Author Archives: lui_gough

About lui_gough

I'm a bit of a nut for electronics, computing, photography, radio, satellite and other technical hobbies. Click for more about me!

Teardown: Cygnett USB-C Audio+Charge Adapter (CY2866PCCPD)

Posted on August 20, 2023 by lui_gough

As many mobile devices are USB-C already, the loss of 3.5mm headphone jacks steadily continues. Some vendors include a passive cable adapter that allows for use of traditional 3.5mm TRRS headsets. This works by using a USB-C audio accessory mode, … Continue reading →

Posted in Audio, Computing, Electronics, Tablet | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Tested: Cable Matters USB-C to 2.5GbE Adapter w/PD (201453) & Generic USB-C to 2.5GbE Adapter

Posted on August 20, 2023 by lui_gough

Ethernet has been the backbone of our modern-day networks. Incrementally, speeds have mostly increased by ten-fold across generations – from 10Mbit/s to 100Mbit/s, then to 1Gbit/s and 10Gbit/s. I still recall when I first ran a switched 100Mbit/s Ethernet network … Continue reading →

Posted in Computing, Telecommunications | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Random: element14 Prizes, EMBC 2023, R&S Seminar, Evening with The Chancellor & More

Posted on August 6, 2023 by lui_gough

As usual, it’s been a while between postings … but this time, perhaps longer than most. This is because I’ve been extremely busy with many things. Unlike most of my random posts, this one will cross a little into my … Continue reading →

Posted in Event, Opinion, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Project: Police Flasher & 7-Segment LED Clock Through-Hole Soldering Kits

Posted on August 6, 2023 by lui_gough

Back when I did my Weller WXsmart RoadTest Review, I needed some things to solder. Aside from the regular SMD practice kits, I also went out of my way to get a few through-hole technology kits as well. This is … Continue reading →

Posted in Electronics | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Tested: 3.7V Li-Poly Cells – Zon Cell 603448 1.2Ah/Core Elec 603450 1.1Ah/Ecocell 105050 3Ah

Posted on August 6, 2023 by lui_gough

When it comes to powering our electronic creations, a protected lithium-ion pouch cell ending in a JST 2-pin (or sometimes 3-pin) plug is pretty much a de-facto standard. The cells offer a variety of capacities, sizes and have excellent energy … Continue reading →

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Random: NBN Outage, VoLTE Thoughts, Plastic Trolleys, Transport Upgrades & French Fries

Posted on June 25, 2023 by lui_gough

It’s been another case of being way too long between random postings and my brain has been filling up with more observations than I can find the time to compile and write. In the meantime, I’ve never been busier with … Continue reading →

Posted in Opinion, Telecommunications, Travel, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Visited: Vivid Sydney 2023 Bonus – The Cinewav Experience (26 May – 17 Jun 23)

Posted on June 18, 2023 by lui_gough

In the first two parts, I covered what it was like to experience the Vivid Sydney show with your eyes. But some exhibits are not just lights but also music. As far as I know, this year is the first … Continue reading →

Posted in Audio, Event, Tablet | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Visited: Vivid Sydney 2023 – Darling Harbour & Central (26 May – 17 Jun 23)

Posted on June 16, 2023 by lui_gough

It’s my second day visiting Vivid Sydney, a Tuesday 13th June after another long meeting-filled day at work. Once again, I am early and hoping to catch some lights before the official lighting-up at 6pm. I decided to be a … Continue reading →

Posted in Event, Photography | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Visited: Vivid Sydney 2023 – Circular Quay & Barangaroo (26 May – 17 Jun 23)

Posted on June 16, 2023 by lui_gough

It’s that time of year again when I undertake my annual pilgrimage to Vivid Sydney to experience the ideas, lights and music on offer. Last year, I was less-than-impressed after the COVID-19 hiatus to find that the experience was cramped … Continue reading →

Posted in Event, Photography | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Review: Xinfrared InfiRay P2 Pro Thermal Imaging Camera (256×192/40mK/25Hz)

