Tyler August writes that the Cheap Yellow Display (CYD) ESP32 dev boards can be transformed into a Portable Digital Assistant, reminiscent of 1990s Palm devices. Rather than using an emulator, user sau412 developed custom firmware for the CYD that includes features like a Gopher browser, RSS and Wikipedia readers, various games, a BASIC interpreter, a calendar, calculator, contact list, ebook reader, and translator.
- The project can be set up in approximately five minutes using a web-based flasher.
- An SD card is required to test all the available applications.
- This project provides an alternative for those looking for Palm OS-style functionality on modern hardware without needing x86 or ARM emulators like Pumpkin OS.
- The project can be set up in approximately five minutes using a web-based flasher.
- An SD card is required to test all the available applications.
- This project provides an alternative for those looking for Palm OS-style functionality on modern hardware without needing x86 or ARM emulators like Pumpkin OS.
bebechien writes about DinoDesk AI, a LEGO dino desk companion built on a Raspberry Pi that pairs a local Gemma 4 model (via LM Studio) with cloud Gemini Flash through a unified OpenAI-compatible gateway, giving users a camera-free, privacy-first chat robot with three switching modes (local, cloud, and auto-hybrid routing). The physical body uses LEGO Technic lever mechanisms for neck and tail movement, a Pimoroni Pirate Audio shield for the 1.3" LCD eyes and 8-bit I2S beeps, and a 5-state finite state machine to coordinate expressions, sound, and motor action across Sleeping, Idle, Listening, Thinking, and Speaking states.
- Auto-hybrid mode uses a complexity classifier that detects multi-step reasoning keywords like "explain," "compare," and "write code" to transparently escalate prompts to the cloud engine
- The project is open-sourced at github.com/google-gemma/dinodesk-ai-companion
- Full voice chat is still a work in progress; current interaction is triggered by a physical red push button
- A commenter noted that absence of a camera does not guarantee voice data stays local, and suggested an explicit retention boundary for audio transcripts would strengthen the privacy claim
- Auto-hybrid mode uses a complexity classifier that detects multi-step reasoning keywords like "explain," "compare," and "write code" to transparently escalate prompts to the cloud engine
- The project is open-sourced at github.com/google-gemma/dinodesk-ai-companion
- Full voice chat is still a work in progress; current interaction is triggered by a physical red push button
- A commenter noted that absence of a camera does not guarantee voice data stays local, and suggested an explicit retention boundary for audio transcripts would strengthen the privacy claim
Harry Fairhead writes that Zephyr has reached version 1.0 as Arduino's official operating system, a move necessitated by Arm's abandonment of the mbed OS. The Core-Zephyr release supports a range of newer Arduino boards but leaves classic AVR boards, SAMD/SAM boards, Pi Pico, and ESP32 boards on their existing systems, creating a fragmented software landscape. Fairhead notes that Zephyr remains largely invisible to beginners, serving as a background layer that simply enables the traditional Core functions to run.
- The shift was forced by Arm discontinuing mbed, which Fairhead characterizes as typical of chip makers who prioritize hardware over software support.
- Core-Zephyr supports 10 specific boards including the UNO Q, Portenta H7, and Nicla Vision, but not the ESP32 range (which uses Free RTOS) or classic AVR boards.
- Fairhead suggests Arduino could expand Core functions to expose OS-level facilities like multitasking, particularly on boards with IoT coprocessors.
- The shift was forced by Arm discontinuing mbed, which Fairhead characterizes as typical of chip makers who prioritize hardware over software support.
- Core-Zephyr supports 10 specific boards including the UNO Q, Portenta H7, and Nicla Vision, but not the ESP32 range (which uses Free RTOS) or classic AVR boards.
- Fairhead suggests Arduino could expand Core functions to expose OS-level facilities like multitasking, particularly on boards with IoT coprocessors.
This guide provides instructions for setting up the reTerminal Sticky, a magnetic ePaper display device designed for calm information display. Users can power on the device, connect it to 2.4GHz Wi-Fi via the Seeedash App, and begin using features like AI voice input for quick note creation.
- The device includes an integrated touchscreen, physical page buttons, and a dedicated AI voice button.
