r/DIY_tech

Hello everyone,

I am new to smart homes and Home Assistant, and I’m currently on a pretty tight budget. I was wondering if it’s possible to upgrade an already installed LED lamp that still uses its original standard controller, so that it can be controlled through Home Assistant.

The problem is that I don’t know the brand of the light, so I’m not sure what options I have. Is it possible to replace just the controller with a smart one, or would I need to replace the whole setup?

Thank you in advance!

basically, I want to modify my Sony Xperia 5 iv (SD 8gen 1) to have a much better sensor

My current plan is to replace the ultrawide sensor already in the phone with the new sensor trough the MIPI channels and create a new set of drivers to use the new sensor

the other plan I'm considering which i think is much simpler would be to use a FPGA (GW5A?) to make a new camera which will feed to trough phone trough usb but this is not really that good of a plan since i want it to be more integrated

i feel i have significantly overlooked something in the main plan i think i may need a translation layer

is there any better solutions any one can suggest

any pointers would be loved

also is this pretty much impossible due to the amount that sony would have made the sensor proprietary and that Qualcomm would make it impossible to create drivers for the sensor

What open source software runs on a fleet of small drones (or on a master computer console) that can map out a parking lot and count the number of cars or empty spaces? I'm lost on how to look for the initial software and hardware combinations that will let me do what I want.

I want to have multiple drones. I want them independent. I want them to return to charge on their own when needed autonomously. I want them to scan a large parking lot, and taking images to (I assume) have the main, controlling computer analyzing and counting the number of cars at any time.

Where do I start looking? What names or products am I looking for?

I built this mini arcade machine using a Raspberry Pi, a 7-inch display, arcade buttons, a joystick, and 3D printed parts. The main goal was to make a small arcade setup that could run retro games like Super Mario and Pac-Man.

For the design, I used Onshape to model the box and split the build into separate printed parts so it would use less material, need less support, and be easier to print. My first design had a few problems: the box height was too small, the buttons did not fit properly, and the structure was too flimsy because there was not enough support underneath. I changed the design by increasing the height and adding support legs underneath, which made it much more solid.

For the software side, I used RetroPie on the Raspberry Pi to run the games. I also spent some time working on a buzzer-based audio idea because I wanted more of an arcade feel instead of just using a normal speaker, but I still need to improve that part since audio is not fully working the way I want yet.

Right now the machine works and plays games, but I would still love to make it portable by adding a battery and redesigning the box so the Raspberry Pi can fit inside more cleanly.

Let me know what you think so far, and I’d appreciate any suggestions for improving the design, portability, or audio.

This is the new and improved Lapdock for my Pixel 9 running Graphene OS! The biggest change is that the dock for the phone slides in which makes the device much more durable and portable!

Thanks so much for all the positive feedback on v.1, I will keep on working on this project and I hope the Graphene OS/Android Desktop Mode gets further updates, even though it's a niche feature (currently).

If you want to 3D Print one yourself, the files are up on my Patreon for free and if you want to learn more about the process and the future plans, check out the video!

I built this mini arcade machine using a Raspberry Pi, a 7-inch display, arcade buttons, a joystick, and 3D printed parts. The main goal was to make a small arcade setup that could run retro games like Super Mario and Pac-Man.

For the design, I used Onshape to model the box and split the build into separate printed parts so it would use less material, need less support, and be easier to print. My first design had a few problems: the box height was too small, the buttons did not fit properly, and the structure was too flimsy because there was not enough support underneath. I changed the design by increasing the height and adding support legs underneath, which made it much more solid.

For the software side, I used RetroPie on the Raspberry Pi to run the games. I also spent some time working on a buzzer-based audio idea because I wanted more of an arcade feel instead of just using a normal speaker, but I still need to improve that part since audio is not fully working the way I want yet.

Right now the machine works and plays games, but I would still love to make it portable by adding a battery and redesigning the box so the Raspberry Pi can fit inside more cleanly.

Let me know what you think so far, and I’d appreciate any suggestions for improving the design, portability, or audio.

I'm tired of the current "artisanal labor" racket where permanent follicle destruction takes 2 years and several grands for male face area because it's done one-by-one with a magnifying glass, like it's 1950's. In 2026, with 4K computer vision and high-speed actuators, the "it's too tricky" excuse sounds like pure bullshit.

I'm looking at a design for a handheld "Stamp" unit, essentially an internal XY-Z gantry with an 8x8 grid of 64 independent needle-packages. The core is an "Atomic Operation" (Hold-Zap-Suck):

1. Hold: Micro-tweezers grip the shaft to provide constant tension feedback.
2. Zap: A RISC-V controller handles a high-speed RF burst, using real-time impedance sensing to kill the follicle.
3. Suck: A vacuum manifold instantly extracts the "fried" follicle once the tension sensor hits the release point.

The hardware would tether via USB-C to a PC/Phone. You put the unit on a region, select the area within that canvas in a GUI app, and let the 64 needles move independently on a meaningful schedule to prevent mechanical clashing and skin trauma, automatically adjusting their depth and voltage based on real-time impedance sensing. No robotic arm needed, just a handheld box with a high-speed internal plotter and enough compute to handle the 3D vector mapping of each pore.

Is there anyone actually building something like this, or are we still just paying for manual labor because the industry is allergic to automation?