Webtagr - Technology News Summarizer

11M IOPS & 66 GiB/s IO on a Single ThreadRipper Workstation: A Deep Dive

2025-05-06

This article details the configuration of an AMD ThreadRipper Pro workstation with 10 PCIe 4.0 SSDs to achieve 11M IOPS for 4kB random reads and 66 GiB/s throughput for larger IOs. The author tackles bottlenecks like RAM access and CPU limitations, delving into Linux block I/O internals and their interaction with modern hardware. The process includes hardware selection, I/O configuration (direct I/O and I/O schedulers), multi-disk testing, and BIOS settings, ultimately achieving remarkable performance.

(tanelpoder.com)

Hardware

From Transistor to Browser: Building a Computer System from Scratch

2025-05-06

This course takes a radical approach to computer science education. Students will build a complete computer system from the ground up, starting with Verilog to blink an LED and culminating in a simple operating system and text-based web browser. The curriculum covers FPGA programming, compiler design, and OS development, culminating in running the system on custom-built hardware. This challenging yet rewarding journey is perfect for those seeking a deep, first-principles understanding of computing.

(github.com)

Hardware computer systems

Roku OS Update Causes Washed-Out HDR Colors

2025-05-05

A recent Roku OS update has caused washed-out colors in HDR content on several Roku apps, including Disney+. Complaints started appearing a week ago, affecting apps like Apple TV+ and Netflix as well. Roku is investigating, asking users to report their experiences and devices. Affected TVs include multiple TCL, Hisense, and Sharp models, while Roku streaming sticks seem unaffected. One user reported that plugging a streaming stick into a Roku TV solved the issue. Users report the problem impacting both movies and shows across various apps, causing significant viewing disruption.

(arstechnica.com)

Hardware Color Distortion

Reverse Engineering a 90s Tektronix 5Gsps Oscilloscope

2025-05-05

This blog post details a reverse engineering effort on a Tektronix TDS684B oscilloscope, renowned for its impressive 5Gsps sample rate in the 1990s. By examining the internal components and taking measurements, the author discovered a key component: an unidentified ADG286D chip, likely an analog CCD FIFO memory. This chip captures analog signals at extremely high speed before digitizing them at a much slower 8MHz rate. Despite significant noise on the ADC input, the final displayed waveform is remarkably clean, hinting at sophisticated signal processing techniques. The analysis reveals the ingenious design that achieved such high sampling rates with the technology available at the time.

(tomverbeure.github.io)

Hardware oscilloscope high-speed sampling

Retro-Fitting a 40-Year-Old Apple Mouse: Speech-to-Text Button

2025-05-05

This project details the transformation of a 1985 Apple M0100 mouse into a wireless speech-to-text input device. The author meticulously documents the process, from selecting a microcontroller (Seeed Xiao nRF52840) and 3D modeling a custom baseplate, to soldering components and flashing firmware. Two approaches are explored: one using a 3D-printed baseplate and a modern switch, the other cleverly reusing the original PCB and switch. The result is a functional, nostalgic device, showcasing the author's ingenuity and passion for retro tech.

(workshop.cjpais.com)

Hardware

Give Your Old Printer New Life: UoWPrint Wireless Print Server Review

2025-05-04

UoWPrint is a modern print server designed to add wireless capabilities to older USB printers, scanners, and multi-function printers (MFPs). It's easy to use and requires no printer-specific drivers, working seamlessly with Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS via AirPrint and Mopria. Built on an Orange Pi Zero 3, it's compact yet powerful, supporting a wide range of printers (HP, Samsung, Xerox, Canon, etc.), though compatibility varies. The project aims to reduce e-waste and provides a convenient printing solution through open-source software and free tech support.

(printserver.ink)

Hardware wireless printing old device upgrade

ThunderScope Update: PCB Design Challenges and Shipping Delays

2025-05-04

Aleksa from the ThunderScope project shared a project update. He spent six weeks on the PCB layout for Revision 5, boasting about integrating the ADC, clock generator, and FPGA. He also made subtle adjustments to the attenuator circuit and wrote a script to improve KiCad's length matching accuracy. Due to the new interposer design, the switch to KiCad, and some personal issues, the project is delayed. Dev edition units are expected to ship in July, with the rest shipping in September. Aleksa will be using GitHub Issues to track progress and will provide another update after testing Rev. 5.

(www.crowdsupply.com)

Hardware

Open Source Switch Bounce Dataset: A Robust Debouncing Solution

2025-05-04

This open-source project provides a collection of oscilloscope traces illustrating switch bouncing behavior. It includes various switch types (rocker switches, push buttons, etc.) tested under different actuation forces and speeds. Data is available in CSV and PWL formats for use in designing and simulating debouncing algorithms for circuits and firmware. The dataset includes detailed descriptions of the testing methodology and equipment, making it a valuable resource for engineers.

