Hacker News with Generative AI: Electronics

I designed my LED matrix PCB with code (tscircuit.com)
This tutorial will walk you through building a 3x5 LED matrix controlled by a Raspberry Pi Pico using tscircuit.

Electronics, Raspberry Pi, Tutorials, Programming

83 points by imrishabh18 11 hours ago | 36 comments

Boxie – an always offline audio player for my 3 year old (mariozechner.at)
At the end of July 2024, I embarked on a journy to learn electronics so I could build little gadgets for my son.

Electronics, Parenting, Software, Audio

3 points by obrhubr 1 day ago | 0 comments

Commodore 64 from Scratch: CPU Design and Build [video] (youtube.com)

Hardware, Retro Computing, DIY, Electronics, Video

10 points by mariuz 3 days ago | 0 comments

The many ways tarrifs will hit electronics (ieee.org)
Like the industry he covers, Shawn DuBravac had already had quite a week by the time IEEE Spectrum spoke to him early last Thursday, 10 April 2025. As chief economist at IPC, the 3,000-member industry association for electronics manufacturers, he’s tasked with figuring out the impact of the tsunami of tariffs the U.S. government has planned, paused, or enacted. Earlier that morning he’d recalculated price changes for electronics in the U.S.

Economics, Tariffs, Electronics, Industry

123 points by elashri 4 days ago | 176 comments

36'000 km range with a simple ESP32? For sure a world record (youtube.com)

Electronics, DIY Projects, World Records

5 points by vaxman 6 days ago | 4 comments

My Approach to Teaching Electronics (lcamtuf.substack.com)
On occasion, I quip about the way we teach electronics to hobbyists. We start with hydraulic analogies that compare electricity to water running through pipes. I think it’s a pretty bad teaching tool, but don’t close the tab just yet: today’s article isn’t going to be about the dubious scholarly credentials of Mario Bros.

Electronics, Education, Teaching

9 points by robinhouston 7 days ago | 1 comments

Designing a low-cost high-performance 10 MHz – 15 GHz vector network analyzer (hforsten.com)
I was unable to find a cheap two-port VNA that would meet my requirements, but after thinking it a bit, I was quite sure that I could make my own VNA that would have better performance than any other cheap VNA currently available, even when factoring in the higher prices at small prototype quantities.

Electronics, Hardware, Design, Measurement, Network Analysis

102 points by pdziepak 11 days ago | 25 comments

Making Software (makingsoftware.com)
Have you ever wondered how a touch screen knows you are touching it? Well, it has these layers of transparent metal electrodes embedded in the display. When your finger gets close to the screen it causes a disturbance in the magnetic field that the electrodes sense.

Touchscreens, Electronics, Technology

751 points by calme_toi 12 days ago | 103 comments

Slightly Nasty DIY Modular Synthesizer (slightlynasty.com)
Modular synthesizer PCBs and panels for the Loudest Warning 4U format

DIY, Synthesizer, Music, Electronics

3 points by inatreecrown2 12 days ago | 0 comments

PDP-8 Stuff (so-much-stuff.com)
You have found my PDP-8 stuff.

PDP-8, Vintage Computing, Hardware, Electronics

6 points by elvis70 13 days ago | 0 comments

Modern 6502 (mikekohn.net)
A few years ago while searching for electronic parts, I stumbled on the Western Design Center W65C02 processor.

Retrocomputing, Microprocessors, Electronics

104 points by ingve 15 days ago | 10 comments

UK's Radio Teleswitch Signal Is Ending as Supply of Vacuum Tubes Runs Out [video] (youtube.com)

Technology, Radio, History, Electronics, UK

9 points by beejiu 17 days ago | 1 comments

Learn electricity and electronics fundamentals without taking a formal course (simonmonk.org)
Learn electricity and electronics fundamentals and up-to-date applications―all without taking a formal course

Electronics, Learning, Education, DIY

407 points by teleforce 21 days ago | 120 comments

Brushing Up on Hardware Hacking – Reverse Engineering Electric Toothbrushes (voidstarsec.com)
Whether performing a training exercise with a large group or consulting clients with embedded security needs, there is one question that I constantly receive:

Hardware Hacking, Reverse Engineering, Security, Electronics, Training

13 points by voxadam 24 days ago | 1 comments

DNA scaffolds enable self-assembling 3D electronic devices (techxplore.com)
Researchers at Columbia Engineering have for the first time used DNA to help create 3D electronically operational devices with nanometer-size features.

Nanotechnology, Electronics, Self-Assembly, DNA

13 points by Brajeshwar 27 days ago | 1 comments

Show HN: Physical Pomodoro Timer with ESP32 and e-paper screen (github.com/Rukenshia)
This is the repository for an ESP32 based pomodoro timer. It uses an ePaper display and a rotary dial for input. The code in this repository will not be ready-to-use, as some assets and fonts have been removed. However, if you really want to you should be able to adapt the code to your needs.

