Episodios

  • Ep 333: Nightmare Whiffletrees, 18650 Safety, and a Telephone Twofer
    Aug 15 2025

    This week, Hackaday's Elliot Williams and Kristina Panos met up over the tubes to bring you the latest news, mystery sound, and of course, a big bunch of hacks from the previous week.

    In Hackaday news, get your Supercon 2025 tickets while they're hot! Also, the One Hertz Challenge ticks on, but time is running out. You have until Tuesday, August 19th to show us what you've got, so head over to Hackaday.IO and get started now. Finally, its the end of eternal September as AOL discontinues dial-up service after all these years.

    On What's That Sound, Kristina got sort of close, but this is neither horseshoes nor hand grenades. Can you get it? If so, you could win a limited edition Hackaday Podcast t-shirt!

    After that, it's on to the hacks and such, beginning with a talking robot that uses typewriter tech to move its mouth. We take a look at hacking printed circuit boards to create casing and instrument panels for a PDP-1 replica. Then we explore a fluid simulation business card, witness a caliper shootout, and marvel at one file in six formats. Finally, it's a telephone twofer as we discuss the non-hack-ability of the average smart phone, and learn about what was arguably the first podcast.

    Check out the links over on Hackaday if you want to follow along, and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

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    49 m
  • Ep 332: 5 Axes are Better than 3, Hacking Your Behavior, and the Man Who Made Models
    Aug 8 2025

    Elliot and Dan got together this week for a review of the week's hacking literature, and there was plenty to discuss. We addressed several burning questions, such as why digital microscopes are so terrible, why computer systems seem to have so much trouble with names, and if a thermal receipt printer can cure ADHD.

    We looked at a really slick 5-axis printer that COVID created, a temperature-controlled fermentation setup, and a pseudo-Mellotron powered by a very odd tape recorder. We also learned little about designing 3D printed parts with tight tolerances, stepping a PC power supply up to ludicrous level, and explored a trio of unique entries for the One Hertz Challenge.

    And for the Can't Miss section, we looked at what happens to planes when they get hit by lightning (and how they avoid it), and say goodbye to the man who launched a lot of careers by making model kits.

    It was also exciting to learn that the first day of Supercon is Halloween, which means a Friday night sci-fi cosplay party. It's gonna be lit.

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    1 h y 9 m
  • Ep 331: Clever Machine Tools, Storing Data in Birds, and the Ultimate Cyberdeck
    Aug 1 2025

    Another week, another Hackaday podcast, and for this one Elliot is joined by Jenny List, fresh from the BornHack hacker camp in Denmark.

    There's a definite metal working flavour to this week's picks, with new and exciting CNC techniques and a selective electroplater that can transfer bitmaps to metal. But worry not, there's plenty more to tease the ear, with one of the nicest cyberdecks we've ever seen, and a bird that can store images in its song.

    Standout quick hacks are a synth that makes sounds from Ethernet packets, and the revelation that the original PlayStation is now old enough to need replacement motherboards. Finally we take a closer look at the huge effort that goes in to monitoring America's high voltage power infrastructure, and some concerning privacy news from the UK. Have a listen!

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    49 m
  • Ep 330: Hover Turtles, Dull Designs, and K'nex Computers
    Jul 25 2025

    What did you miss on Hackaday last week? Hackaday's Elliot Williams and Al Williams are ready to catch you up on this week's podcast. First, though, the guys go off on vibe coding and talk about a daring space repair around Jupiter.

    Then it is off to the hacks, including paste extruding egg shells, bespoke multimeters, and an 8-bit mechanical computer made from a construction toy set.

    For can't miss articles, you'll hear about boring industrial design in modern cell phones and a deep dive into how fresh fruit makes it to your table in the middle of the winter.

