Open Hardware/Modding: Raspberry Pi, Arduino, and More

posted by Roy Schestowitz on Jul 29, 2026

• TecMint ☛ NetBird: Securely Connect Linux Machines with a WireGuard Mesh VPN

  NetBird makes this much easier by connecting each device to a coordination service, automatically exchanging WireGuard keys, and establishing secure peer-to-peer connections whenever possible.

• CNX Software ☛ Waveshare RP2350-POE-ETH – A Raspberry Pi RP2350 MCU board with PoE

  Waveshare RP2350-POE-ETH is a Raspberry Pi RP2350 board with Ethernet implemented through a W6300 chip, support for optional PoE (Power-over-Ethernet), and two GPIO headers. We had covered a few Raspberry Pi RP2350 boards with Ethernet from WIZNet, including the W5100S-EVB-Pico2, W5500-EVB-Pico2, and W6300-EVB-Pico2, but none were advertised with PoE at the time. Since then, the 4-pin WizPOE-P1 module changes that, and the Waveshare RP2350-POE-ETH board offers a more affordable option.

• Linux Gizmos ☛ Espressif begins mass production of ESP32-S31 wireless RISC-V SoC

  Espressif has moved the ESP32-S31 into mass production, expanding its wireless microcontroller lineup with a dual-core RISC-V processor, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.4, Bluetooth Classic, and IEEE 802.15.4 connectivity. The new SoC targets smart-home hubs, audio devices, industrial automation, edge Hey Hi (AI) systems, and other connected applications requiring higher processing and wireless performance.

• CNX Software ☛ DFI X6X-ORN – An IP67-rated, rugged Jetson Orin NX/Nano edge Hey Hi (AI) computer with GMSL2 camera support

  The DFI X6X-ORN is a fanless, IP67-rated Edge Hey Hi (AI) computer powered by the NVIDIA Jetson Orin NX/Nano. It is designed for extreme outdoor and industrial environments in maritime, agriculture, construction, and intelligent transportation applications. The system fully relies on rugged M12 and M20 circular waterproof connectors for all its I/O, including PoE and GMSL2 camera interfaces.

• Tom's Hardware ☛ The Neo Geo AES+ retro console is now available to pre-order starting from $249 — game cartridges cost $90 each; the Ultimate Edition with all games and accessories will run you $1,000

  How far are you willing to go for physical media? That's the question the Neo Geo AES+ asks above anything else, given the $90 price tags of its game cartridges. Though, comparing it to its original prices from the 90s, especially when adjusted for inflation, makes it start to look like a bargain.

• Linux Gizmos ☛ Radxa previews Qualcomm-based CM-Q64 and VMARC-Q9075 compute modules

  Radxa has published specifications for two upcoming compute modules based on Qualcomm Dragonwing processors. The compact CM-Q64 combines 12 TOPS of AI performance with multi-camera support, while the larger VMARC-Q9075 uses the SMARC form factor and scales to 200 sparse TOPS for industrial AI, robotics, and machine-vision systems.

• Linux Gizmos ☛ EDATEC ED-IPC1200 and ED-IPC1220 add DIN-rail I/O around Raspberry Pi CM0

  EDATEC has expanded its family of Raspberry Pi Compute Module 0-based DIN-rail industrial computers with the ED-IPC1200 and ED-IPC1220. Both models provide Ethernet, USB, RS232, dual RS485, optional wireless connectivity, and isolated control interfaces, while the ED-IPC1220 includes additional digital I/O and analog inputs.

• Linux Gizmos ☛ ThingPulse Icon256 is a WLED-based word clock with 256 RGB LEDs

  The ThingPulse Icon256 is a Wi-Fi-connected word clock that displays the time as illuminated phrases across a 16 × 16 RGB LED matrix. The finished unit includes an enclosure, an English-language front panel, preinstalled firmware, and USB-C power input.

• CNX Software ☛ SensWear – An open-source modular Nordic nRF54L15 development platform for wearables

  SensWear is an open-source hardware development platform for wearables based on Nordic nRF54L15 Bluetooth LE SoC and a range of sensors designed for researchers, developers, and companies building smart rings, wristbands, patches, and other custom devices. The solution is mainly comprised of flexible boards, including the SensWear core board with an nRF54L15 MCU and a 6-axis IMU sensor, and daughter boards with either PPG and optical sensing,  temperature sensing, capacitive touch sensing, or haptic feedback.

• Pimoroni ☛ It's our birthday — Save up to 40%!

  Pimoroni began back in 2012 with the aim of selling laser cut acrylic cases for the Raspberry Pi.

• Arduino ☛ Mission 44 students at Silverstone go from zero to AI-powered racing telemetry in 90 minutes!

  On July 2nd, three days before the British Grand Prix, Arduino brought a hands-on workshop to Silverstone for 40 students aged 16 to 19, supported by Mission 44 and Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. in the framework of the Igniting Inclusion Summit.

• Jamie Zawinski ☛ The Eye of Pizza is, Once Again, Upon You

  So then I ordered the cheapest fisheye camera lens I could find (49mm wide angle macro, $30) whose smaller lens was just slightly larger than the output lens of the projector. Success! It worked the first time.

• Pimoroni ☛ It's our birthday — Save up to 40%!

  Pimoroni began back in 2012 with the aim of selling laser cut acrylic cases for the Raspberry Pi. Yes, in 2012 our Pibow cases were our first and only product.

  Fast forward to 2026, and we're now 14 years old and stock a plethora of Pi products, along with a myriad of maker materials and merchandise.

• Tymscar ☛ I Designed A Custom PCB To Avoid Pressing A Button Three Times

  So I decided upon using the ATtiny85. The reason was that this is a super well known chip, from the same AVR family the classic Arduinos use, so you can write the code in the Arduino IDE exactly like you would for an Arduino. And it uses basically 0 power. It’s so low it’s hard to even analogize, but I’ll give it a go: running at 1 MHz it pulls less than a milliamp, and once it goes to sleep it drops to microamps, which is about what a quartz watch uses to keep ticking. The LED in the night light uses thousands of times more than that.

  Now the issue is that I can’t just hook this up to power, ground, and the button and be done with it. I also need: [...]

• Lysk ☛ One Ring to Rule Them All: Wiring Radios to Laptops the Hard Way

  At Lysk, we process and analyse military voice communications. In other words: we plug radios into computers. This is typically done with an AUX audio cable: a proprietary connector to the rugged radio on one side, and a humble minijack plug on the other.

  Getting the cabling right to run our software is surprisingly hard. It’s not as easy as just “plugging in the cables”. And yes, running around in an armoured truck with an oscilloscope is a lot of fun. But what do we even look for when using the oscilloscope? What exactly is carried over a typical audio cable? More importantly: what is 0.7746 Vrms and what do telephone operators have to do with all of this?

  Let's start with a quiz about the humble analogue audio cable: [...]