Hardware Podcasts

304: ADC Channel Six

Embedded.fm · 26 Sept 2019 · 1h 15m · Episode 304

What this episode covers

Gregory Gluszek, who created the OpenSteamController project, and Jeff Keyzer, the former lead electrical engineer at Valve, discuss the reverse engineering and original design of the Steam Controller. They detail how Gluszek used pinkySim and GDB to reverse engineer the firmware without schematics, while Keyzer explains the hardware challenges of alkaline battery management and the design philosophy of making the device unbrickable and open to modification. The conversation covers the technical trade-offs of using AA batteries versus lithium, the role of test points in manufacturing versus development, and the ethical implications of open-sourcing hardware designs.

Most relevant to

early-stage companies

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
Valve, MightyOhm
Products
Steam Controller, OpenSteamController, I-Opener, Raspberry Pi, Nintendo Switch
Tools
pinkySim, GDB

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