FlatMac: Building The 1980’s Apple IPad Concept

The Apple FlatMac was one of those 1980s concepts by designer [Hartmut Esslingers] that remained just a concept with no more than some physical prototypes created. That is, until [Kevin Noki] came …

Printed Rack Holds Pair Of LattePandas In Style

ARM single-board computers like the Raspberry Pi are great for some applications — if you need something that’s energy efficient or can fit into a tight space, they’re tough to be…

Portable Multi-SDR Rig Keeps Your Radios Cool

With as cheap and versatile as RTL-SDR devices are, it’s a good idea to have a couple of them on hand for some rainy day hacking. In fact, depending on what signals you’re trying to sni…

FauxTRS Is Definitely Not A Trash 80

Among the 8-bit home micro boom from the late 1970s through early 1980s, the introduction to computing for many wasn’t a pricey Apple or Commodore, instead it was the slightly lower budget ma…

Building An IR Thermometer That Fits On Your Keychain

Non-contact infrared (IR) thermometers used to be something of an exotic tool, but thanks at least in part due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they’re now the sort of thing you see hanging up near …

ATtiny85 Mouse Jiggler Lets You Take A Break

The good news is that more and more people are working from home these days. The bad news is that some of the more draconian employers out there aren’t too happy about it, to the point of usi…

Printing A Replacement Case For The ThinkPad 701c

Even among ThinkPads, which are nearly universally loved by hardware hackers and Linux tinkerers alike, the 701c is a particularly rare and desirable machine. Best known for it’s “butte…

Printed Case Lets Pair Of RTL-SDRs Go Mobile

We’ll admit to not fully knowing what [Jay Doscher] has planned for the pair of RTL-SDR Blog V4 software defined radios (SDRs) that are enclosed in the slick 3D printed enclosure he’s d…

Students’ Leaf Blower Suppressor To Hit Retail

Electric leaf blowers are already far quieter than their gas-powered peers, but they still aren’t the kind of thing you’d like to hear first-thing on a Saturday morning. Looking to impr…

This Tiny Game Boy Lets The Real Thing Play Online

Back in 2021, [stacksmashing] found that it took little more than a Raspberry Pi Pico and some level-shifters to create a USB connection with the Game Boy’s link port. Add in the proper softw…

Fully 3D Printed Case Is Stacked High With Mini PCs

Over the years we’ve seen no shortage of 3D printed cases designed to hold several Raspberry Pi computers, often with the intent to use them as convenient desktop-sized platforms for experime…

3D Printing Computer Space

The first computer game available as a commercial arcade cabinet is unsurprisingly, a rare sight here in 2024. Nolan Bushnel and Ted Dabney’s 1971 Computer Space was a flowing fiberglass cabi…

Retro-Styled Rasti Laptop Packs Framework Mobo

Today, every laptop pretty much looks like every other laptop. Sure you might run into a few different colors and screen sizes out there, but on the whole, all the manufacturers have pretty much ag…

This CRT-Style Pi Portable Gets All The Details Right

A quick glance at the “Pi Terminal” built by [Salim Benbouziyane], and you might think he pulled an old CRT monitor out of a video editing bay and gutted it. Which, of course, is the po…

Retro Computer Enclosure Without The Sacrifice

The unique look of early desktop computer systems remains popular with a certain segment of geekdom, so it’s no great surprise when we occasionally see a modern hacker or maker unceremoniousl…

ZSWatch: This OSHW Smart Watch Is As DIY As It Gets

We say it often, but it’s worth repeating: this is the Golden Age of making and hacking. Between powerful free and open source software, low-cost PCB production, and high resolution 3D printe…

Audio Amp Puts VFDs To Work In An Unusual Way

It’s safe to say that most projects that feature a VFD emphasize the “D” aspect more than anything. Vacuum fluorescent displays are solid performers, after all, with their cool bl…

DIY Fume Extractor With ATtiny13 Speed Control

Let’s be honest, commercially-available soldering fume extractors are cheap enough that you probably don’t need to build one yourself. But it still makes for a good starter project, esp…

This Big 3D-Printed Game Boy Actually Runs MacOS

While mobile gaming has largely moved to smartphones these days, the classic Game Boy remains a hugely popular platform for retro enthusiasts, owing in no small part to its enormous library of qual…

World’s Worst I/O Dock Doesn’t Deserve Elegant Fix

Even spendy commercial products can end up being lemons. This is something [Mike Buss] is familiar with, as he had the misfortune of being stuck using what he declares is the world’s worst US…