Extend your personality… onto your personal device.
Add together one $20,000 laser etching machine and a $2,000 MacBook Pro and what do you get? A lot more than $22k: A license for creativity.
Options for laser etching today is far beyond the text-only option on your ipod at Apple.com. Don’t believe me? Make magazine has a great how-to article. But, if your credit line isn’t capable of financing this little project quite yet, check out a few of my favorites: the macbook “poe”, the “son of man” book, a tribute to silicon valley, the web 2.0 cloud, a crazy looking tarsier, a celtic knot, and even an iphone.
Interested? Luckily, there is a wiki page available that lists where you can transform your machine into workable art. Adafruit, the company that created the wiki page, offers an “open source” business plan filled with advice on how to startup your own company. The company has crafted some amazing pieces, but unless you’ll be in New York City, you’re a bit out of luck- they operate on an appointment basis only. Talk about sharing the wealth.
Another option is to sell the space on your computer like Leah Culver. A young college student, Leah couldn’t afford a new computer- until she realized that she could sell space on her mac to advertisers such as pbwiki, technorati, firefox, dig, ask.com, and even good ‘ol reliable mom & dad. It worked- check out the finished product.
If you’re looking for a more non-destructive way to modify your precious gadgets, check out icolours, which sells pieces of translucent film to change the color of the lit apple.
To be platform-friendly, there is ColorwarePc, where you can buy aftermarket “body kits” for your computer. Or, the least expensive option is Gelaskins, where you can buy covers for both ipods and laptops.
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