In this blog post you’ll find instructions for using a Raspberry Pi to wirelessly control Etekcity power outlets using 433MHz RF. Ever year during Christmas time I find myself dealing with the hassle of turning the Christmas tree lights on and off. This year I set out to find a solution I could use to automate […]
Category: Hardware

Dropcam Pro Review – Wireless HD Video Surveillance Camera
In this post I’ll be sharing my experience with the Dropcam Pro, the top of the line wireless HD camera offered by Dropcam. I’ve been using several Axis M1031-W wireless IP cameras to handle my home video surveillance needs for quite a while but they are starting to get old I’ve been looking to replace them with something that […]

Building a Mendel90 RepRap 3D Printer Using Nophead’s Kit
A few weeks ago I decided that I wanted to get into 3D printing. I kept stumbling across posts on Reddit where people were showing off some really cool things they created with their 3D printers so I started doing some research into which printer to buy. In this post I’ll be talking about my […]

Building a 12TB Mini ITX FreeNAS Server
There has never been a better time than now to build a high capacity mini NAS system. In this post you’ll find a step by step guide to building your mini NAS using Fractal Design’s new Node 304 case. Mini ITX systems are becoming very popular with hardware enthusiasts and it’s not hard to see […]

How to Install a Linux Image on the Raspberry Pi Using Windows
If you’ve just purchased a Raspberry Pi computer the first thing you’ll probably want to do is load an operating system so you can begin experimenting with the hardware. Loading a Linux image directly to a an SD card is the quickest way to get the Raspberry Pi to a usable state. While you can […]

Reviewing Maximum PC’s FreeNAS Mini ITX System Design
Maximum PC recently posted a build guide with some interesting hardware selections for their version of the FreeNAS Mini. Overall the system specs are reasonably good and would provide plenty of performance for a home NAS. Some of the components actually seem like overkill for a home storage server though. In this post I’ll be taking a closer […]

Top 10 Geek Gifts Under $100 – Christmas 2012 Guide
Geeks can be tough to buy for but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t receive a gift! To make your shopping experience easier this year I’ve complied a list of the top 10 gifts for geeks. Everything in the list sells for less than $100, and almost all of the items are available with free 2 […]
Best Mini Gaming Towers for Running Steam Big Picture
If you don’t have a PC connected to your living TV then you may want to consider doing so now that Steam Big Picture is available. Big Picture is a new beta feature designed to run the Steam interface on your TV. The thought behind Big Picture is to allow gamers to play their favorite […]

Performance Test and Review of the ZyXEL PLA4201 Powerline Adapter Kit
In this post I’ll be sharing my experiences with the ZyXEL PLA4201 powerline networking starter kit. ZyXEL calls this their HD networking kit claiming that it is ideal for media streaming and gaming. They claim a max throughput of 500Mbps which is more than double that of most other powerline kits with a max transfer […]

Taking a Look Inside the Cisco 8742HDC Cable Box
My Samung cable box recently stopped working and had to be replaced. When the Time Warner technician arrived I expected he would replace the box with an identical model but instead he left me a Cisco 8742HDC box. I did a quick search of Samsung’s website and I couldn’t find any product info for the […]
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