PITA Package

The Amp Hour · 17 May 2020 · 1h 03m · Episode 493

What this episode covers

Chris Gammell of Contextual Electronics and Dave Jones of EEVblog discuss a variety of hardware topics, including Gammell's new cellular development platform using a QuickTel EG91 module and Jones's five-part tutorial series on programming the Padauk three-cent microcontroller. They also review low-cost components like the SSP 6206 voltage regulator and the NCP 115 in an XDFN package, while debating the practicality of such tiny parts versus standard options. The conversation shifts to workshop tools, comparing microscope setups and fume extraction systems, before concluding with a discussion on e-waste recycling practices demonstrated by YouTuber E-waste Ben.

Other shows on the same ground, closest first.

  • Hackaday Podcast · 41m

    Ep 256: 0, 256, 400, 100, and 10000000

    Hackaday editors Elliot Williams, Al Williams, Dan Maloney, Christina Panos, and Tom Nardi discuss their personal projects, tools, and opinions in a round-table format. They cover topics ranging from Tom's salvaged 18650 battery protection circuits and Dan's Meshtastic mesh network nodes to Al's 1802 emulation on a Raspberry Pi Pico and Elliot's custom 3D-printed 'Springosaurus' keyboard. The group also debates the utility of the 555 timer versus modern microcontrollers, shares hacks that inspired them, and answers listener questions about their daily driver keyboards and favorite fictional robots.

  • Hackaday Podcast · 55m

    Ep017: Are Cheap Microcontrollers Worth It? Android on Your Bike. Plus Food Printers and Coffee Bots

    Hackaday editors Mike Szczys and Elliot Williams discuss the PMS150C microcontroller, which costs only 3 cents but is one-time programmable, and explore a bike computer running Android that revealed GPL violations. They also cover a scratch-built smartwatch with a wood-filled PLA case, a LoRa repeater for high-altitude balloons, and an SNES emulator technique that improves Mode 7 graphics. The episode concludes with an interview with Craig Bishop about improving KiCad's auto-router.

  • Unnamed Reverse Engineering Podcast · 1h 22m

    069 - Canned Cheese and Onion Rings

    Ian from Dangerous Prototypes discusses the evolution of the BusPirate, culminating in the BusPirate 5, which utilizes an RP2040 microcontroller and features an LCD, adjustable power supply, and current sensing. He details the creation of DirtyPCBs and other services like DirtyCables, explaining how he automated PCB ordering in Shenzhen to disrupt the market. Ian also shares anecdotes about his time in Huaqiangbei, including the 'Expressway to Pleasure' project and his experiences with local manufacturing quirks.

  • Hackaday Podcast · 55m

    Ep 313: Capacitor Plague, Wireless Power, and Tiny Everything

    Hosts Elliot Williams and Jenny List recap Hackaday Europe, detailing the logistical chaos of the SAO badge production, including customs delays and the heroic work of Voyer Antonich in programming PIC microcontrollers. They discuss a retrospective on the early 2000s capacitor plague, analyzing Asianometry’s theory that thermal design failures, rather than industrial espionage, caused the systemic component failures. The episode highlights several hardware hacks, including a thermal microscope using germanium lenses, inefficient but large-scale wireless power transfer experiments, and the use of PCB spring connectors in passive resistance boxes. Finally, they examine the trend of extreme miniaturization, featuring Mike Roller’s tiny PCB blinky and Texas Instruments’ new ultra-small microcontroller, while noting the potential for extracting rare earth elements from coal fly ash.

  • Hackaday Podcast · 1h 23m

    Ep 375: Rebuilding Tech on Our Terms and the Hero Nerd

    Hackaday editors Elliot Williams and Tom Nardi discuss the shutdown of the RPiLocator.com tool, a nostalgic time capsule from the chip shortage era. They review listener hacks including a fake bike counter, a graphics upgrade for the Nintendo Entertainment System using a second Picture Processing Unit, and building dynamic RAM from discrete components. The episode also covers a drop-in replacement PCB for the Casio G-Shock watch, DIY robot actuators, and the evolution of the 'hero nerd' archetype in film.

The summary, chapters and topics are generated from the episode’s audio by this directory, not written by The Amp Hour. The episode itself belongs to its publisher.