3d printing News - CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

August 3, 2026 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments

ChronoWatch X2040 – A DIY watch with off-the-shelf Raspberry Pi RP2040 round display, 3D printed case, and custom firmware

If you’ve ever wanted to build your own watch, the ChronoWatch X2040 DIY watch allows you to do it the easy way with a Waveshare RP2040-Touch-LCD-1.28 touch LCD board, a 3D-printed case, a 3.7V LiPo battery, a few screws, and firmware using the Pico C/C++ SDK. When Vishal Soni decided he wanted to build a watch, he initially planned to design a custom board, but since there are already several round LCD boards based on Raspberry Pi RP2040 MCU, he went with a Waveshare board, preferring to spend more time on firmware programming. ChronoWatch X2040 parts: Waveshare RP2040-Touch-LCD-1.28 with Raspberry Pi RP2040 MCU and 1.28-inch round touch display – About $23 to $29 on Amazon, AliExpress, or the Waveshare store. 3D printed case designed with Tinkercad 3.7V 950mAh Lipo battery (35 x 25 x 10 mm) M2 4mm screw M2 heat inserts 2-pin MX1.25 connector 1mm heat shrink sleeve tube […]

July 29, 2026 by Debashis Das - No Comments

Sovol M1D hybrid IDEX 3D printer features 6 interchangeable toolheads for multi-color and multi-material prints (Crowdfunding)

Sovol has launched the M1D, an open-source IDEX (Independent Dual Extruder) 3D printer with a fixed dual-extruder architecture and interchangeable toolheads that support up to seven independently heated toolheads (one fixed and six swappable). It comes in two variants: the open-frame M1D Essential and the M1D Advanced, which adds a full enclosure and a chamber heating module capable of reaching up to 60°C. The M1D uses a patented automatic tool changer for swapping print heads in as little as five seconds and supports Single, Multi-Head, Copy, and Mirror printing modes. It enables multi-material or/and multi-color prints, including adding water-soluble support to a print to remove the need to manually remove support (see video at the end of this post for demo). The printer targets makers, engineers, prototype development, and small-scale production by reducing purge waste while improving printing efficiency and material flexibility. Sovol M1D specifications: Printing technology – FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling) Storage – […]

July 22, 2026July 22, 2026 by Debashis Das - 2 Comments

Arduino UNO Q Arcade bundle lets you build a custom retro gaming console for about $90

Arduino UNO Q Arcade bundle is a kit designed to build a custom retro gaming console. The bundle combines the Arduino UNO Q 4GB SBC with a set of daisy-chainable Modulino I2C modules, allowing users to create a custom game controller without requiring complex wiring or breadboards. The kit relies on Qwiic connectors to daisy-chain the input modules, whose data is then processed by the UNO Q to emulate standard HIDs for gaming or development. The plastic parts can be 3D printed by the user. Arduino UNO Q Arcade bundle contents: Arduino UNO Q 4GB – A Qualcomm Dragonwing QRB2210 SBC with an onboard eMMC, running Debian Linux Modulino Joystick – An I2C node configurable for simulating D-pad inputs or mouse cursor movements Modulino Buttons – An I2C node for mapping single keystrokes, multi-key shortcuts, or mouse clicks Modulino Movement – A 6-axis IMU node for motion-based mouse control Note: […]

July 22, 2026July 22, 2026 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

Raspberry Pi Touch Display 2 – 10″ Portrait review, 3D printed VESA mount

Raspberry Pi has just announced the “Raspberry Pi Touch Display 2 – 10″ Portrait”, and we’ve received an early review sample for testing. The new 10.1-inch Raspberry Pi Touch Display 2 is a multi-touch portrait panel for Raspberry Pi designed for interactive projects such as tablets, entertainment systems, and information dashboards. The new 10.1-inch model follows the original 7-inch Raspberry Pi Touch Display 2 launched in 2024 and the 5-inch Raspberry Pi Touch Displays 2 introduced in 2025. I reviewed the 7-inch model with the Raspberry Pi AI camera and a Pi 4, and I just gave away the 5-inch variant. In this short review, I’ll show how to mount a Raspberry Pi 5 to the Raspberry Pi Touch Display 2 – 10″ Portrait, install it on a VESA mount, and test features such as 10-pin capacitive touch and display orientation. But let’s start with the specifications first. Raspberry Pi […]

July 10, 2026 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 9 Comments

Open Book Touch – A DRM-free, WiFi-connected 4.26-inch open-source hardware e-reader (Crowdfunding)