Posted on June 12, 2023 by lui_gough

I was approached a little over a month ago by a representative from Xinfrared asking if I would like to review the Xinfrared InfiRay P2 Pro Smartphone Thermal Imaging Camera. Seeing as I had recently reviewed the Topdon TC004 which … Continue reading →

Posted in Computing, DIY, Electronics, Tablet | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Quick Review: Kingston NV2 1TB NVMe SSD (@PCIe3.0x4)

Posted on June 4, 2023 by lui_gough

This SSD was originally reviewed with the Orico PWM2-G2/PWDM2-G2 USB3.2 Gen2 M.2 NVMe/NVMe+SATA Enclosure, but seeing as I now have an M.2 to PCIe adapter, I might as well install it into my main desktop as a tertiary SSD in … Continue reading →

Posted in Computing, Flash Memory | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Review, Tested: Minthouz Multi-Color LED Strip Light Kit (MT-L001)

Posted on June 3, 2023 by lui_gough

As part of the deal in the previous post, I received a 10m multi-colour LED strip light set for “free”. While I’m not usually a fan of RGB LEDs on everything and I find the whole idea of such accent … Continue reading →

Posted in Electronics, Lighting | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Review: Minthouz 65W PD GaN Fast Charger (MT-G6502)

Posted on June 2, 2023 by lui_gough

Thanks to my devices, I’m slowly being dragged into the modern world of USB-C and PD charging, which means that my older USB-A only chargers are starting to become too slow and too wimpy for some of my devices. Thanks … Continue reading →

Posted in Computing, Electronics, Tablet | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Review: Seagate Ironwolf Pro 18TB SATA3 Hard Drive (ST18000NE000)

Posted on May 21, 2023 by lui_gough

Time to round off the storage-centric weekend with this recent acquisition. It shocked me to think that I hadn’t bought a hard drive since this WD Elements 10TB drive back in December 2019 which is now out-of-warranty. This means that … Continue reading →

Posted in Computing | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Review: Fanxiang S501 1TB 3D NAND PCIe 3.0×4 NVMe SSD (ft. Glotrends PA09-HS Adapter)

Posted on May 21, 2023 by lui_gough

UPDATE: This drive is no longer recommended. Please see PSA: SSDs with YMTC Flash Prone to Failure? Check Your SSDs! If there was one thing I didn’t see coming, it has been the recent SSD price crash continuing to plumb new … Continue reading →

Posted in Computing, Flash Memory | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Quick Review: Patriot Signature 8GB 3200MHz CL22 DDR4 SODIMM (PSD48G320081S)

Posted on May 21, 2023 by lui_gough

If you’re like me and like to push the life of your technology just that little bit more, chances are that the time to upgrade will eventually come and you’ll be considering whether it’s worth buying new or buying refurbished. … Continue reading →

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RoadTest Review: Weller WXsmart Connected Hand Soldering Platform

Posted on May 14, 2023 by lui_gough

I’ve been quite busy over the past few weeks finalising another major project. You may recall me posting an unboxing video for the Weller WXsmart Connected Hand Soldering Platform in the past, but now, the review for the whole set-up … Continue reading →

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Review, Tested: Fnirsi FNB58 USB Fast Charge Tester

Posted on April 29, 2023 by lui_gough

For many years, I have tested USB power consumption using lab-bench power supplies and electronic loads. While this suffices for ordinary USB 5V, various fast-charge flavours require quite a few “hoops” to enable (e.g. qc3control, USB-C PD trigger modules). But … Continue reading →

Posted in Electronics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

Review, Teardown: Rybozen 2-In 4-Out USB 3.0 Sharing Switch Box

Posted on April 25, 2023 by lui_gough

I’m sure many of us now have nice working-from-home setups, many of which may involve laptops that travel back and forth, docking with a set of screens at either work or home. In my case, I have a primary desktop … Continue reading →

Posted in Computing, Electronics | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Random: Happy Birthday, Reflections, Time Sinks & Toilet Rolls

Posted on April 23, 2023 by lui_gough

It’s literally been weeks since I have posted on this blog and it makes me uncomfortable just saying that … as I have been meaning to write but things keep getting in the way. This past month has been a … Continue reading →

