I Bodged a microSD Adapter Back to Life A cheap microSD adapter died with a horrible scratchy noise, so instead of binning it I cracked it open, found a snapped spring contact, and soldered on a resistor lead as a makeshift tip. Against all odds, it worked and the card mounted—proof these things are just spring contacts—but it’s mechanically cursed and absolutely not to be trusted. Fun experiment, not advice. 28 January 2026
Worlds smallest USB-C Li-Ion charger I stumbled upon these incredibly tiny USB-C Li-ion chargers on AliExpress and couldn't resist checking them out! These minuscule PCBs, just 10mm x 6mm, feature the LP4054 (or TP4054) linear battery charger. With a 1.65K programming resistor, they offer a charging current of around 600mA. Keep in mind, they can get pretty toasty, reaching up to 92-93C! For fun, I tried recreating them in KiCad and found it surprisingly easy. 16 July 2025
Hue Light Hack In a fun-filled deep dive into a Philip's Hue Color light bulb, I disassembled, analyzed, and ultimately restored it to working order. Over the course of the hack, I dismantled the bulb’s interior, from the aluminum PCB to the tiny ICs on the logic board, gave a detailed breakdown of their functions and even reverse engineered the signals controlling the colors. Most of the colors worked out pretty well, except for the dodgy yellow. Also, I tried running the hacked bulb setup with my old Moonlamp project. It was a great challenge and an exciting journey! 04 May 2023