresence_Sensor.JPG
11 of 11 Daniel Terdiman/CNET

Telepresence Rover's sensor

A close-up of the sensor on the Telepresence Rover.

More Galleries

My Favorite Shots From the Galaxy S24 Ultra's Camera
A houseplant

My Favorite Shots From the Galaxy S24 Ultra's Camera

20 Photos
Honor's Magic V2 Foldable Is Lighter Than Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra
magic-v2-2024-foldable-1383

Honor's Magic V2 Foldable Is Lighter Than Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra

10 Photos
The Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus Looks Sweet in Aluminum
Samsung Galaxy S24

The Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus Looks Sweet in Aluminum

23 Photos
Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra Now Has a Titanium Design
The Galaxy S24 Ultra in multiple colors

Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra Now Has a Titanium Design

23 Photos
I Took 600+ Photos With the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. Look at My Favorites
img-0368.jpg

I Took 600+ Photos With the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. Look at My Favorites

34 Photos
17 Hidden iOS 17 Features You Should Definitely Know About
Invitation for the Apple September iPhone 15 event

17 Hidden iOS 17 Features You Should Definitely Know About

18 Photos
AI or Not AI: Can You Spot the Real Photos?
img-1599-2.jpg

AI or Not AI: Can You Spot the Real Photos?

17 Photos