Hardware Hackers DIY Pick2026/06/07 01:22:36CP/M on an 8-pin chip for $26 — meet the MCL8080+Ted Fried's MCL8080+ squeezes a complete Intel 8080 emulator into an ATtiny85 (8 pins, 512 bytes of RAM) by offloading memory, storage, and I/O to a Teensy 4.0 over SPI, then adds a 128-byte direct-mapped cache inside the ATtiny85 to make it fast enough to boot CP/M at near-Altair 8800 speed. The full build — schematics, KiCad PCB, Gerbers, and both firmware files — is MIT-licensed on GitHub. BOM totals ~$26–30, all through-hole, Intermediate difficulty.
Hardware Hackers DIY Pick2026/05/31 01:29:25A $15 ESP32 board + one SOIC8 chip = 13-platform retro handheldDynaMight1124's CYD Emulator Station upgrades the $15 Cheap Yellow Display (ESP32-2432S028) into a 13-platform retro game handheld by soldering a PSRAM chip onto an unpopulated SOIC8 footprint and running Retro-Go v1.46. $30–45 BOM, Intermediate difficulty, weekend-build.
Hardware Hackers DIY Pick2026/05/24 01:19:22$50 PVC turbine produces 200W from a 3-meter water drop — no concrete, no permitsDaniel Connell's Low Head Turbine turns a 3-metre head of flowing water into ~200 W DC using a $30–50 BOM of PVC fittings, a 120 mm PC fan, and a scavenged hoverboard hub motor — no PCB, no firmware, no soldering required.