(github.com)

Hardware switch bounce debouncing open-source dataset

OpenEarable FAQ: Your Questions Answered

2025-05-03

This FAQ covers common questions about OpenEarable, an open-source customizable wireless earbud. It addresses compatibility (Android LEAudio support only), firmware updates (via J-Link debugger), battery life (45-minute charge time), connection troubleshooting (check device drivers, permissions, and Chrome version), and microSD card requirements (exFAT format, Class 10/A30 recommended). The BLE range is up to 10 meters.

(open-earable.teco.edu)

Hardware bluetooth earbuds

Cycle-Exact Commodore 64 Emulation on Cheap Microcontrollers

2025-05-03

Connomore64 is a project that achieves cycle-exact emulation of the Commodore 64 using multiple parallel, inexpensive RP2040/RP2350 microcontrollers. Initially a holiday project exploring the capabilities of the RP2040's PIOs, it's evolved into an accurate emulator running most games and a portion of demos, even interfacing with original C64 hardware like floppy drives. While still under development, it demonstrates potential for running compute-intensive software on low-cost hardware and provides a framework for parallel emulation using multiple RP2040/RP2350s.

(github.com)

Hardware

Millihertz 5: A Mechanical Replica of the Manchester 'Baby'

2025-05-01

Millihertz 5, also known as 'Offspring', is a mechanical computer modeled after the Manchester Small-Scale Experimental Machine ('Baby'). It uses ball bearings as data elements, features an 8x8 bit RAM and an 8-bit datapath with a subtractor and accumulator. The project is currently under construction, with design documents (PDF and HTML) available online.

(www.srimech.com)

Hardware

Roons: A Mechanical Computer Kit Woven from Physical Logic

2025-05-01

Roons is an amazing mechanical computer kit cleverly combining a physical loom with logic gates. By arranging special "Roons" tiles on the loom, users can build various logic circuits, even achieving Turing completeness. The project, spanning several years, overcame numerous challenges in miniaturization, reliability, and ease of use, resulting in a compact and reasonably fast mechanical computer. A Kickstarter campaign is launching soon, with limited review kits available.

(whomtech.com)

Hardware mechanical computer Turing complete

Onyx Boox Mira Pro: A $1900 Color E Ink Monitor Arrives

2025-05-01

Onyx International unveiled the Boox Mira Pro, a $1900 25.3-inch color E Ink monitor boasting a 3200x1800 resolution. Utilizing E Ink Kaleido 3 technology for up to 4096 colors, it offers HDMI, mini HDMI, USB-C, and DisplayPort connectivity, plus VESA mount support. While refresh rate and image quality vary depending on presets, it combines the benefits of E Ink's eye-friendly display and long battery life with access to multiple content sources via Android, unlike the closed ecosystems of Kindles.

(arstechnica.com)

Hardware

Espressif's ESP32-C5 SoC Enters Mass Production

2025-04-30

Espressif Systems announced that its ESP32-C5, the industry's first RISC-V SoC supporting dual-band Wi-Fi 6 (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz), Bluetooth 5 (LE), and IEEE 802.15.4 (Zigbee, Thread), is now in mass production. This 32-bit single-core processor boasts speeds up to 240MHz, 384KB on-chip SRAM with external PSRAM support, and a low-power co-processor. Designed for high-efficiency, low-latency wireless applications, the ESP32-C5 offers abundant GPIOs, high-speed interfaces, and top-tier security. Initial support is available in the upcoming ESP-IDF v5.5, and development boards are available for purchase.

(www.espressif.com)

Hardware

Zhaoxin's Century Avenue: A Deep Dive into China's x86 CPU Ambitions

2025-04-30

Zhaoxin's latest CPU, the KX-7000, featuring the new "Century Avenue" architecture, aims to bridge the performance gap with early 2010s Intel CPUs. While showing progress with a wider 4-wide core and higher clock speeds, the KX-7000 lags in cache bandwidth, branch prediction, and memory subsystem performance. Single-threaded performance roughly matches AMD's Bulldozer, outperforming it in floating-point benchmarks but falling short in multi-threaded tasks against both Bulldozer and Intel Skylake. The article suggests the KX-7000 isn't designed to directly compete with AMD and Intel, but rather to meet China's demand for domestic CPUs, highlighting the technical and resource challenges in the pursuit of performance.

(chipsandcheese.com)

Hardware Zhaoxin x86 CPU

Raspberry Pi's Soldering Secret: 60 Million Units and a Refine Process

2025-04-30

Early Raspberry Pi production relied on a mix of manual and robotic through-hole soldering, especially for components like the 40-pin GPIO header, Ethernet, and USB ports. This proved inefficient and costly. To overcome this, Raspberry Pi partnered with Sony to implement an innovative lead-free reflow soldering process that simultaneously solders surface-mount and through-hole components. This significantly improved efficiency and product quality, leading to the production of over 60 million units.

