Recently, having purchased a new lens (even though it was only a kit lens), I thought it would be a good idea to protect the front element with a clear UV filter. While this practice is sometimes debatable as filter...

Residents in the Hills district have much to celebrate, as after many years of promises, the North-West Metro medium-capacity rail system is close to being finally commissioned for service. Areas previously neglected by public transport will now have a high-frequency...

It’s been a busy long-weekend, but there’s no better post than a “long random” for a long weekend! This time around, it just so happens to be my birthday as well. Happy Birthday to Me? Really? Well, what can I...

When it comes to good things, they say moderation is best. Don’t eat all your candy at once, or so they say, but instead I’m diving right in for a Dick Smith Electronics kit overdose. This is kit four of...

DISCLAIMER: Please note that the following experiments were conducted under controlled conditions. No responsibility will be taken for any outcomes including damages incurred from the use, misuse or inability to use the information that follows. You are responsible for any...

Two kits? Why not make it three. I’m enjoying this trip down memory road – but this one is rather interesting as well, as I’ve seen some of these units around but never had one of my own. This kit...

The trip down memory lane continues with the second Dick Smith Electronics boxed kit that I purchased from the CCARC Wyong Field Day. You could say, I’m on a roll when it comes to these kits … The Kit This...

A while back, I stumbled across a number of old Dick Smith kits being sold at the CCARC Wyong Field Day. I promised the seller that I would build the kits (eventually) and they might even make it onto the...

While I have looked at some vintage filament style globes in the past and come to the conclusion that they’re absolutely horrid for energy efficiency, they do have a visual appeal. This week, while rummaging through a thrift store, I...

It’s a bit of a shame that some of the mobile phones out there which have Qualcomm chipsets and are capable of quick charging are shipped with regular “plain old” 5V/2A chargers. As an owner of various Xiaomi phones myself,...

It’s been quite a while since I last wrote an opinion about something that’s not entirely technology-related, so I guess it’s a good time to write something about drink container recycling, as that’s become something I do sporadically since the...

I think by now, everyone knows I like to go on a salvage. This includes going regularly into thrift shops to see what’s new (or old) and what could be had for a reasonable price. This week had been rather...

Time to crack open some more goodies from my recent haul at the Wyong Field Day – this time, it’s three old discontinued Jaycar kits from the past. KV3520 Vocal Converter The first kit I attempted was the KV3520 Vocal...

It’s been another busy week, as usual, but I guess it’s nice to be occupied. You wouldn’t want to be bored … so I thought it would be a good time to make this “random” post that covers some things...

Ever since the vinyl “revival”, I’ve been bitten by a vintage audio bug of sorts. Of course, the old formats always come with their headaches and frustrations, but they also have a character and charm associated with them. One thing...

This weekend is turning out to be a bit of a telephony weekend, as I unpack more items from the stack of items donated by readers of the blog. This one is something I’m particularly fond of – the Anchor...

One of the things I bought home from the recent Wyong Field Day was a Bosch DS835 TriTech motion detector. While the box was beat-up, the unit inside looked clean and the seller wanted just $5 for it, so I...

The kit drawer is like the bottomless-pit of entertainment, except that it does have a bottom and I’m slowly reaching it. You can tell because these are the kits that I’ve left behind for a later day – perhaps out...

The humble voice call by telephone has been with us for many years, but with the popularity of land-lines fading, it seems that the traditional voice call may be headed towards obscurity. As a synchronous communication, it requires both caller...

Gough’s kit crusade continues with this HX-1021 “Green Lighting” LED Color Small Night Light kit, costing just AU$2.73 including postage. This one was incorrectly listed on eBay as a “mains motion light”, but the lack of a PIR detector is...

Continuing the kit-a-thon, I grabbed another EQKit out of the drawer – this one is a PSK-1 which was sold as an Electronic “Voice Control” Switch Kit for the princely sum of AU$1.98 including postage. As a kit that had...

As a fan of building kits, my crusade to try building random cheap-Chinese kits continues with this EQKit MDS-60 Electronic Metal Detector Kit which I managed to get for AU$1.84. Being such a low-cost item, we don’t expect to build...

When it comes to power supplies, the standardisation of USB has made it the ubiquitous choice for many mobile and portable devices. As a result, you probably have an abundance of spare USB power supplies to charge or power your...

It’s rarely the case I don’t get a chance to post until the very end of the weekend, but this week has been one of those weeks. Busyness knows no bounds, made worse when you get some surprise events thrown...

I have a drawer full of cheap kits and I’m on a mission to empty it! This time, I’m looking at a “generic” CD4060 SMD “musical” LED fancy lantern kit which was purchased for AU$2.89 including postage. What’s so fancy...