I built a distributed computer with three cheap ESP32 boards using a feature most people ignore
…ESP-NOW is Wi-Fi without the Wi-Fi Just a distributed network ESP-NOW lives at the data-link layer. It uses the same 2.4 GHz radio as Wi-Fi…
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I avoided powerline Ethernet for years, but it solved the one connectivity gap nothing else could
…That was me for many years, until I lived in a particularly complicated apartment layout that made most networking options unviable. Wi-Fi worked in most of the apartment, though the signal…
Your new home's network is already broken — here are the 3 fixes that actually work
…Guest network isolation Protect your home from the smart home backdoor A great step is to create a dedicated guest Wi-Fi network or a separate VLAN specifically for smart home devices…
Qualcomm's Snapdragon 6 Gen 5 brings Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6.0 to mid-range phones
…Related Wi-Fi 8 is nearly here - but what does that actually mean for your home network? If you've been holding off, you'll want this upgrade. The Snapdragon 6 Gen…
Powerline Ethernet gave me reliable speeds without running cables through my walls
…instead of running a dedicated Ethernet cable through walls or relying on Wi-Fi signals, powerline adapters convert network data into a signal that travels through the copper wiring already inside your…
I turned my old router into a Wi-Fi extender with OpenWrt, and it was easier than I thought
…Recently, I decided to bite the bullet and turn an old Wi-Fi router I had lying around into a Wi-Fi extender just to get better coverage in some of the…
Curtain automation is fun, but the weird smart home projects are where things get really useful
…A Thread Border Router's job is to connect the Thread mesh network to a broader IP-based network like your home Wi-Fi. Many modern smart home hubs, including the Apple…
Most smart home failures start with DNS, and nobody notices until everything breaks
…Yet, despite having a powerful router and excellent Wi-Fi coverage , I kept experiencing phantom network dropouts that drove me absolutely crazy. One day my smart plugs would refuse to trigger their…
I set up a Tailscale exit node at home, and it's more useful than just exposing services
…Despite being overlooked by most home labbers, Tailscale exit nodes single-handedly protect my browsing sessions when I connect my devices to unsecured Wi-Fi networks. Related Tailscale Funnel is the most…
I cut Apple and Google out of my smart home with a $5 ESP32, and it was easier than I expected
…my home operate on Wi-Fi, I wanted to try out Thread-certified devices from IKEA, Nanoleaf, Eve, and others. To leverage Thread, a low-power mesh networking protocol, I needed hardware…