(arstechnica.com)

Hardware soldering

Boox Mira Pro Color: An E Ink Desktop Monitor That's Easy on the Eyes (But Expensive)

2025-04-30

Boox has unveiled the Mira Pro Color, its first desktop monitor with a color E Ink screen. Building on the 2023 black-and-white model, it uses the same color E Ink technology found in Kindles. While E Ink is known for being easy on the eyes, large color panels are pricey; the 25.3-inch Mira Pro Color costs $1,899.99, with potential import tariffs adding to the cost. While its refresh rate can't match LCDs or OLEDs, Boox offers four display modes balancing quality and speed for tasks like video playback. Ideal for text editing, writing, or spreadsheets in bright environments, it's not suited for gamers or video editors.

(www.theverge.com)

Hardware E Ink display

Intel's Lunar Lake: A One-Off Experiment?

2025-04-30

Intel's Core Ultra 200V laptop chips, codenamed Lunar Lake, appear to be a one-off experiment, unlikely to be replicated in future Intel laptop processors. These are unique for their on-package memory, neural processing unit meeting Microsoft's Copilot+ requirements, and inclusion of Intel's top-performing integrated GPUs, the Arc 130V and 140V. Intel recently released a driver update (version 32.0.101.6734) boosting performance of these integrated GPUs, offering a welcome performance boost for entry-level gaming users. The update claims to increase average frame rates by around 10 percent and '1 percent low FPS' by up to 25 percent, resulting in smoother gameplay and reduced stuttering.

(arstechnica.com)

Hardware Integrated GPU

Power Efficiency Showdown: Simulating Voltage Boosting Circuits

2025-04-28

This post compares the power efficiency of several voltage boosting circuits using the Lush Projects circuit simulator. Circuits tested include a buck converter, parallel buck converter, serial buck converter, pulsed transformer, and Joule thief. All circuits boosted a 5V DC input to a stable 10V output, measured across a 1kΩ resistor load. The parallel buck converter proved most efficient (92.73%), followed by the serial (91.32%) and standard buck converter (88.43%). The pulsed transformer was least efficient (73.85%), while the Joule thief lagged far behind at only 22%. The author discusses component choices (capacitors, resistors, MOSFETs) and their impact on efficiency.

(blog.georgovassilis.com)

Hardware voltage boosting circuit simulation

Boxie: An Offline Audio Player for Toddlers – Built from Scratch

2025-04-28

Inspired by the Game Boy, a father embarked on a journey to build an offline audio player for his 3-year-old son, eliminating the shortcomings of commercial options. The project, named Boxie, uses an ESP32-S3 microcontroller, Micro SD card storage, and a custom-designed PCB and 3D-printed enclosure. The article details the entire process, from learning electronics to soldering SMD components, designing PCBs with EasyEDA, 3D modeling with Fusion 360, and writing the firmware. The result is a robust, offline, and child-friendly audio player showcasing impressive DIY skills and parental dedication.

(mariozechner.at)

Hardware

Google's First-Gen Nest Thermostats to Lose Support in 2025

2025-04-26

Google announced that its first and second-generation Nest Learning Thermostats will lose support in October 2025, disabling most connected features. While a discount is offered to North American users for an upgrade, European users will receive no upgrade path, and Google's sole European model is also being discontinued. These devices, launched starting in 2011, will still function as basic thermostats, but will lose connectivity to the Google Home app and Assistant.

(arstechnica.com)

Hardware Thermostat

Berkeley Humanoid Lite: A $5K Open-Source 3D-Printed Humanoid Robot

2025-04-26

Researchers at UC Berkeley have unveiled Berkeley Humanoid Lite, an open-source humanoid robot boasting a modular 3D-printed gearbox and a sub-$5,000 price tag. Its design prioritizes accessibility and customization, with components readily sourced and fabricated using standard 3D printers. Rigorous testing validated the durability of its 3D-printed actuators. A reinforcement learning-based locomotion controller successfully demonstrated zero-shot policy transfer from simulation to hardware. By open-sourcing hardware, code, and training frameworks, the project aims to democratize humanoid robotics development.

