Hackaday Podcast

Hosted by Hackaday

Technology Education

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Episodes

403

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Oct 2026

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About the show

Hackaday Editors take a look at all of the interesting uses of technology that pop up on the internet each week. Topics cover a wide range like bending consumer electronics to your will, designing circuit boards, building robots, writing software, 3D printing interesting objects, and using machine tools. Get your fix of geeky goodness from new episodes every Friday morning.

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October 23, 2026Episode 3921 hr 1 min

Ep 392: Microscopes, Drones, and Other DIY Things

Hackaday Editors Elliot Williams and Al Williams met to review the week in Hackaday. Turns out, it was a week for tiny things, cybersecurity, nostalgia, and projects that would have been nearly impossible for the average hacker not that long ago. But first, you can hear a little about the upcoming Supercon badge and the trials of importing and exporting parts for the badges. How many props does your drone have? [Joshua] has one. Want to fabricate semiconductors at home? Do you have a microwave? What about using NFC in your next project? There's all that and more in this episode. The quick hacks include a request from NASA for ideas (and, yes, there is prize money) and slide rule tricks, among other things. For the can't miss articles, the cybersecurity weekly got some appreciation and Al took a trip down memory lane at the Altair 8800 he always wanted. Check out the links if you want to follow along , and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments, or drop us a line on the mailbag .

October 16, 2026Episode 3911 hr 8 min

Ep 391: Tuned in to ESP32 SDR, New Old Pagers, and Bugs on Mars

Hackaday Editors Elliot Williams and Tom Nardi start this episode off with a discussion about Philadelphia's budding hacker conference and the imminent retirement of the EZ80. After considering the parallels between the wide world of aviation headsets and our personal projects, talk moves on to the exciting developments in the world of software-defined radio on the ESP32, a Meshtastic pager from a bygone era, and how all the wild flying machines entered into DARPA's Lift Challenge ended up losing to a simple helicopter. You'll also hear about turning plastic bottles into printer filament, pushing e-ink screens to their limits, and browsing the web on the PSP in 2026. To wrap things up they'll marvel at all the modern abstraction sitting between software and the memory it's running on, and revisit some RF concepts that might be particularly useful now that everyone is playing with a new SDR device. Check out the links if you want to follow along , and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

October 9, 2026Episode 39049 min

Ep 390: DOOM, Cranium Stuff, and Odd OpenSCAD Opportunities

This week, Elliot Williams and Kristina Panos met a few minutes later than usual, and somehow defeated a buzz together with the power of will before settling into the news, rifling through the Mailbag, and otherwise creating the attached podcast. So, the news. Amazon, in their infinite wisdom, have chosen to not only remove Alexa's aux port on future models, but also disable the input on extant ones. Is this really bad news? Maybe just because it seems like taking a choice away for the sake of exerting power over the people. Anyway. In Hackaday news, the Retrocomputing Contest is currently on fire, and runs through 10AM PDT on Tuesday, October 27th. That means you have about 2.5 weeks left. Supercon Ten ticket sales are similarly aflame , and per Elliot, it's about time to release the next round of speakers. So, watch for that. After digging deep in the Mailbag and eventually just dumping the thing out on the table, we found our brand new Hackaday Podcast Mailbag Audio Bumper! This jingle comes courtesy of [Dakota Winslow], who also advises that there are Easter eggs to be found. Then, it was on to the hacks, including Elliot's record-tying number of Quick Hacks, and plenty of in-linkage. 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!

October 2, 2026Episode 38958 min

Hackaday Podcast Ep 389: Spinning Lightfield Displays and Jenny Visits a Blast Furnace

Another all-European podcast for you this week, as Elliot Williams is joined by Jenny List for an evening looking at the past week in Hackaday. And this week there is a particularly good selection to look at. A while back we showed you a project that put synthetic aperture radar on a drone, generating extremely detailed imaging of the terrain beneath it. This week we had an update, in which an ingenious positioning accuracy fix gave it an astonishing increase in resolution. On top of that project we have 3D lightfield image display with the unexpected help of a Nipkow mechanical TV scanning drum. Geting your own microprocessor manufactured, DOOM in a database server, and a comprehensive array of unusual sensors in a tricorder project complete the picture. Finally we have a couple of space stories and Jenny describing the preserved industrial delights of the Ruhr valley in Germany. You'll want to go there, but first you'll want to listen to the podcast.

