Tindie

RF still seems like a black art in many ways to me. When you look at the surface of this antenna, the mind simply boggles — how can this work as an effective antenna, especially across such a wide frequency range? Well, this 300MHz-3GHz Log Spiral Antenna might just be the perfect antenna for applications like LoRa, Bluetooth, and other ISM band applications.

For those of you not familiar with LoRa, it is a low-power wide-area network specification. It uses the ISM sub-gigahertz bands, meaning users don’t need a license to operate it. It can be very efficient over surprisingly long distances. It has proved extremely popular in IoT projects, especially those located outdoors, as the low power requirement fits perfectly with embedded devices. They form a network which reports back to a base station — a role this antenna would be perfect for.

The antenna was tested by a company called AntennaTestLab. The above image is the antenna being tested in their anechoic chamber! The results were very interesting. This animated GIF shows a Smith chart of the results by frequency — and I’m not ashamed to admit I spent far too long staring at it! I’m far from an RF expert, but I found it very interesting to note that the two polarizations are not always mirror images of each other. If you’re interested, Hex and Flex (the designer) has a lot more information about the test results on their website.

Of course, it also covers the 2.4GHz ISM band, which means it could be used as a bidirectional WiFi or Bluetooth antenna. While it doesn’t have a lot of gain at 2.4GHz, the directionality could be used to help cover a part of your home or property that isn’t reached well by your router. This antenna is also great for Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) applications, such as GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, and BeiDou.

And finally, it just looks super cool! If you want to give a wireless project a bit of extra flair, having a cool looking antenna can be just the touch you need. Family and friends will be sure to ask “What the heck is that thing?!” every time they visit.

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The legacy of retro gaming lives on, thanks to the use of modern hardware and emulators to bridge the gap between the past and the present. While Tindie plays host to many different designs, there’s nothing quite like the portability of a Game Boy Pocket form factor.

From the makers of the Gaboze Pocaio, comes the Retro ESP32. The kit comes as a fully assembled PCB with a 2.6-inch LCD, USB port, brightness and volume control, power LED, heaphone jack, audio amp, and even speaker capability.

The pre-installed firmware is a base version that lets you run any of your other applications. Those who are looking to installer emulators can also find instructions on the store page.

The Retro ESP32 supports eleven different emulators as well, ranging from the Game Boy to the Atari 7800. The main board comes fully assembled and soldered, so the only thing you will need is a LiPo battery, an SD card for storing your games, and a Game Boy Pocket Shell to give it that finalized look.

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If you use computer-aided design (CAD) software often, you know how many keyboard shortcuts there are to remember. Plus, power users often create macros to do repetitive tasks. What if you had a separate keypad that could simplify these shortcuts, while also knowing exactly which program you are in and which shortcuts you want at that time? The Hub16 Programmable Macro Keyboard ticks those boxes and more! With 16 keys and two rotary encoders, you can have quick, fine control over your designs.

However, it certainly isn’t limited to CAD software. Another great use case would be for digital audio workstations (DAWs) which have the similar problem of a million keyboard shortcuts and a complex graphical interface. Knobs would come in especially handy in this scenario for scrubbing across a timeline or changing audio input parameters.

Of course, it has the RGB LEDs for bling factor, but they can also be used to inform the user which context they are in, and what functions are currently assigned to the keypad. Perhaps you could have blue for Kicad PCBNEW, red for eeschema, and yellow for Adobe Premiere. The customization options are endless!

However, I think the feature that really puts this on my wanted list is the built-in USB hub. What a smart thing to add to a device that is sitting on your desk! And even better, it uses USB Type-C which is quickly becoming the standard for all modern devices. You could have your graphics input tablet connected, and have the Hub16 sitting beside it for quick keyboard shortcuts — leaving your main keyboard to the side entirely. Or you could connect your audio controller, allowing you to tweak and play with sounds and clearing space on your desk for a full-sized MIDI keyboard.