    Check out the links over on Hackaday if you want to follow along, and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

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    1 h y 1 m
  • Ep 329: AI Surgery, a Prison Camp Lathe, and a One Hertz Four-Fer
    Jul 18 2025

    Join Hackaday Editors Elliot Williams and Tom Nardi as they talk about their favorite hacks and stories from the previous week. They'll start things off with a small Supercon update, and go right into fusion reactors, AI surgeons, planned obsolescence, and robotic cats and dogs. They'll also go over several entries from the ongoing 2025 One Hertz Challenge, an ambitious flight simulator restoration project, old school lightning detectors, and how Blu-ray won the battle against HD DVD but lost the war against streaming. Stick around to the end to hear an incredible story about a clandestine machine shop in a WWII prisoner of war camp, and the valiant fight to restore communications with the Lunar Trailblazer spacecraft.

    Check out the links over on Hackaday if you want to follow along, and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

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    1 h y 13 m
  • Ep 328: Benchies, Beanies, and Back to the Future
    Jul 11 2025

    This week, Hackaday's Elliot Williams and Kristina Panos joined forces to bring you the latest news, mystery sound, and of course, a big bunch of hacks from the previous week.

    In Hackaday news, the One Hertz Challenge ticks on. You have until Tuesday, August 19th to show us what you've got, so head over to Hackaday.IO and get started now! In other news, we've just wrapped the call for Supercon proposals, so you can probably expect to see tickets for sale fairly soon.

    On What's That Sound, Kristina actually got this one with some prodding. Congratulations to [$HACKER] who knew exactly what it was and wins a limited edition Hackaday Podcast t-shirt!

    After that, it's on to the hacks and such, beginning with a ridiculously fast Benchy. We take a look at a bunch of awesome 3D prints a PEZ blaster and a cowbell that rings true. Then we explore chisanbop, which is not actually K-Pop for toddlers, as well as a couple of clocks. Finally, we talk a bit about dithering before taking a look at the top tech of 1985 as shown in Back to the Future (1985).

    Check out the links below if you want to follow along, and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

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    44 m
  • Ep 327: A Ploopy Knob, Rube-Goldberg Book Scanner, Hard Drives And Power Grids Oscillating Out Of Control
    Jul 3 2025

    It's Independence Day here in the USA, but if you're not a fan of fireworks and hot dogs, Elliot and Dan's rundown of the best hacks of the week is certainly something to celebrate. Rest easy, because nothing exploded, not even the pneumatic standing desk that [Matthias] tore into, nor the electroplated 3D prints that [H3NDRIK] took a blowtorch to.

    We both really loved the Ploopiest knob you've ever seen, which would be even Ploopier in anodized aluminum, as well as an automatic book scanner that takes its job very seriously. We looked into the mysteries of the Smith chart, another couple of fantastic student projects out of Cornell, the pros and cons of service loops, and what happened when the lights went out in Spain last Spring. And what does Janet Jackson have against laptops anyway?

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    1 h y 9 m
  • Ep 326: A DIY Pockel Cell, Funny Materials to 3D Print With, and Pwning a Nissan Leaf
    Jun 27 2025

    Time for another European flavoured Hackaday Podcast this week, as Elliot Williams is joined by Jenny List, two writers sweltering in the humidity of a Central European summer. Both of our fans and air conditioners made enough noise to be picked up on the microphone when they were turned on, so we're suffering for your entertainment.

    The big Hackaday news stories of the week are twofold, firstly a cat-themed set of winners for the 2025 Pet Hacks contest, and then the announcement of a fresh competition: the 2025 Hackaday One Hertz Challenge. Get your once-a-second projects ready!

    This week gave us a nice pile of interesting hacks, including some next-level work growing and machining the crystal for a home-made Pockels cell light valve, an pcoming technique for glass 3D prints, and enough vulnerabilities to make any Nissan Leaf owner nervous. We note that mechanical 7-segment displays are an arena showing excellent hacks, and we're here for it. Meanwhile among the quick hacks a filament made of PLA with a PETG core caught Elliot's eye, while Jenny was impressed with a beautifully-made paper tape punch. Finally in the can't miss section, The latest in Dan Maloney's Mining and Refining series looks at drilling and blasting. Such an explosive piece should come last, but wait! There's more! Al Williams gives us a potted history of satellite phones, and explains why you don't carry an Iridium in your pocket.

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    54 m