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Open Hardware, Raspberry Pi, and More
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Raspberry Pi ☛ Raspberry Pi 5 'Pepper Pi' transparent computer illusion
Originally, they set the viewing angle for the mirror to 45 degrees, but soon realised this didn’t work well for viewing the illusion when the Pepper Pi was sat on a desk and in use as a PC. Since the angle of the reflector is pretty important, Veeb created a shape calculator to assist anyone keen to recreate the project.
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Unicorn Media ☛ As EDA Ban Hits China Will Europe Step Up on Open Hardware?
Could Washington’s ban on US tech exports to China spark greater technological independence in Europe -- and beyond?
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CNX Software ☛ Liberux NEXX is a GNU/Linux smartphone with Rockchip RK3588S, 32GB RAM, 6.34-inch OLED (Crowdfunding)
Liberux NEXX is a GNU/Linux smartphone powered by a Rockchip RK3588S octa-core Cortex-A76/A55 processor coupled with 32 GB LPDDR4x and a 512GB eMMC flash, as well as a 6.34-inch 2400×1080 OLED display. We’ve seen other GNU/Linux smartphones in the past with the most popular likely being the Purism Librem 5 and Pine64’s PinePhone Pro. However, those are showing their age with older NXP i.MX 8M and Rockchip RK3399 SOCs, and the Liberux NEXX brings much-needed performance with a Rockchip RK3588S and 32GB of RAM, enabling mobile/desktop convergence to an extent.
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Hackaday ☛ What Use Is An Original Raspberry Pi?
Almost uniquely among consumer grade computer manufacturers, the Raspberry Pi folks still support their earliest boards. We’re guessing that’s in part due to the much more recent Pi Zero using the same 32-bit system-on-chip, but it’s still impressive that a 13-year-old single board computer still has manufacturer OS support. With so many of these early boards out there, is there much you can do with them in 2025? [Jeff Geerling] gives it a try.
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CNX Software ☛ MOKO LW005-MP – A LoRaWAN Smart Plug and power meter
The MOKO LW005-MP is a LoRaWAN smart plug for indoor power and energy consumption monitoring, featuring sockets compliant with EU, US, UK, and FRA standards and suitable for industrial equipment control, power monitoring, and energy management. The UL-certified smart plug operates with 100-230V AC mains, offers 0.5% power measurement accuracy, supports Bluetooth 4.0 for initial configuration and OTA updates, and can be controlled with LoRaWAN commands, an open-source mobile app, or a physical button. MOKO LW005-MP specifications: Wireless Bluetooth LE V4.0 for local configuration and OTA updates. LoRa Protocol – LoRaWAN V1.0.3 Supported frequency bands – CN470, EU868, AU915, US915, AS923, IN865, KR920, EU433, CN779, and RU864 Max Transmit Power – +21dBm Rx Sensitivity – -137dBm @ SF12 300bps Range – Up to 7 km in urban open space Power measurement accuracy – ±0.5% Misc Power and pairing button 2x RGB LED indicators display network status and power consumption levels.
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CNX Software ☛ Bestechnic BES2700YP Arm Cortex-M55 Bluetooth Audio SoC targets headphones, earbuds, portable speakers
Bestechnic BES2700YP is an Arm Cortex-M55 Bluetooth Audio SoC designed for Smart earbuds with adaptive ANC, Smart Bluetooth headphones/headsets, ANC hearing-aids, Bluetooth speakers, and other portable audio devices When I wrote about the Ambiq Apollo330 Plus SoC family last week, I realized it was the first time I covered Arm Cortex-M55 microcontrollers with built-in wireless, in that case Bluetooth LE 5.4 and 802.15.4 (Thread/Matter) radios, and that’s how I came across the BES2700YP SoC with a more narrow use cases since it’s made for Smart Bluetooth audio applications.
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CNX Software ☛ u-blox ZED-F20P triple-band GNSS module provides 25Hz RTK/PPP-RTK with centimeter accuracy for drones and robots
The u-blox ZED-F20P is a high-precision, triple-band GNSS module designed for fast-scaling applications, such as drones, ground robots, and other dynamic platforms. It supports L1/L2/L5 bands and delivers centimeter-level accuracy using RTK and PPP-RTK correction methods. Designed for low power consumption and fast convergence, the ZED-F20P operates at 25 Hz and integrates various security features, making it suitable for lightweight and mobile platforms. It is fully compatible with the existing ZED module footprint and UBX protocol, allowing easy integration and upgrade paths within the ZED portfolio.