The only downside is that the switches are not included. This is understandable, as people who use mechanical keyboards often want to use their favourite keyswitch, and stocking that many different options would be a pain on a small project like this. Perhaps down the line we will see it come pre-assembled, but with its current focus on the CAD market we think any current customers would have no problem sourcing and soldering their keyswitch of choice. This also allows you to customize the keyswitches, so you could have lighter touch keys in certain positions for repetitive tasks, for example.

Whatever the use case you decide on, make sure to check out the excellent build instructions and software configuration documentation.

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Heating and cooling costs can end up draining your wallet. When summertime temperatures hit triple digits, it makes sense to close everything up and run the air conditioning. But when temperatures are more moderate, everyone likes to open a window. Now you can make sure that when the windows are open, the AC is off!

The Wireless Magnetic Sensor Relay Receiver 868 MHZ is the energy-saving answer for controlling your home’s energy consumption. It can switch appliances, such as your home’s air conditioning unit, with input from wireless sensors for doors and windows.

You may be familiar with this type of sensor which is common in home security systems. Just install the included transmitter on your window or door jambs. The magnet goes on the moving part so that when you open the door or window the transmitter knows it and informs the control unit

Each of the product packages come with one transmitter, one receiver, and one magnet. However, the base unit allows for up to four transmitters to be registered to one receiver. It also has two relay outputs and can control two different appliances at once.

Check out this product for lowering your home’s unnecessary energy consumption. You’ll save money and your wallet will thank you.

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For audiophiles, sound quality is paramount at all times – and mobile devices often compress our beloved music to fit the storage size rather than the full breadth of the aural spectrum. The Audio Hi-Fi Player is a newly-released audio player which is faithful to the quality of sound intended to be heard by the musicians, sound designers and mastering engineers behind the music. It comes in a sleek design and features a real-time spectrum analyser for beautiful audio visualisation.

The ADIUM uses lossless sound to ensure maximum audio authenticity, up to 128 GB storage on board and 7 days of battery life in stand by mode. It supports a range of file types including Flac 48 kHz/16bit, as well as MP3 up to 320 kps, AAC, OGG and M4A. Its beautiful OLED screen displays in 3 different colors (green, blue, amber) with a real-time spectrum analyzer to show activity amongst the audio range. It has the conventional shuffle mode and a 3.5 mm stereo jack socket for audio output to headphones and auxiliary speakers.

The documentation is currently in Spanish only, but it is currently being converted into English. It’s being sold by AIRA Designs who are based in Mexico – see three of the players in action in the video below:

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I must admit I have a slight obsession with owls. My apartment would be a dead giveaway with my owl themed kitchen towels, and shelves full of owls I’ve collected over the years. So of course, when I saw the CyberAthena badge, it immediately went on my wishlist.

The CyberAthena badge is a modern rendering of Athena’s owl in the form of a blinking badge, complete with different colored LED eyes.

Funny enough, my love of all things owls started in the second grade while we were studying the Greek gods and goddesses. I was assigned Athena, the goddess of wisdom. She is also known for the owl that sits on her shoulder. The lore is that the owl’s purpose was to watch her blind side so that she might see all truths. Being eight-years-old, I just thought it was awesome that she had a pet owl.

In the spirit of Athena, n°Garage created an owl design completed with metal armor for a futuristic touch. The badge can be purchased fully assembled or as a soldering kit.

Each order includes:

• 2x RGB LEDs back-mounted
• 1x PCB of beautifully rendered owl of Athena
• 1x IS31FL3196A LED driver chip in QFN-20
• 1x SAO Header with SDA, SCL, GND, and VCC

Be sure to also check out the other awesome products from this seller, such as the RedFox!

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If you are into hardware hacking in any shape or form, having a handy power supply with which to power your latest prototype can be a real pain. Well, this tiny, USB-powered board can provide your project with up to 20 V! How are they pulling this off in such a tiny form factor?

With the release of USB Type C, the USB Implementers Forum created a standard called Power Delivery, which allows devices to charge at higher voltages and currents than the previous standards allowed for. Modern smartphones and laptops have started to take advantage of this, and are able to charge much faster due to the increased power available. Chargers which support Power Delivery can provide 20V at up to 5A (100W!) which is more than enough to charge the average laptop.

