A heat map of the US showing the difference in emissions between an EV and ICE or EV and PHEV by county. Rural areas, particularly in Colorado in Wyoming seem close to no difference (in blue) whereas densely-populated areas on the coasts are colored on the red end of spectrum exceeding a 70% emissions reduction over ICE vehicles.

EVs Always Beat Combustion Emissions Performance

June 23, 2026 by Navarre Bartz 155 Comments

A pervasive story is that electric vehicles (EVs or BEVs) are actually dirtier than combustion vehicles if charged by a fossil fuel-based electricity grid. A new study reaffirms others that show, at least in the US, EVs have lower lifetime emissions than an internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle, regardless of the grid mix.

Comparing data on the mix of generation types by ZIP code using data from OpenGrid and eGRID, the researchers were able to create maps and comparisons of the efficiency of ICE, hybrid, plug-in hybrid (PHEV), and electric vehicles. If you want to compare some specific examples, there’s an interactive chart using the research data at carboncounter.com.

PHEVs can achieve 80-90% of the emissions reductions of a full EV in urban environments, but become less beneficial as distances increase or if drivers choose not to charge the battery. The researchers have extensive breakdowns of the comparisons including total cost to operate the vehicle compared with emissions if you want to look more in the paper. Emissions benefits are particularly noticeable in larger vehicle classes or with drivers who put more miles on their cars.

Although it’s unlikely to change anytime soon, they also note that if the industry trend toward larger and larger vehicles were to be reversed, emissions targets could be hit with much fewer hybrids and EVs at the current grid mix. The advantage of full EVs is that they get cleaner as the grid gets cleaner, unlike combustion vehicles that typically get worse as their emissions systems degrade.

If you’re not ready for an EV, maybe you’d like to reuse a pack for a house battery. If you’re feeling more adventurous, then maybe try out an EV conversion that still needs oil changes?

Long-Theorized GPS Weakness Exploited On Large Scale

June 23, 2026 by Bryan Cockfield 40 Comments

GPS has become fairly common in our everyday lives, not only able to pinpoint our locations on Earth but also as an incredibly accurate timekeeping method. But since these satellites are around 20,000 km above Earth, the received signals on the surface of the planet can be incredibly weak. This makes them prone to jamming and spoofing, a weakness of the technology that has long been known. Although attempts to mitigate these problems have been ongoing, there has recently been a large-scale attempt to interfere with these signals that put all mitigation efforts to the test.

One proposed way to improve resilience is to supplement existing GNSS systems with low-Earth-orbit navigation satellites. In this example, a company called Xona is using a satellite called Pulsar-0 that operates in low-Earth orbit (LEO) and provides positioning and timing signals that are around 100 times stronger than standard signals from GPS/GNSS satellites. It is able to receive GPS signals as well, ensuring the two systems agree on one another. And, because Pulsar’s navigation signals originate from LEO and are much stronger than conventional GNSS signals, Xona expects them to be significantly more resistant to jamming.

Beyond geopolitics, spoofing GPS has some applications in finding legendaries in Pokemon Go as well as making it fairly trivial to steal GPS-guided drones.

A VLC media window with a live feed of a soccer field. Players are just starting to come off the sideline to play.

Rickrolling The World Cup

June 22, 2026 by Navarre Bartz 26 Comments

Sometimes, hacking requires a certain amount of restraint, especially when you find a system woefully unsecured. It would be so easy to play some pranks, but [bobdahacker] chose not to rickroll the entire FIFA World Cup.

The fun starts after [bobdahacker] signed up for a free FIFA agent profile. After a simple ID verification process, he had a login for the FIFA Agent platform, but they used the same account system across the whole organization in Microsoft Entra. When he tried to access the FIFA Football Data Platform system, it returned an error saying he had no assigned role to allow access. This was on the client side though, so he was able to bypass the error as the server didn’t block accounts without assigned roles.

Once inside, he found he was able to access not just the data, but had full control of the RTMP ingest URLs of all the FIFA matches. For those of us less conversant in streaming media protocols, “Those RTMP ingest URLs are the literal pipe from the stadium cameras to FIFA’s broadcast distribution chain. Camera -> RTMP ingest -> MediaKind -> broadcast partners -> your TV.” He could’ve shut off the feeds or injected whatever alternate stream he wanted, but instead chose to try contacting FIFA, their streaming contractor, and various law enforcement agencies since the World Cup was already underway when he made the discovery.

“Competitions, Matches, Teams, Tools, Exchange Platform, Analysis Dashboard, Commentator Information System, FIFA AI Pro, Admin” were also in the open. Live match scores could be changed, player bios, and any number of other stats could be modified. We’ll let you imagine the possibilities of what mischief could occur.

While rickrolling the world would be funny, a rickroll throwie will be a bit more circumspect. If you’re more interested in soccer/football than security hacks, we hope you enjoy this LEGO soccer tank or these robot soccer players and avoid any soccer ball-sized meteorites or legal troubles for your soccer-related invention.

