PCBWay Printed Circuit Board Prototype Review

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PCBWay Printed Circuit Board Prototype Review

pcbway printed circuit board

If you stumble across my site chances are you were looking for something technical. And if you were looking for something technical you may have had a need to put that technical idea onto a printed circuit board. This is where PCBWay can help

There are just so many times that I have used the venerable old breadboard to lay out my projects. And then sometimes those projects just stay like that.

pcbway printed circuit board

So suppose you’d like to translate that simple circuit into something a lot more polished. Why not sketch out your idea and make a proper printed circuit board (PCB)?

There are a ton of PCB software design solutions out there. For years I have used a program called “Fritzing”. But PCBWay can help with prototype design as well.

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Ultimate Guide To Using A Raspberry Pi 5 In A Photography Studio

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Ultimate Guide To Using A Raspberry Pi 5 In A Photography Studio

Raspberry Pi 5 Photography Studio

Yep. I said it. You can use the Raspberry Pi 5 in your Photography Studio.

Imagine connecting a high end studio camera to a Raspberry Pi 5 and taking some studio quality pictures by tethering your camera to your Pi 5.

Then you can control it via VNC from a nearby computer or laptop. Or of course you could hook the Pi to a KVM or plain old Keyboard, Mouse, and Monitor.

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More Camera Tethering

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More Camera Tethering

Camera Tethering

I’ve spent a full week or two going through my old collection of cameras to see if they still can connect to a computer. My camera tethering experiment has been a mixed bag so far.

I’ve come to some unusual conclusions. Read on.

My first conclusion is that camera manufacturers only support a camera for so long. Most cameras, provided that you don’t toss them around, will last for decades. So the only reason to stop supporting them is so that you’ll buy a new one. By the way here is the photo from the “studio” shot above.

This needs to be stated: For every camera I mention below they still function perfectly as a stand alone camera. Pick them up, push that shutter release and they will copy your vision to its memory card. I am only talking about the tethering function not being supported. The cameras are still good and viable.

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Choyong Voyager Internet Radio Review

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Choyong Voyager Internet Radio Review

Choyong Voyager Internet Radio

I currently own the Choyong LC-90, and the A8W. While I currently don’t NEED another streaming radio the Choyong Voyager Internet Radio looked too tempting to pass up.

They actually call it the ChoYong Voyager G2 Smart BT Radio. And it also identifies as a BlueTooth speaker.

And yet on their website, when you add the radio it shows up as an A9EN. Then go to Amazon and you’ll see this:

“Choyong Voyager Bluetooth Speaker Wireless Internet Radio with WIFI/4G,World Radio Station,BT5.3, Electronics for Home/Travel/Outdoor mini Portable Speaker“

So during this review I’m just going to call it the Choyong Voyager.

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Canon Powershot A640 Review

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Canon Powershot A640 Review

Canon Powershot A640

You might be asking yourself why I’m reviewing the Canon Powershot A640 which was released to consumers in 2006. By my estimation that makes it nearly 20 years old.

And you really might be wondering why I’m writing about it 19 years after I bought mine.

By today’s standards it has features that a lot of cameras today should have at the same price point.

I am not referring to sensor size or megapixels although it has a respectable 1 1/8″ CCD sensor with 10 Mega Pixels. And DPReview.com gave it a pretty decent review in late 2006.

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Camera Tethering

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Camera Tethering

Camera Tethering

I have written several articles on camera tethering over the years. And here I go again. I am FAR from any kind of professional photographer but I do have this blog and I do sell the occasional item on Facebook.

So allow me to discuss why I believe tethering is important.

Let’s dissect the photo just above for a moment. I am using a Canon A640, circa. 2006 tethered via a USB-B Mini 5 pin connector to a USB-A cable on the computer end. The laptop cost a whopping $75 and the white background cost around $35.

This is neither the best camera or laptop that I own. Far from it. I’m just making a point here. I’m using this setup to show how great results can be obtained without spending a ton of money. Additionally, there are pros that use tethering way more successfully than I ever will. I’m just a guy who stumbled across this great method of getting better results with the tools that I have. To this day I will not buy a camera that cannot be tethered to a computer.

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More Benfei Adapters

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More Benfei Adapters

Benfei Adapters

I’ve been extremely lucky to have been given the opportunity to test LOTS of Benfei Adapters.

As I have stated before I mostly use a MacBookAir and it essentially only has two USB-C ports and a 3.5mm audio jack.

That simply will not do for a guy like me with so many gadgets and electronics projects going on at any given time. I’m into audio. And I’m into photography. And a dozen other things. The only way to function with limited ports is to own ADAPTERS.

For example, my Mother In Law likes to stream church and watch it on her TV. Sometimes we all come over and watch with her. The only way to make that connection on her older TV is to have an HDMI adapter coming off of the computer.

I make quite a few videos with higher end cameras and microphones and by golly, I need adapters to read the CFexpress, SD and TF cards.

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Best Budget Laser Engraver – Mid 2025

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Best Budget Laser Engraver – Mid 2025

Everyone wants a bargain. In the diverse world of laser engraving the start up costs can vary from inexpensive to very expensive. So many side hustle enthusiasts buy in at top tier. Then they realize that it isn’t as easy as it seems. They might master the machine but then can’t figure out the sales end of the side hustle. One of my more popular blog entries historically has been of the “Best Budget Laser Engraver” variety. I usually settle in and cover 3 or 4 or more laser engravers. Today I am covering just one. Maybe 2.

Longer Ray 5

I mentioned the Longer Ray 5 in my last “Best Budget Laser Engraver 2025” blog. Additionally, I also mentioned that I had never touched one. I based my review on past experiences with Longer, sales rankings on Amazon, and a few other things I had seen and read about.

The response from Longer: “We’ll send you one!” And they did. With all the goodies.

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M17 Project CC1200 – Amateur Radio Update

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M17 Project CC1200 – Amateur Radio Update

M17 Project CC1200

One exciting new(ish) protocol for Ham Radio users is the M17 Project. I’ll be pairing a CC1200 hotspot board with a Connect Systems CS7000 radio.

DMR users have long used an operating system called Pi-Star and WPSD to act as a gateway to their systems. Pi-Star and WPSD both included M17 support. I found that it was easiest and worked best under Pi-Star. The maintainer of both programs has removed M17 from their software. Currently my WPSD has the M17 removed since the last software update. I still have it on Pi-Star but I imagine it will go away with the next update.

Sadly, this is probably going to make a hit against the usability for M17 users. There are several other ways to connect to M17 and I’ll explore one of those today.

NOTE: I am not a super experienced M17 user as I just started using the protocol a a few months ago. As I set up a new device to connect to M17 yesterday (CC1200 hotspot board) the M17 folks had to hold my hand and work me through getting connected. It’s not hard at all but it isn’t intuitive. Especially, setting up the radio.

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