However, the charger won’t provide this extra power unless it is asked for, in order to maintain backward compatibility with older 5V-only USB equipment. To take advantage of this feature, you need a way to communicate with the charger over the new CC1 and CC2 lines in the USB-C cable. Once the attached device has asked for a higher voltage, the charger changes modes and delivers the requested voltage on the Vbus line. Not all chargers support all power levels, though. A charger can be Power Delivery compliant but only supply, say, 9 V at 3 A. This is plenty for the average smartphone, but just keep it in mind when you are choosing a charger to use with this board. So, the USB-C PD Sink is simply taking advantage of modern chargers with Power Delivery in order to provide a variable voltage power supply for whatever you want!

With just a compliant USB-C Power Delivery charger and the USB-C PD Sink, you can quickly and safely get enough power to keep all your projects moving! You can charge your quadcopter, or power your latest evil robot prototype — we won’t judge. The beauty of using a higher voltage is that you end up with less power dissipation in the cables, meaning more juice available for your project. It’s a win-win!

If you are interested in learning more about Power Delivery, the USB Implementers Forum has the full specification available on their website. It’s quite dense, and full of a lot of technical lingo, but it’s excellent that it’s freely available for us to learn from.

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If eyes are the gateway into the soul, then screens do the same thing for your projects. Visual feedback is all but required in a huge variety of use cases, so a good screen is paramount.

This 7-inch display for Raspberry Pi features a crisp 1280×800 resolution and uses an IPS panel for excellent viewing from multiple angles. It’s compatible with all versions of the Pi with the 40 pin GPIO, which includes the Zero, 4, 3, 2, model A+, and model B+.

The screen uses all 40 GPIO on the Pi, but leaves the HDMI port open for your project needs. It’s a great for everything from a tablet to a home automation system or anything in between.

The package includes easy set-up instructions, the adapter PCB mounted on the screen, and the 40-pin GPIO connector cable. The only thing you’ll need is a Raspberry Pi to get started.

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It’s always good to have extra effects, whether you have a lo-fi keyboard, electric guitar or an analogue drum machine – they always add new flavour and dimension to your sound. The Glassjaw Vaccum Tube Overdrive Pedal is a superb example of this, employing classic amplification components used in early electronic devices: Vaccum Tubes! Known for their warmth, depth, and brilliant sound.

This supreme stompbox is available as a fully completed unit, which is a good thing because this baby takes a 12 V signal up to 150 V via the internal buck boost power supply. It has controls for saturation and volume, to attenuate the suitably beefed-up sound – which will take you from shiny crispness to raw grit at the turn of a knob! The heater and plate are both engaged from the power on, meaning (even when bypassed) you’ll get access to the fully warm signal at all times.

The Bugera 12AX7/ECC83 Vacuum Tube has a JFet preamp driver and is housed horizontally to result in a more compact design. The GlassJaw pedal is the first in an array of upcoming pedals from Vibrato LLC based in the USA, keep your eyes and ears peeled for more.

Hear what the pedal sounds like below:

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Sometimes when working on a project with LEDs, you might want control of each individual LED, so how do you make that happen? The PixyMaster is here to help you accomplish just that!

The PixyMaster is an ESP8266-based driver board that can be used to control NeoPixel LEDs. The board is WiFi-enabled so that changes to the LEDs can be done via a smartphone or laptop. This simple process allows for the installation of the LED strip almost anywhere, since programming can be done even when you can’t easily reach them.

The PCB size is approximately 25mm by 50mm and can be programmed using the Adafruit NeoPixel Library. It supports several kinds of LED types:

• WS2811
• WS2812/WS2812b (aka the NeoPixal)
• WS2813
• WS2815
• SK6812 RGB or RGBW
• WS2801 LEDs
• Up to 5,000 APA102 LED or 2500 WS2812 LEDs

Now, when you need control over your LED design on your next project, you can do so with ease using the PixyMaster!

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