XIAO Debug Mate
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$19.90 XIAO Debug Mate ESP32-S3-based 3-in-1 multi-tool acts as a DAPLink debugger, serial monitor, and/or power profiler

Seeed Studio XIAO Debug Mate is an inexpensive ESP32-S3-based multi-tool designed for the company’s XIAO boards, offering DAPLink debugger, serial monitor, and power profiler modes. The debugger comes with 8MB flash, 8MB PSRAM, a 2.01-inch display to display debugging/power information, two 14-pin headers to provide easy access to the XIAO’s module I/Os, a 36 LED matrix for status indication, and a couple of buttons, plus a srcoll wheel to navigate the menu. The serial monitor function can also be used be Arduino, Raspberry Pi, or other boards. XIAO Debug Mate specifications: Wireless MCU – Espressif Systems ESP32-S3R8 CPU – Dual-core Tensilica LX7 microcontroller @ 240 MHz Memory – 512KB SRAM, 8MB PSRAM Wireless – Wi-Fi 4 & Bluetooth 5.0 dual-mode (Classic + BLE) connectivity Storage – 8MB SPI flash Display – 2.01-inch TFT LCD with 296 x 240 resolution Expansion 2x 14-pin female GPIO headers routing the XIAO module pins […]

UltraBar X modular desktop smart hub
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UltraBar X – A high-end modular desktop smart-hub with a 5:1 ultra-wide touch display, magnetic snap-on modules (Crowdfunding)

The UltraBar X is a modular desktop command center/smart-hub built around an ultra-wide “CoreBar” touch display with a system of magnetically attachable input modules. Designed as an intelligent hub for Windows, macOS, and Linux environments, it also works as a smart home controller. With a 45-degree ergonomic tilt, wireless PC wake, smart-home integration, and modular touch/mechanical inputs, it gives creators, gamers, and power users quick access to all key functions. The whole system is built around the CoreBar hub and modular add-ons like VivoCube, DotKey, SenseCube, and KnobKey, all of which use the QuantumLink magnetic protocol for instant attachment and auto-detection. The CoreBar hub features a 5:1 touch display, LineOS firmware, Bluetooth Mesh, USB/HID connectivity, and an AI-driven SceneShift engine that adapts UI layouts and macros to different workflows. The four optional modules add AMOLED touch controls, Cherry MX keys, rotary knobs, and multi-sensor environmental sensing (mmWave radar, light, temperature, humidity, […]

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Heltec WiFi LoRa 32 V4 shell kit
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Heltec WiFi LoRa 32 (V4) – An ESP32-S3 off-grid LoRa/Meshtastic communicator with solar input, GNSS, and 28dBm Tx Power

While searching AliExpress, I found the WiFi LoRa 32 (V4) shell set, another ESP32-S3-based off-grid LoRa/Meshtastic communicator designed for long-range wireless applications. Compared to devices like Blackout Comms, Wio Tracker L1 Pro, and ThinkNode M2, this device features built-in solar charging, optional GNSS, a removable battery, and a higher transmit power. The device features a Semtech SX1262 LoRa transceiver, an amplifier delivering up to 28 ± 1 dBm transmit power, along with integrated Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5/Mesh connectivity. It adds solar charging, an 8-pin GNSS connector, upgraded battery management, gold-plated 40-pin headers, and a fully protected 0.96-inch OLED, as well as a few I/Os for expansion. The USB-C port includes ESD and short-circuit protection, while dual IPEX connectors support both LoRa and 2.4 GHz antennas. Heltec WiFi LoRa 32 (V4) specifications: SoC – Espressif Systems ESP32-S3 CPU – Dual-core 32-bit microcontroller @ 240MHz Memory – 512KB SRAM, 2MB PSRAM Storage – […]

Creality Scan 4 Sermoon S1 3D scanner review
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Creality Sermoon S1 3D scanner review – Part 2: Using Creality Scan 4 software with Intel Graphics

Earlier this month, we checked the specifications and did an unboxing of the Sermoon S1 high-end 3D scanner with support for blue laser and infrared scanning. I had some concerns about my host machines due to the fairly high minimum requirements: Intel Core i7 Gen7 CPU, NVIDIA GPU (6GB VRAM), 16GB RAM, Windows 10/11 (64-bit). I had planned to use an ASUS Vivobook 16 laptop with a 13th Gen Intel Core i5-13500H SoC with a 12-core Raptor Lake processor and integrated Intel Iris Xe Graphics, as well as 16GB of RAM to run Creality Scan 4 software. After talking with Creality, it was confirmed to me that a “dedicated graphics card” was required. I have some good and bad news. The good news is that I might get a mini PC with an NVIDIA RTX 5060 Ti (16GB) external GPU for review. The bad news is that I have to […]