Dynamic RAM From First Principles

June 22, 2026 by Bryan Cockfield 26 Comments

Before the past year, many of us took computer memory for granted. It was one of the lower-cost parts of a PC build and was usually available in whatever quantity one desired. As its cost has skyrocketed, a lot of PC builders and other users of computers in general are taking a deeper look at memory, how much is really needed, and what its functions truly are. [Igor] is working on a drum sequencer project which needs a small amount of memory, and has built this dynamic RAM from discrete components.

The first video goes into the construction of the memory array and how its addressed. It’s only eight bytes total, and using fairly large electrolytic capacitors to store data means that a gigabyte of this memory would take up well over a thousand acres, but it’s still enough memory for [Igor]’s needs. In addition to the capacitor, each bit uses a pair of diodes to determine if a read or write is occuring, and a set of transistors on the read and write busses to perform those actions. Worth noting here is that dynamic RAM like this needs to be refreshed because the capacitors lose charge over time, but these large capacitors can hold charge sometimes overnight, as [Igor] has confirmed experimentally.

There’s a followup video to the construction of these modules as well, where [Igor] demonstrates a number of ways this module can be used, from controlling LED arrays, 7-segment displays, and then installs it into his drum machine. With 64 bits available it’s capable of creating up to eight beats with eight samples available per beat. Although there are complete machines available for all of this, we appreciate his goal of not buying any pre-manufactured hardware and instead constructing it all from the ground up. There are analog drum machine options available in this same style as well.

Continue reading “Dynamic RAM From First Principles” →

A promo image that might have been a little much even in 1999.

Commodore Unveils Linux Powered Flip Phone

June 18, 2026 by Tyler August 75 Comments

Whatever happens with the new incarnation of the Commodore corporation, we’ll always remember the old one fondly. Well, we’ll remember certain of its products fondly, at any rate, if not the corporate leadership that drove them under. About that, perhaps the less said the better. That’s why we’re looking at the revived Commodore’s latest offering with equal parts interest and trepidation — is there really a market for a Linux-based, Commodore branded flip phone in 2026 and beyond?

The official reveal trailer, which you can watch below, can only be described as weaponized nostalgia for the late 90s, which tracks because the revived C-64 is more-or-less the same thing for the 8-bit era. That said, between replaceable batteries, actually having a decent camera — a 48MP Sony module — quality Cirrus Logic DAC for audio, and running the Linux-based, Android-app-compatible Sailfish OS, the “Callback 8020” ticks all the boxes. Except for price, that is. Many will find the $499 USD launch price a little tough to swallow in this economy, so we hope they aren’t betting the farm on this one being a mass hit.

Still, compared to other premium “digital minimalist” products like the LightPhone III, the price looks reasonable — and with web browsing and social media explicitly excluded from the app store, this phone is firmly in that category. At least this one comes with some sweet Commodore branded headphones, which double as an FM antenna just like they did on your Nokia back when.

While it doesn’t come with DOOM from the factory, it does come with Snake and a selection of emulated C64 games . Ringtones are SID samples, but of course there’s no actual SID chip in the phone, any more than there’s a 6502. That said, if someone builds a phone around a 6502, please let us know.

No, it’s not a new Amiga, as so many of us were hoping for, but by putting quality modern components into the flip phone form-factor, at least they’re trying to innovate (or perhaps retrovate) and we have to respect that. Only time will tell if the market does.

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Security Camera Gets Several Defensive Upgrades

June 16, 2026 by Bryan Cockfield 21 Comments

Ever since the early web, people have been streaming video with inexpensive webcams, and since the advent of the Raspberry Pi and its dedicated camera slot we’ve really seen how easy it can be to build security cameras or any other webcam and get it online quickly. But these cameras notably lack defensive capabilities if anyone tries to break into an area they shouldn’t be, and [John] added some features to this webcam to help defend his garage.

The webcam itself is a custom build, mounted on a custom-built tilt-and-pan mount that lets it freely rotate to view any location in the garage. Some custom software running on a Raspberry Pi lets it operate in autonomous mode or be controlled manually from an Android tablet. But for the defensive capabilities, it also carries a Nerf machine gun with a laser sight and spotlights which can all be controlled autonomously by the Raspberry Pi, including a computer vision system that lets it track various objects. While this is mostly a fun novelty for his security camera, the noise it makes might be enough to startle any would-be burglar.

[John] added a few other features to this build as well, including a speaker, which allows the system to be voice-controlled and to communicate back to the user. This lets him activate and deactivate the system using a verbal password. These types of Nerf guns are fairly popular for turrets as well, and some have practical uses as well like keeping cats from walking on the kitchen counters.

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A wooden doll with a long nose that has nothing to do with Disney

Bavarian Court Tells Gemini It Can’t Be A Real Boy Until It Tells The Truth

June 14, 2026 by Tyler August 63 Comments

Does anyone like Google’s AI summaries? If so, they weren’t on the Judge’s bench in a specific Bavarian courtroom recently, where it was ruled that yes, Google is liable for the hallucinations of its search engine AI.

This was a civil case brought by a pair of Munich companies, both of whom were wrongfully slandered by LLM hallucinations. Google took the position that this information must have existed somewhere, and like presenting links to libelous websites — something they have no obligation to avoid — they should not be held accountable for what the summary at the top of the search results says.

Continue reading “Bavarian Court Tells Gemini It Can’t Be A Real Boy Until It Tells The Truth” →