Posted in Audio, DIY, Electronics, Opinion, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Review, Teardown: Andonstar AD208 8.5″ 1080p Digital Microscope

Posted on April 2, 2023 by lui_gough

There’s always something missing on my workbench … but slowly, I’m filling those gaps in. This time, I’m filling the hole for a microscope, mainly to look at solder joints on PCBs and occasionally markings on chips and other objects. … Continue reading →

Posted in DIY, Electronics, Photography | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Review: Patriot EP 64GB UHS-I Class 10/U3/V30/A1 MicroSDXC Card

Posted on March 31, 2023 by lui_gough

Amazon has done a great job of tickling my impulsive shopping habits, but I can’t see any reason to indulge them with subscribing to Prime, their free shipping service with various other online streaming perks. As part of my insistence … Continue reading →

Posted in Computing, Flash Memory | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Review, Teardown: Orico 2580U3-V1 Vintage Cassette 2.5″ USB 3.0 HDD Enclosure

Posted on March 26, 2023 by lui_gough

Having a few spare 2.5″ SATA to USB 3.0 enclosures around is never a bad idea, especially if you have some smaller old SSDs hanging around that could use a new life. Thanks to some more OzBargaining, I got drawn … Continue reading →

Posted in Computing, Electronics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Teardown: Cygnett ChargeUp Go 5,000mAh Power Bank (CY3533PBCHE)

Posted on March 26, 2023 by lui_gough

Just a quick teardown post today of some power banks I reviewed back in 2022. As I had a few units around, unfortunately, one somehow became overdischarged just by sitting around and refused to charge initially. After several attempts, the … Continue reading →

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Review: Topdon TC004 Handheld Thermal Imaging Camera (256×192/2.8″/16GB)

Posted on March 12, 2023 by lui_gough

Thermal imaging is like magic – by measuring the infrared light emitted by a surface, you can infer the temperature of the surface if you know its emissivity. Being non-contact, it’s a safe way to measure the temperature of items … Continue reading →

Posted in DIY, Electronics | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Quick Review: Stoga MK25 61-Key Gaming Mechanical Keyboard

Posted on March 11, 2023 by lui_gough

The temptation of OzBargain is a strong one – when my friend alerted me to a 60% RGB LED keyboard featuring Cherry MX Brown switches for AU$25.99 shipped from Amazon, I just had to try it. I’ve always wanted to … Continue reading →

Posted in Computing | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Notes: When SATA Cables Go Bad … or Rogue!

Posted on March 11, 2023 by lui_gough

For the most part, we are starting to say goodbye to SATA on most modern computers, although it is still the primary means for hard drives and older SSDs to connect. The thin “liquorice strap” twinaxial cables with a rectangular … Continue reading →

Posted in Computing, Opinion | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Review: Patriot Burst Elite 1.92TB 2.5″ SATA III SSD (PBE192TS25SSDR)

Posted on March 11, 2023 by lui_gough

UPDATE: This drive is no longer recommended. Please see PSA: SSDs with YMTC Flash Prone to Failure? Check Your SSDs! After previously swearing off SATA SSDs, breaking my pledge on an impulse, I’ve gone and done it again. This time, it … Continue reading →

Posted in Computing, Flash Memory | Tagged , , , , , , | 19 Comments

Review: Jashen JS-D18 Cordless Stick Vacuum Cleaner

Posted on March 4, 2023 by lui_gough

In what seemed like a bit of a Christmas miracle last year, I browsed OzBargain just at the right time to spot a battery-powered cordless stick vacuum selling at a very appealing price of just AU$38 delivered from Amazon AU. … Continue reading →

Posted in DIY, Electronics | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Site Update: Last Week’s Downtime, HDD & Optical Disc Corner Updates

Posted on March 3, 2023 by lui_gough

It’s been a while since a site update – since the shenanigans that happened last week, I suppose an update is deserved. However, I’ve been extremely busy trying to catch-up on putting out content, so unfortunately, this post didn’t make … Continue reading →

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