Hacking Into Your Gadgets

Monday, September 17, 2007


My MP4 player had a very loose connection with the earphones that when you plug an earphone in, it slowly falls out. My remedy was to place several rubber bands to prevent it from doing so. The downside is that my screen is filled with multicolored lines... not from the video clip, but from the rubber bands literally placed above the screen.

After tolerating this for a month, I drew a bit of inspiration from George Hotz, the teenager who spent his summer vacation hacking into his iPhone to unlock it and use it for other mobile networks. He literally tore apart the phone and was able to put it all back together unlocked.



Well, I'm no hacking genius, and moreso will freak out using a soldering gun on any valuable gadget. But I did have the courage enough to unscrew the case of my MP4 player and find out what's causing my earphones from sliding back out.

Upon closer inspection, I discovered that there was a break in one of the metal connectors. It was so tiny and I had no idea at first how to join them together. I dare would use glue for fear that I might short circuit something. So I got an office supply near to the appearance of a thumbtack. It's used for fastening paper on envelopes, yet I have the slightest idea of what you call it. Anyway, I cut a piece of it and inserted it under the broken connection.

And presto ! Now I only need one rubberband instead of 10. Oh well, I told you I'm not a gadget fiddling genius. But I'm just happy that I was able to do something to make my life less time-consuming.

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