Word around the campfire is that Apple came out with a new device. Well, we just happened to be at the right place at the right time, and managed to sneek a peek at the new Apple A4 processor, which powers the new iPad.

From Apple’s official video we found the following markings: H8MBT00V0MTR-OEM; VTJK00782; 1SB009A 0940

The last four digits indicate the manufacture date. Apparently this particular chip came into existence in Week 40 of 2009, which happens to be end of September / early October. So it’s been around for awhile, that’s for sure.

The rest of the markings are harder to decode. We will be taking apart the iPad as soon as we can get our hands on it.

Engadget recently posted its revised style guide, which piqued my interest in reevaluating our device naming convention. Historically, iFixit tried to be faithful to manufacturers’ wishes with regard to device name capitalization—we capitalized it how they capitalized it.

Most of the time device naming is not an issue, but names with no capital letters (like iPod nano, shuffle, and touch, chumby one), look goofy. Such names make our writing appear ignorant, as if we failed to capitalize the device name letters when creating the titles.

The other aspect of this problem are device names with camel case (iPod, iPhone, BlackBerry, PlayStation), as well as all-caps names (DROID), that manufacturers devised to make the name stand out amidst other text.

We strive to be as readable and consistent as possible, and we have been debating capitalization conventions for some time. After much thought and deliberation, we have finally decided that:

1. All device names will begin with either the first or second letter capitalized, depending on the manufacturer’s naming convention. An iPod remains iPod, but an iPod touch becomes iPod Touch. Similarly, the chumby one becomes Chumby One.
2. Device names that are all-caps, such as DROID, will instead have only the first letter capitalized, and the rest lower-case. Hence, we call it the Droid.
3. We will respect camel case—with a name like iFixit, who are we to judge? BlackBerry stays BlackBerry, and iFixit stays iFixit.

We feel these three simple rules will unify the look of our repair database while still preserving the manufacturer’s intent as much as possible.

Taking out the MacBook Pro LCD

You no longer have to replace your non-Unibody MacBook Pro display assembly in order to fix a faulty/cracked display. We’ve released a set of guides that show you how to remove the LCD from the rest of the assembly, and switch it out with a new one.

The entire process is relatively straightforward, but not for the faint of heart — it requires the user to separate the bezels from the LCD using a spudger, albeit from an LCD that’s already presumed to be broken.

This procedure can be performed on model A1150, A1211, and A1226/A1260 MacBook Pros; if you’re unsure which laptop you have, feel free to use iFixit’s laptop identification system!

Also make sure to choose the correct LCD type, as the A1150 and A1211 LCD differs from the A1226/A1260 model.

The world is awash in gadget lust. But do you really need a brand-new shiny-curvy-not-bigger-but-better iPod nano when you’ve already got three sitting in a drawer? Next Christmas (or birthday), make something old new again and give the only gift that’s actually environmentally friendly: something you’ve already got.

No, seriously. Instead of buying someone a gift, dig through your closets and desk drawers and pull out those old gadgets. With a little ingenuity and some elbow grease, you can give them something that means a lot more than some sterile shrink wrap.

Christmas wasn’t always an elaborate festival of consumerism. People who lived through the Great Depression frequently recall joyous family bonding times during holidays where they couldn’t afford presents. Rose Guerra, a woman who lived through the Depression, poignantly summarized her memories: “Things don’t make you happy.”

I’ve put together three simple ideas for making your old stuff great again. None of them cost much, but they all require effort on your part.

iPod: Juice that battery

It’s easy to find a new use for an MP3 player even if you’ve got a new, shiny iPod. But the problem with most drawer-bound older iPods is the long-since worn out battery— so replace it with a new one for $15 and it’ll be good as new! Keep the extra iPod in the locker at the gym or give it to your kid. Or pair it with some computer speakers and use it as a kitchen music system.

Laptop: Digital picture frame

Laying out the internals of a Pismo sans case

I bet I have the only digital picture frame in town with a 300 MHz G3 processor and a built-in lithium-ion battery. We built this picture frame from a G3 Pismo that was long-since past its prime. Construction was surprisingly straightforward— we bought a deep picture frame from Michael’s and a lexan panel from Home Depot. Once we removed the laptop from its plastic casing, we just had to glue the LCD to the picture frame and bolt the logic board down to the lexan. Keeping the battery was a no-brainer: it’s wonderful to be able to reroute the power cable without shutting the computer down, or completely removing the power cable when company comes over to confuse them with my wirelessly powered picture frame.

The trickiest part was figuring out where to put the power adapter (we ended up leaving it external). I even threw in an Airport card so we can add more photos without taking it off the wall.

I’ll write up some instructions on doing this sometime, but it’s not very hard.

The fully assembled Pismo-powered, wi-fi enabled digital picture frame

iPhone: Say no to crack!

I’m shocked how often I run across people who have cracked their iPhones. Cracked glass is the most common problem that happens to iPhones, and it’s one of the easiest to fix. We sell a kit with replacement glass, screwdriver, and replacement adhesive for $59.95 (it’s a different part for the 3G vs 3GS, so make sure you get the right one).

With an hour or two of work, you can re-gift someone their own iPhone! This repair is amazingly popular, and I hear a new success story just about every day from someone who fixed their phone themselves. (If you have an original, 2G iPhone you’re out of luck. Apple made it impossible to replace the glass independently of the display.)

What creative things have you done with your old gadgets? Let us know in the comments.