More and more car manufacturers these days are becoming interested in the recurring revenue model, with Volkswagen’s ID.3 BEV being the latest to have an optional ‘motor power upgrade’ that you can pay for either monthly or with a ‘lifetime’ payment. As the BBC reports, this option is now available in the UK, with customers […]
While talking computers are old hat today, in 1978, a talking toy like the Speak and Spell was the height of novel tech. [Kevin] found a vintage one, but it didn’t work. It looked like someone had plugged in the wrong power adapter, leading to, undoubtedly, one or more unhappy children. There was some damage […]
We’re all used to emulating older computers here, and we’ve seen plenty of projects that take a cheap microcontroller and use it to emulate a classic home computer or gaming platform. They’re fun, but serve mostly as a way to relive old toys. As microcontrollers become faster though it’s inevitable that the machines they can […]
The Allen key turns 115 this year. It’s strange to believe that in all that time, no one has come up with an adjustable version, but apparently true. Luckily [Chronova Engineering] has taken up the challenge in his latest video. The video is a fascinating glimpse at the toolmaker’s art–manual machining and careful human judgement. […]
Like many of us, [Ben] has too many 3D printers. What do you do with the old ones? In his case, he converted it into a robotic camera rig. See the results, including footage from the robot, in the video below. In addition to taking smooth video, the robot can spin around to take photos […]
The Becquerel (Bq) is an SI unit of radioactivity: one becquerel is equivalent to one radioactive decay per second. That absolutely does not make it equivalent to one hertz — the random nature of radioactive decay means you’ll never get one pulse every second — but it does make it interesting. [mihai.cuciuc] certainly thought so, […]
Automotive headlights started out burning acetylene, before regular electric lightbulbs made them obsolete. In due time, halogen bulbs took over, before the industry began to explore even newer technologies like HID lamps for greater brightness. Laser headlights stood as the next leap forward, promising greater visibility and better light distribution. Only, the fairytale didn’t last. […]
Of all the plastics that surround us on the daily, the one we hear least about in the 3D printing world is probably polypropylene (PP). Given that this tough, slightly flexible thermoplastic has characteristics you might want for your prints, the question is: why? [Lost in Tech] is not answering that question in a recent […]
Open any consumer electronics catalog from around the 1980s to the early 2000s and you are overwhelmed by a smörgåsbord of devices, covering any audio-visual and similar entertainment and hobby needs one might have. Depending on the era you can find the camcorders, point-and-shoot film and digital cameras right next to portable music players, cellphones, […]