Hardware Podcasts

Boat Anchors

The Amp Hour · 13 Oct 2019 · 1h 11m · Episode 462

What this episode covers

Dave Jones and Chris Gammell discuss the history and economics of the Iridium satellite constellation, noting its $6.2 billion cost and eventual pivot to industrial markets. They compare modern satellite internet efforts to the Iridium story, then debate the value of vintage 'boat anchor' test equipment like the HP 8753 against modern affordable tools like the Siglent VNA. The conversation shifts to Chris Gammell's experience with Bantam Tools PCB milling, highlighting the software workflow and design challenges, before detailing Dave Jones's struggles with undocumented USB PD registers from Rich Tech and confusing part numbers from Giga Devices and Bright LED drivers.

Most relevant to

makers and hobbyists

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
Motorola, Siglent, Bantam Tools, Rich Tech, Giga Devices, Bright, Seeed Studio, ARM, DigiKey
Products
Iridium, Wild Light
Chips
ESP8266, SDM32, GD32F103, Bumblebee core
Tools
HP 8753, Tektronix TDS 220, Analog Discovery 2
Also
AliExpress

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