Hardware Tech News

A team of researchers has successfully achieved their primary goal of hacking the iPhone. This milestone marks a significant development in mobile security research and highlights potential vulnerabilities within the device.

Apple Music's 404 error page features a hidden Breakout style brick game that pays homage to the classic iPod. This Easter egg serves as a nostalgic nod to the original arcade game developed by Apple founders Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak for Atari. Readers discussing the feature also discovered that the hidden game can be accessed directly via a specific URL without triggering the error page.

Air purifiers can double as highly effective white noise machines by combining acoustic sound masking with the practical benefit of cleaning the air. This functional approach puts the device's internal fan to better use, allowing users to simultaneously improve indoor air quality and achieve the sound privacy needed for better sleep or office focus.

A new interactive project called Impossible Machines allows users to declaratively program physical interactions within a simulated environment. By simply defining a starting cause and a desired effect, the system automatically generates the missing mechanical components required to bridge the two.

Pinball Expo 2026 brought together the past, present, and future of the arcade classic by showcasing vintage, modern, and next-generation pinball machines. Attendees explored the show floor to experience the rich history and upcoming technological innovations shaping the beloved hobby.

A recent jailbreak has reportedly achieved full decrypted filesystem access on the Nintendo Switch 2, paving the way for immediate game dumps and the potential porting of console exclusives to arbitrary hardware. The discussion also highlights a growing trend of using large language models paired with physical hardware setups to automate complex firmware development and retro computing projects.

A new GitHub project called hackios-xnu-kernel is working to port Apple's XNU kernel to Android hardware. This open-source initiative aims to allow users to run the full iOS 16.5 firmware natively on non-Apple smartphones. Developers interested in the project can now create an account and contribute to the repository's ongoing development.

The book The Secret Life of Circuits is now widely available at all major retailers following a brief exclusive release period. For the past few weeks, the title could only be purchased directly from the publisher.

Apple's latest iPadOS 27 update has broken a crucial presentation feature on its tablets. This bug causes significant disruptions for educators and professionals who rely on the device for teaching. Users are strongly advised to avoid installing the update until a fix is released.

Google has open-sourced TorchTPU, a native PyTorch backend designed specifically to run machine learning models on its TPUs. This new backend aims to provide seamless integration and optimized performance for developers utilizing TPU hardware. The source code is now publicly available on GitHub for community collaboration and ongoing development.

A new digital project pairs real IKEA assembly manuals with meticulous 3D renders that build the furniture page by page. Focusing on the Billy and Lack models, the digital builds visually display every single dowel, cam lock, and nail in the exact order of the original physical instructions.

Meta is providing a behind-the-scenes look at the gigawatt-scale Prometheus computing cluster that powers its newly released Muse family of foundational AI models. This massive infrastructure utilizes advanced GB200 and GB300 hardware to support the company's growing artificial intelligence ambitions.

A newly released video demonstrates an innovative technique for manufacturing solar panels using a standard microwave oven to significantly reduce production time and costs. Researchers believe this unconventional and streamlined fabrication method could ultimately make renewable energy technology more accessible and accelerate its global adoption.

Dovepass is a new tool designed to help users determine if a specific drone flight path in San Francisco is legal. While the community praises the project's core concept, users have criticized its user interface for being unintuitive. The tool has already sparked interest from other developers looking to collaborate and integrate it with related civic tech and agentic systems.

A creator is revisiting their previous project to build an improved laptop-style case for the ZX Spectrum Next development board. This updated portable design aims to address and resolve the specific issues encountered in the original version.

A maker has successfully engineered a fully functional drone that operates using only a single motor and propeller. The open-source code and CAD files for the innovative project are now available on GitHub. A companion video breaks down the complex mechanics of how the single-propeller design achieves steering and details the technical fixes applied to its motor controller.

A new project named Mac.apk enables users to run Android applications natively on Apple Silicon Macs. This tool allows macOS users to seamlessly execute mobile apps directly on their desktop environment.

To bypass Windows 11's mandatory Microsoft account requirement, a developer installed Arch Linux ARM on an ASUS ProArt P16 laptop. The project includes a custom bootable installer, detailed performance comparisons with Windows, and demonstrations of local Qwen AI inference.

Ukraine claims to have successfully executed the first-ever drone evacuation of a wounded soldier, marking a significant technological milestone in the ongoing conflict. This historic mission unfolds against a backdrop of strained relations between Kyiv and Washington regarding the potential withdrawal of US military support.

OpenBSD 8.0 introduces major hardware and toolchain improvements, notably updating graphics drivers to Linux 6.18 for better Intel Arc support and transitioning entirely to the Clang/LLVM 22 compiler. The release significantly boosts virtualization by supporting up to 64 VCPUs per guest and adds new hardware drivers for Qualcomm WiFi and Samsung battery monitoring. Additionally, the update brings accelerated swap encryption and enhanced filtering capabilities to the built-in httpd web server.

Android TV is notorious for its persistent advertisements, even when restricted to apps-only mode. However, a new guide reveals how users can achieve a completely ad-free experience by replacing the default launcher, modifying the YouTube app, and remapping remote control buttons. This customization workaround provides a much cleaner viewing environment without requiring users to abandon the standard apps-only mode.

Inspired by a forgotten 1980s console, a modder is using VHS tapes to create interactive versions of classic games like Doom and Super Mario. This innovative project repurposes obsolete magnetic media to deliver wonderfully strange gaming experiences. It highlights a fascinating blend of nostalgia and modern hardware modification.

OpenBSD 8.0 was released on October 20, 2026, delivering the latest security enhancements and system updates to the Unix-like operating system. Notably, this release drops support for the Loongson architecture, prompting the community to bid farewell to the legacy hardware platform.

The RepRapMicron project is developing a new 3D printer specifically designed to operate at the microscopic micron scale. Documented on its official wiki, this initiative aims to bring ultra-high-resolution additive manufacturing capabilities to the RepRap community.

The open-source Open MicroManipulator project provides a sub-micrometer 3D motion control platform for high-precision applications. Developers can contribute to the ongoing development of the MicroManipulatorStepper software through its GitHub repository.

A DIY enthusiast has transformed a standard manual push scooter into an electric vehicle by ingeniously attaching a power drill to its drivetrain. Detailed on a blog focused on project cars and custom contraptions, this unconventional modification highlights a creative approach to upcycling everyday tools for personal transportation.

A new open-source repository on GitHub is bringing the classic puzzle game Lemmings to PalmOS devices. Developers and retro computing enthusiasts can contribute to the project to help port the nostalgic title to the legacy operating system.

Introduced in 1980, the Intel 8087 math coprocessor significantly accelerated floating-point operations for the IBM PC and other early computer systems. By offloading complex addition and subtraction tasks from the main CPU, the chip greatly improved computational performance and paved the way for advanced personal computing.

Researchers have uncovered a critical vulnerability in Broadcom's proprietary WPS implementation that allows unauthenticated attackers within WiFi range to achieve remote code execution on millions of routers. Discovered via agentic vulnerability research, the flaw impacts both eCos and Linux platforms and was accompanied by a notably unusual disclosure process.

The LT6502b is a custom-built laptop that brings vintage 8-bit computing into a modern portable form factor using a 10MHz 65C02 processor and 46KB of RAM. Despite its retro specifications, the battery-powered machine incorporates modern amenities like a 10.1-inch display, USB-PD charging, and WiFi connectivity. The project also highlights the dramatic contrast between classic low-memory architectures and modern high-capacity Compact Flash storage.