September 25, 2026Episode 3881 hr 14 min

Ep 388: RAM-Swapping on Raspberry Pi, Raindrops on Radar, and a Fine Mesh

This week, Hackaday Editors Elliot Williams and Al Williams had a lot to talk about. From advice for a young hacker to using a laser to break into a microcontroller, there was plenty to cover from the week in Hackaday. From the "Point/Counter Point" department, there were dueling posts about how big a deal it is for Raspberry Pi to lock out RAM chip swapping. Ever want to do interactive debugging in MicroPython? For intellectual exercise, there's the physics of raindrops becoming a radar antenna. If you are a history buff, there was even news about World War I codebreaking. For the can't-miss articles, the big news was the issues with LoRa mesh communities possibly clashing with the FCC rules and how to make your computer take dictation. Check out the links if you want to follow along , and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

September 18, 2026Episode 3871 hr 10 min

Ep 387: Superhuman Clocks, CAN in USB-C, and the Joys of Bare Metal

This week, Hackaday Editors Elliot Williams and Tom Nardi start the episode off by discussing the latest CircuitPython developments before covering some impressive reverse engineering efforts, the benefits of modeling your projects in 3D, and some of the most incredible timepieces that have ever graced the pages of Hackaday. You'll also hear about the fascinating potential of combing 3D and UV printing, Linux on the ESP32, and a virtual TV station that pulls from the Internet Archive. The episode wraps up with a Hackaday Europe double-feature: one talk extols the virtues of keeping things simple through bare metal development, while the other covers off-world hacks and fixes that will make you want to sign up for Space Camp. Check out the links if you want to follow along, and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments !

September 11, 2026Episode 38646 min

Ep 386: Doomscroll Tamagotchis, Clavichords, and Vibrotrucks

In this specially-numbered podcast episode that lines up quite nicely with our Retrocomputing Challenge , Elliot Williams and Kristina Panos met over surprisingly low-latency and loud beverages to bring you the best of the previous week's hacks. But first, the news. German company Isar Aerospace can now claim that they've launched the first spacecraft into orbit from Europe. Be sure to check out the in-link, where we reported on the building of the spaceport. In Hackaday news, the aforementioned Retrocomputing Contest had 64 entries at last check, which is just perfect for Episode 386. Will yours be the 65th? Supercon Ten tickets are selling out , and per Elliot, the talks have been chosen, pending approval by each submitter. Keep an eye on the blog for the official announcement! After reviewing the news, Elliot reached into the ol' Mailbag and found two missives, including another from [Vik Olliver] regarding the printing of LEGO. The other is from [Mendel Munkis], who has been enjoying Wikipedia offline since 2018, thanks to a 32-bit ARM9 processor. Then, it was on to the hacks. 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 !

September 4, 2026Episode 3851 hr 8 min

Ep 385: 3D Printers with Lasers, Wicked RAM Prices, and Reverse Polish Notation

As the calendar turns a leaf into September, Elliot Williams is joined by Jenny List for our weekly look at all things Hackaday. In the news, our retrocomputing competition is well under way, but there's plenty of time to get an entry in if you've got a cool old-style project to show us. And then Elliot's been chasing seismic surveyors in Munich, where they're looking for geothermal energy. In the stand-out hacks there's a discussion of smoothing 3D prints using frickin' lasers, the effect of unreasonably high RAM and storage prices on the single board computer ecosystem, and an unfortunate air conditioning system that's tricked into believing it's a hot day. Finally, we look in depth at PETG, and take a dive into reverse Polish notation. Check out the links over on Hackaday .

August 28, 2026Episode 3841 hr 6 min

Ep 384: OCR MOD Records, Magical PCBs, and the Gravity of Space Stations

What did Hackaday editors Elliot Williams and Al Williams read in Hackaday last week? Probably everything, but you can tune in and hear about their favorites on this week's podcast. They heard from lots of listeners this week, and also saw DIY projects running from a 3D-printed Stirling engine, to clogs, to LEDs. There are some over-the-top hacks like a refit for a decades-old watch to do tap-to-pay and a -- for lack of a better word -- a record player that optically reads MOD files. Want to emulate an iPod? Talk to Eliza? Print a hand-operated rail car? Hackaday is the place to read about it all. The can't miss articles included a talk from Hackaday Europe about making magical PCBs and a not-so-brief history of space stations starting in the 1800s. Check out the links if you want to follow along , and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

August 21, 2026Episode 3831 hr 27 min

Ep 383: QR Codes, Caving Gear, and the Old School Way to Learn Electronics

In this week's episode, Hackaday Editors Elliot Williams and Tom Nardi start things off by getting excited about the recently announced 2026 Retrocomputing Challenge. From there the conversation will cover efforts to improve desktop 3D printing with lasers, an expensive grill with an ESP32 controller and an open source firmware, open source tools underground, and some impressive techniques to squeeze a bit more utility out of the common QR code. You'll also hear about turning PVC pipes into flat stock, old school Radio Shack electronic kits, and VR soldering demos. Stick around to the end of the episode learn about the latest developments in over-the-counter hearing aids and the 1-bit CPU that's enjoying an unexpected fandom nearly 50 years after its release. Check out the links if you want to follow along, and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!