(lite.berkeley-humanoid.org)

Hardware open-source robot humanoid robot

Google Kills Software Updates for First-Gen Nest Thermostats

2025-04-25

Google announced it's ending software updates for the first and second-generation Nest Learning Thermostats (released in 2011 and 2012, respectively) and the 2014 European version. After October 25th, remote control via phone or Google Assistant will be gone, though local temperature and schedule adjustments remain possible. Google also stated it has no plans for future Nest thermostat releases in Europe, though existing 3rd gen and Nest Thermostat E models will remain on sale for now. A new feature will let users of recent Nest thermostats set schedules via the Google Home app later this year. To soften the blow, Google is offering discounts on replacement thermostats. This move sparks concerns about the lifespan of smart home devices and highlights the crucial role of software support in their longevity.

(www.theverge.com)

Hardware Nest Thermostat Software Updates

Raspberry Pi Pico-Controlled 3x5 LED Matrix: From Circuit Design to Web Control

2025-04-25

This tutorial details building a 3x5 LED matrix controlled by a Raspberry Pi Pico using tscircuit, enabling WiFi remote control. It covers circuit design, component selection (WS2812B LEDs), connection methodology (daisy-chaining LEDs), PCB layout, and a final web interface for control. Learn to create an LED matrix for displaying information, data visualization, or interactive notification systems.

(docs.tscircuit.com)

Hardware LED Matrix

Reverse Engineering a VTech Socrates: An 80s Hybrid Game Console/Computer Adventure

2025-04-25

This blog post details the author's reverse engineering journey of a late-80s VTech Socrates hybrid game console/computer. Starting with a poorly-conditioned eBay purchase, the author cleans, disassembles, and discovers its Toshiba-heavy internals, including a Z80 CPU and an expansion edge connector. An AV mod is designed and built to overcome dim video output. Gameplay ensues, leading to ROM analysis within the MAME emulator to understand cartridge loading and memory mapping. While encountering quirks in creating a simple 'Hello World' program, the author successfully draws pixels to the screen, laying the groundwork for further reverse engineering and development.

(www.leadedsolder.com)

Hardware

Eurorack Knob Revolution: A Magnetic Encoder Patch Cable Hybrid

2025-04-25

This post details a novel Eurorack module knob design that ingeniously combines a magnetic encoder with a 3.5mm jack. This hybrid allows knobs to function like traditional controls but also offers the plug-and-play convenience of patch cables, simplifying Eurorack module connection and layout. The author meticulously describes the design process, including hardware selection, circuit design, and assembly testing. While the author acknowledges potential commercial challenges, this design offers a fresh perspective on Eurorack module design and sparks imagination about future modular synthesizer designs.

(mitxela.com)

Hardware Magnetic Encoder Modular Synthesizer

Apple Shuffles Secret Robotics Team Away From AI Chief

2025-04-25

Apple is restructuring its secretive robotics unit, moving it from the AI division headed by John Giannandrea to the hardware engineering group under Senior Vice President John Ternus. This shift, confirmed by sources familiar with the matter, reflects Apple's ongoing adjustments in its AI strategy and suggests a potential recalibration of its approach to robotics.

(www.bloomberg.com)

Hardware

IBM z17: A Deep Dive into the Next-Gen Mainframe

2025-04-24

IBM's April 2025 announcement of the z17 mainframe unveiled a powerhouse featuring the new Telum II processor. This boasts a 4x AI acceleration boost over its predecessor and includes a low-latency DPU for enhanced I/O. Paired with the IBM Spyre accelerator, a cutting-edge ASIC designed for AI workloads with 32 cores and 25.6 billion transistors, the z17 offers up to 64TB of memory in a 4-frame configuration. This represents a significant leap forward in mainframe technology.

(community.ibm.com)

Hardware Telum II Processor Spyre Accelerator

DIY E-Ink Display: Hacking TRMNL's Open Source Firmware

2025-04-24

The author, obsessed with e-ink displays, pre-ordered a TRMNL but, impatient with the long wait, decided to build his own. Using a Waveshare 7.5-inch e-ink display and an ESP32 driver board, along with a LiPo battery and charging circuit, he successfully created a TRMNL-like device for under $80. Crucially, he modified TRMNL's open-source firmware for compatibility with the Waveshare board, sharing his code to benefit the DIY community. The result? A functional e-ink display interacting with TRMNL's online service.

(www.stavros.io)

Hardware

Smartphone and Tablet Supplier Compliance Requirements

2025-04-24

Suppliers of smartphones and tablet computers must ensure that products are labeled according to Annex III, and that parameters in the product information sheet (Annex V) are entered into the public part of the product database. Printed product information sheets must be provided upon dealer request; technical documentation (Annex VI) must be entered into the product database; all visual and technical promotional materials (including online) must display the energy efficiency class and range from the label (Annexes VII and VIII). Electronic labels (Annex III) and product information sheets (Annex V) must be provided to dealers. Energy efficiency and free fall reliability class calculations (Annex II) must comply with Annex IV.

(energy-efficient-products.ec.europa.eu)

Hardware Tablets

Category: Hardware