Oddly Specific Objects has launched a crowdfunding campaign for the Open Book Touch, an ESP32-S3-based e-reader with a 4.26-inch e-paper display with 480 x 800 resolution and a capacitive touch screen. The open-source hardware device comes with 16 MB flash, 8MB PSRAM, a frontlight with warm and cool LEDs, a microSD card for storage, and an 800 mAh user-replaceable LiPo battery with everything housed in a 3D printed enclosure. Open Book Touch specifications: SoC – Espressif Systems ESP32-S3 dual-core MCU with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth LE connectivity Memory – 8 MB octal SPI PSRAM Storage 16 MB quad SPI flash MicroSD card slot Display 4.26-inch, 480 × 800 e-paper; 1-bit and 2-bit grayscale with dithering Capacitive touchscreen based on FT6336 low-power controller Frontlight – five warm + five cool LEDs, independently dimmable USB – USB Type-C for power/charging and programming Misc – 3D-printed plastic enclosure; snap-fit, with 3D-printable CAD for custom shells; […]

July 4, 2026 by Debashis Das - 2 Comments

BIGTREETECH Panda Sense Pro 8-in-1 smart air quality monitor works with Home Assistant and Klipper for 3D printers

BIGTREETECH Panda Sense Pro 8-in-1 Air Quality Monitor for 3D Printers

BIGTREETECH (BIQU) has introduced the BIQU Panda Sense Pro, an 8-in-1 smart air quality monitor designed for 3D printing environments such as home workshops, maker spaces, and print farms. It continuously measures airborne particles, gases, temperature, and humidity, helping users monitor indoor air quality while printing. The device also integrates with Klipper-based printers and smart home platforms, making it suitable for both standalone monitoring and automated environmental control. It combines laser particle, NDIR CO₂, and electrochemical formaldehyde sensors to monitor PM2.5, PM10, CO₂, HCHO, eTVOC, AQI, temperature, and humidity in real time. The monitor features a 3.5-inch 480×320 TFT display, 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi with MQTT, USB Type-C power, 24-hour and 30-day data logging, and upcoming app-based remote monitoring. It integrates with Moonraker (Fluidd/Mainsail) and Home Assistant for automation, such as controlling fans or air purifiers based on sensor readings. The enclosure files are open-source, which means you can customize and […]

June 14, 2026June 14, 2026 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Creality Sermoon S1 review – Part 3: 3D scanning with Khadas Mind 2 and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16GB dock

Creality Sermoon S1 3D scanner review with Khadas Mind Graphics 2 NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16GB dock

At the end of last year, I received a Creality Sermoon S1 high-end 3D scanner for review. After checking the specifications and going through an unboxing in the first part of the review, I used the 3D scanner with an Intel Core i5-13500H laptop with 16GB of RAM running Creality Scan 4 software on Windows 11. The laptop specs were below the minimum hardware requirements (NVIDIA GPU, 32GB RAM), and while I managed to scan a face and bust using infrared mode, it was a struggle with 4 to 5 FPS scanning, and I wasn’t able to use Blue light scanning at all. Luckily, shortly after the review, Khadas informed me they planned to send a Khadas Mind Graphics 2 dock featuring an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 560 Ti 16GB graphics card and a Mind 2 mini PC with 32GB of RAM and an Intel Core Ultra 7 155H 16-core Meteor […]

May 7, 2026May 7, 2026 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

Ploopy Bean open-source hardware pointing stick mouse runs QMK firmware

The Ploopy Bean is a 3D-printed, open-source hardware pointing stick mouse that runs QMK open-source firmware on a Raspberry Pi RP2040 microcontroller to control four Omron D2LS-21 buttons and a friction nub. Ploopy is a Canadian company known for its open-source hardware computer accessories. We first covered their headphones in 2023, but they’ve also made a trackball mouse, a trackpad, a USB knob, and other accessories since then. The Bean is just the latest addition. Ploopy Bean specifications: Bean Pointing Stick PCB Microcontroller Raspberry Pi RP2040 MCU USB – 1x USB-C port for power and data Buttons – 4x Omron D2LS-21 buttons configured as left click, right click, middle click, and click-to-drag/scroll by default (but customizable) Sensor – Texas Instruments TMAG5273 high-precision 3D hall effect sensor for the nub; up to 20,000 ksps sample rate, detects 3+ microns movements 3D-printed parts – Top, bottom, and spring for red nub Accessories […]