Samwise Makers' News
Sunday, June 14, 2026
Bambuddy Offers Makers a Self-Hosted Alternative to Bambu Lab's Cloud
Every 3D print job on a Bambu Labs printer routes through Bambu's cloud servers by default — a compromise many owners tolerate but few prefer. Bambuddy, a new open-source project, changes that by providing a self-hosted, cloud-free central command for managing Bambu printers locally. After setting a printer to LAN-only mode and enabling Developer Mode, users can add their machines to Bambuddy, which then handles slicing, monitoring, and remote access via a built-in proxy, all without touching Bambu's infrastructure. The platform supports one to forty printers and features an integrated slicer. A live sandbox demo with simulated printers is available for those wanting to explore before committing.
Sources: Hackaday
Modos Flow Open-Source E-Ink Monitor Hits 75 Hz — the Highest Yet for E-Paper
E-ink displays have long been dismissed as too slow for anything beyond e-readers, but that reputation is now outdated. Wenting Zhang's Modos Flow, a fully open-source, user-repairable 13.3-inch portable E-ink monitor, achieves a 75 Hz refresh rate — the highest yet demonstrated for an e-paper display. Zhang argues the bottleneck was never the technology itself, but the controller. The project uses a custom FPGA display controller paired with the Modos Glider Mega Adapter, which supports four connector types compatible with dozens of E-paper panels ranging from 4.3 to 13 inches. The 1600 x 1200 display ships in monochrome and color versions through Crowd Supply.
Sources: Hackaday
Espressif ESP32-E22 Earns Wi-Fi 6E Certification; Open-Source Linux Drivers Released
Espressif's ESP32-E22 tri-band Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.4 module has received Wi-Fi CERTIFIED certification from the Wi-Fi Alliance, with the company simultaneously releasing open-source Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Linux drivers for the chip. The ESP32-E22 was first unveiled at CES 2026 and features a dual-core RISC-V processor clocked at up to 500 MHz, 1 MB of RAM, and tri-band Wi-Fi 6E achieving up to 2.1 Gbps in iperf testing. Unlike typical ESP32 IoT chips, the E22 targets host-based wireless systems and connects via PCIe 2.0 or SDIO. Current Linux driver support covers station mode over PCIe and Bluetooth over USB, and requires Linux 5.14 or newer.
Sources: CNX Software
GentleOS Revives 16- and 32-Bit x86 Hardware with a Lightweight Desktop OS
GentleOS, a lightweight operating system created by [Luke8086], brings new life to older 16 and 32-bit x86 machines that most modern operating systems have long abandoned. Featured in Hackaday's Jenny's Daily Drivers series, the OS delivers a basic but clean graphical interface alongside a selection of applications and games, with fast boot times in a virtual machine. The series evaluates esoteric operating systems under real-world conditions — Jenny List uses each OS for her actual Hackaday editing work rather than running a theoretical review. For anyone with aging x86 hardware collecting dust, GentleOS offers a functional desktop alternative built specifically to respect the original architecture of those older machines.
Sources: Hackaday
3D-Printed Watch Case Achieves Professional Finish Using Miyota 8N24 Movement
Maker [Z0hn]'s custom timepiece looks at first like an off-the-shelf watch — which is partly the point. The project centers on 3D printing a custom case to hold a commercially available Miyota 8N24 movement and an off-the-shelf crystal, achieving a professional-quality result. Two practical design choices stand out: the back uses a 3D-printable bayonet connector that is robust, easy to create, and reliable; and the crown placement is configurable, letting builders shift it to their preference during the design phase. The result is a watch polished enough to wear without drawing attention, making it a solid starting point for anyone looking to personalize their own timepiece.
Sources: Hackaday
Ultrasound Chest Patch Could Replace Surgery-Dependent Pacemakers
Researchers have developed a wearable chest patch that uses ultrasound to pace heart rhythm — a potential surgery-free alternative to traditional pacemakers. Traditional devices require invasive battery-replacement surgeries sometimes as often as every five years; this system keeps the electronics external. The approach relies on gene therapy to sensitize heart cells to high-frequency ultrasound waves, with the therapy administered through a simple injection. The patch itself attaches externally to the chest and wirelessly receives data and power from a module the patient carries in a pocket. Tests conducted on rats, pigs, and human heart cell samples all showed positive responses to the ultrasound pacing system, according to the research team.
Sources: Hackaday
Top Crowdfunding
Crowd Supply / Kickstarter
1. Modos Flow — open-source 75 Hz E-ink monitor, Crowd Supply (active)
2. CardputerZero — Raspberry Pi CM0 pocket computer, Crowd Supply (launched May 2026)
3. LincStation E1 — 4-bay private NAS with 4K output, Kickstarter (active June 2026)
GitHub Trending
Makers & Hardware
None confirmed this week
Upcoming Events
Maker Faire Bay Area — Sep 25–27, 2026, Mare Island Naval Shipyard, CA
Maker Faire Rome — Oct 23–25, 2026, Gazometro Ostiense, Rome
Maker Faire Rome: call for makers closes June 15, 2026
Curated by JD · samwise.agency