PhaseLatch Mini modular Software Defined Radio platform
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PhaseLatch Mini – An STM32-based low-cost SDR digitizer with two 12-bit ADCs, 210 kS/s USB streaming

PhaseLatch Mini is a low-cost STM32-based SDR digitizer for the previously released Phase Loom (tuner aboard), built in a Blue Pill–style form factor for HF, FM, and VHF experimentation. The board uses two 12-bit ADCs that sample I and Q at the same time, combine both readings into a 32-bit data word, and send the data over USB at about 210,000 I/Q sample pairs per second using just the standard USB CDC interface. It includes SMA inputs, a built-in ~100 kHz low-pass filter network, USB-C connectivity, ferrite-filtered power, and dedicated 8 MHz/32.768 kHz crystals for stable timing. Other features of the board include dynamic timer tuning, circular DMA, ISR-driven packet chaining, and a lock-free USB feed path to maintain high-rate streaming. PhaseLatch Mini specifications: Microcontroller – ST STM32F103C8 Arm Cortex-M3 @ 72 MHz USB Interface – USB-C 2.0 (Full-Speed) port; CDC class; RAW vendor class planned ADC subsystem Dual simultaneous […]

Taradov USB Sniffer v6
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Taradov’s open-source hardware pocket USB sniffer works with Wireshark

Alex Taradov has designed a low-cost, open-source hardware USB sniffer compatible with the popular Wireshark packet capture utility, and also controllable from the command line, capturing data in the standard PcapNG format in either case. Wireshark has had built-in USB capture capability for many years, and I used it myself to reverse-engineer the software for a USB video capture card around 2007, but it’s not perfect since it does not capture low-level packets. For that, you need extra hardware, and last year we covered the tinysniffer USB sniffer based on a WiFi-connected Linux SBC. It does the job, but it’s sold for $199, and you don’t need an application processor to handle USB 2.0 speeds. Alex’s design is optimized for cost and built around three main components: Cypress CY7C68013A 8051 MCU, Lattice MachXO2 LCMXO2 FPGA, and Microchip USB3343 USB PHY. Taradov’s USB sniffer specifications: Microcontroller – Cypress CY7C68013A enhanced 8051 […]

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Elecrow 2.8 Inch Round IPS Display with Mini HDMI
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2.8-inch round IPS display features mini HDMI input, CNC aluminum housing

We have written about various types of rounded IPS displays in the past, like the Elecrow CrowPanel 1.28-inch and 2.1-inch rotary displays, the Waveshare ESP32-P4-WIFI6-Touch rounded touchscreen displays, and the MaTouch ESP32-S3 2.1-inch touch display, but this is the first time we have seen a rounded display with a (mini) HDMI port built into it. The 2.8-inch Round IPS Display from Elecrow is a compact circular 480×480 display housed in a CNC-machined aluminum shell. It features an IPS panel with wide viewing angles, an ST7701S driver, a mini HDMI video input, and a USB-C port for power. Thanks to its HDMI input, the display supports common operating systems such as Raspberry Pi OS, Ubuntu, Kali, and Windows, making it suitable for creative displays, industrial control interfaces, dashboards, and compact UI applications. Elecrow 2.8-inch round IPS display specifications: Display – 2.8-inch circular IPS panel Resolution – 480 × 480 pixels Driver IC – […]

Lockzo AL501 Video Smart Lock Tuya app review
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Lockzo AL501 3-in-1 smart door lock review with the Tuya mobile app

We’ve received a review sample of the Lockzo AL501 3-in-1 smart door lock system (Smart Lock + Video Camera + Doorbell). It supports 2.4GHz Wi-Fi and integrates a 2K resolution camera with a wide 180° field of view, a doorbell, AI motion detection, and infrared night vision. It supports multiple unlocking methods, namely physical key, AI fingerprint scanning, keypad PIN code, and the Tuya mobile app, which enables the user to check the live video, talk to visitors, and unlock the door in real time from anywhere via your smartphone, as well as voice control through Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. The included 10,000 mAh rechargeable battery is designed to last approximately 6 months per charge, and the device has an IP65 dust and water resistance rating. In this review, we’ll go through an unboxing, show how we installed it on a wooden door, connect it to WiFi through the […]

Boardcon MINI1126B-P AI vision system-on-module wit Rockchip RV1126B-P SoC