Hackaday Podcast

Ep 364: Clocks, Cameras, and Free Will

Apr 3, 2026
They chat about green-powered DIY contests and Europe’s plug-in balcony solar boom. Retro and lo-fi cameras, resin-printed front panels, and a cardboard archtop guitar get highlighted. A mathematical clock and an electropermanent magnet demo spark curiosity. There’s talk of turning soda into mead and a Magic 8-Ball reboot with a Pi Pico. The segment ends with debate over Copilot’s legal wording.
Ask episode
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
ANECDOTE

Handmade PVC Enclosures With Wallpaper Finish

  • Mirko Pavleski (Meers MK) builds clean colorful enclosures from PVC sign sheet, bent and glued with contact cement, then covered with peel-and-stick wallpaper for a polished look.
  • He avoids 3D printing by hand-cutting matchbox-style inner and outer boxes and mounts PCBs with double-sided tape for low-heat components.
ADVICE

Use Modern Sensors With Film Simulation

  • Build retro-style cameras by combining modern modules with film-simulation software to get lo-fi aesthetics without low-quality sensors.
  • Example: Saturnix uses a Raspberry Pi Zero and Argicam plus film-sim filters to create varied vintage looks in a beautiful 3D-printed body.
INSIGHT

Clock That Teaches Math And History

  • Momentous Clock maps every minute of the day to a math or historical fact, turning timekeeping into an opportunity for discovery and personal meaning.
  • Andy Isaacson's site and iPhone app let users toggle 12/24 hour modes and explore prime, palindromic, or event-linked facts for each minute.
Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode
Get the app