- It supports mounting on non-metal surfaces using the included adhesive magnetic ring.
- Users can customize display fonts by adding .ttf or .otf files via a microSD card in a specific folder structure.
- The Seeedash App allows for remote management of device settings, Wi-Fi configuration, and content syncing like photos and weather updates.
- The device includes an integrated touchscreen, physical page buttons, and a dedicated AI voice button.
- It supports mounting on non-metal surfaces using the included adhesive magnetic ring.
- Users can customize display fonts by adding .ttf or .otf files via a microSD card in a specific folder structure.
- The Seeedash App allows for remote management of device settings, Wi-Fi configuration, and content syncing like photos and weather updates.
This repository features a generative AI image generator designed to run on the RP2350 microcontroller (Raspberry Pi Pico 2). The model uses a latent flow diffusion transformer (DiT) architecture, similar to Flux, but scaled down significantly with only 1.7 or 2.9 million parameters—thousands of times smaller than typical local diffusion models. It can generate $128 times 128$ RGB images of human faces in approximately 5-20 seconds and supports conditional generation for five classes based on gender, smile, and neutral expressions.
- The model architecture includes a VAE decoder and a DiT component.
- Hardware output can be displayed via a VGA monitor or streamed over USB.
- Includes an int8 pipeline involving calibration, distillation-QAT (Quantization-Aware Training), and folding.
- Two variants are provided: a high-quality flagship model and a faster build version.
- The model architecture includes a VAE decoder and a DiT component.
- Hardware output can be displayed via a VGA monitor or streamed over USB.
- Includes an int8 pipeline involving calibration, distillation-QAT (Quantization-Aware Training), and folding.
- Two variants are provided: a high-quality flagship model and a faster build version.
Jean-Luc Aufranc writes that Seeed Studio’s reTerminal Sticky is a 3.97-inch magnetic touch ePaper display powered by an ESP32-S3 microcontroller. This device can serve as an e-reader, live dashboard, or home automation controller via support for open-source firmware like Crosspoint, TRMNL, and ESPHome. It features a capacitive touchscreen and edge computing capabilities through its built-in microphone.
- 800 x 480 resolution with four levels of grayscale
- Includes temperature/humidity sensors and a 3-axis accelerometer
- Equipped with a 750 mAh battery providing approximately seven days of standby time
- Retails for $49.90
- 800 x 480 resolution with four levels of grayscale
- Includes temperature/humidity sensors and a 3-axis accelerometer
- Equipped with a 750 mAh battery providing approximately seven days of standby time
- Retails for $49.90
The Orange Pi Zero 3W is a new compact single-board computer measuring 65 x 32 mm. It features the Allwinner A733 octa-core processor, combining Cortex-A76 and Cortex-A55 cores with an integrated NPU for AI workloads and a RISC-V coprocessor for real-time tasks. The board supports up to 16GB of LPDDR5 memory and offers versatile display options including Mini HDMI, MIPI-DSI, and DisplayPort via USB-C.
* Allwinner A733 SoC with octa-core CPU and 3 TOPS NPU
* Up to 16GB LPDDR5 RAM support
* Connectivity includes Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.4, and PCIe 3.0
* Multiple display outputs supporting up to 4K resolution
* Support for Android, Debian, Ubuntu, and OpenHarmony
* Allwinner A733 SoC with octa-core CPU and 3 TOPS NPU
* Up to 16GB LPDDR5 RAM support
* Connectivity includes Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.4, and PCIe 3.0
* Multiple display outputs supporting up to 4K resolution
* Support for Android, Debian, Ubuntu, and OpenHarmony
The $69 NanoKVM-USB 4K brings high-res 60 FPS streaming to hobbyists, turning a pro sysadmin tool into a versatile gadget for the homelab. It allows for 4K video streaming and can be used for tasks beyond system administration, such as video playback and even gaming.
Discussion thread about using a Seeed Studio reTerminal E1002 color ePaper display as a Home Assistant dashboard.
The Heltec WiFi LoRa 32 (V4) is an ESP32-S3-based off-grid LoRa/Meshtastic communicator with solar charging, optional GNSS, and a high 28dBm transmit power.