Hardware, Electronics, Open Source, Programming, Time Management

315 points by rukenshia 28 days ago | 68 comments

Mathematical Compact Models of Advanced Transistors [pdf] (eecs.berkeley.edu)

Mathematical Models, Transistors, Electronics, Computer Science, Academia

86 points by nill0 28 days ago | 31 comments

Things I would have told myself before building an autorouter (autorouting.com)
I’ve spent about a year working on an autorouter for tscircuit (an open-source electronics CAD kernel written in Typescript). If I could go back a year, these are the 13 things I would tell myself:

Software Development, Electronics, Open Source

396 points by seveibar 29 days ago | 116 comments

Introduction to Open Source Laptop Project (2023) (altium.com)
Ever dreamt of designing your own open-source laptop? For a while now I´ve been fascinated by this idea. As you can probably imagine, this is a monumental task that will require a lot of time and resources. Working alone on a project of this size makes matters even more difficult. So, why embark on such an adventure–especially with a product design that has already been manufactured and sold by the millions for years on end?

Open Source, Hardware, Electronics, Laptop Design

38 points by rbanffy 31 days ago | 9 comments

Pi Pico Rx – A crystal radio for the digital age? (readthedocs.io)
The Pi Pico Rx - may be the answer to that question. While it may not be quite as straightforward as the crystal radio, the Pi Pico Rx presents a remarkably simple solution. Armed with just a Raspberry Pi Pico, an analogue switch, and an op-amp, we now have the power to construct a capable SDR receiver covering the LW, MW, and SW bands. With the ability to receive signals from halfway around the globe.

Radio, Electronics, Raspberry Pi, SDR, DIY

145 points by nolist_policy 34 days ago | 24 comments

Mini UPS with replaceable batteries and DC, PoE output (cnx-software.com)
Most uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) require AC voltage and use specific batteries that must be changed every few years. But those may be oversized and not the most efficient if you just want to keep single board computers (SBCs), low-power mini PCs, routers, or security cameras up and running during power failures.

Power Supplies, Electronics, Hardware

7 points by zdw 36 days ago | 0 comments

Teardown, Optimization: Comsol 8Gb USB Flash Stick (2015) (goughlui.com)
A while back, I received a Comsol 8Gb USB Flash Stick for a test. As it turns out, I’ve managed to grab another, so I felt less bad about breaking one apart to work out what’s inside – and as it turns out, it provided me a world of entertainment for the weekend. It was more than I expected, and the optimization process is something engineers (like myself) really get excited about.

Hardware, Electronics, Optimization, Teardown, USB

27 points by userbinator 36 days ago | 4 comments

Designing Electronics That Work (hscott.net)
Over the last 5 years, I’ve been putting together a 300+ page book with basically everything I learned the hard way over the last 10 years founding and working at several hardware startups.

Electronics, Hardware, Startups, Design

286 points by teleforce 39 days ago | 115 comments

Raspberry Pi RP2350 Now Available for Purchase, Stacked Memory Variant Coming (phoronix.com)
Raspberry Pi last year announced the RP2350 second-generation micro-controller that debuted within their $5 Raspberry Pi Pico 2 single board computer. Today they announced the RP2350 micro-controller is now available to purchase for your own micro-controller needs.

Microcontrollers, Hardware, Raspberry Pi, Electronics

154 points by rbanffy 40 days ago | 67 comments

Implementing "Tennis for Two" using op amps (2024) (qiqitori.com)
“Tennis for Two” is the name given to an early video game implemented on an analog computer. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennis_for_Two and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_history_of_video_games for more information on the game itself. This post documents the construction of a “Tennis for Two”-like game using op amps.

Electronics, Video Games, History, DIY

37 points by rtpg 41 days ago | 2 comments

Chinese Bismuth Transistor Breakthrough (tomshardware.com)

Electronics, Materials Science, China, Semiconductors

11 points by Blueskytech 44 days ago | 1 comments

Ask HN: I lack imagination for electronics projects (ycombinator.com)
I love to learn about programming, protocols, these or that technical specification, how to make things work, etc.<p>However, I not only lack imagination of what I could use this for in the real world, I also don't get a kick out of seeing the final thing.

Programming, Electronics, Creativity, Maker Projects

10 points by throwawayqw 45 days ago | 5 comments

Software-Defined Radio for Engineers (2018) [pdf] (analog.com)

Engineering, Electronics, Radio, PDF

283 points by Tomte 47 days ago | 61 comments

Software-Defined Radio (SDR) Course (github.com/python-can-define-radio)
This is an in-progress collection of tutorials about the foundations of Software Defined Radios. Readers are encouraged to supplement with other resources.

Electronics, Programming, Education

13 points by gballan 49 days ago | 0 comments

Linus makes guitar pedals now (github.com/torvalds)
Random odd guitar pedal design in kicad

Electronics, Hardware, Music, Open Source

30 points by bramadityaw 51 days ago | 11 comments