During the coronavirus pandemic, there’s been a lot of interest in using germicidal lamps to disinfect surfaces rather than hosing everything down with bleach or disinfectant. But there have been reports that a lot of the germicidal lights based on LEDs are actually fake. So we did a little test. We went online and bought […]
Teardown: Inside the PlayStation 4 game box
We take a look at the venerable Sony game box with an eye toward power handling and architecture. Chances are that if you’re a gamer, you’re experiencing your video games on a Sony PlayStation 4. To date, over 75 million PlayStation 4 boxes have sold. The closest competitor is the Xbox One (36.03 million) and […]
Video Teardown: HOME Ever Inc. E27 A19 60-W equivalent LED bulb
As part of a continuing series where we take perfectly good LED bulbs and turn them into junk, Design World Executive Editor Lee Teschler and Associate Editor Michelle DiFrangia analyze the circuitry and design techniques used in a 60-W equivalent bulb from HOME Ever Inc., a Chinese manufacturer. There are big differences in this bulb […]
Teardown: Inside the TP-Link Archer C7 wireless router
Here is what the architecture of modern-day dual-speed Ethernet/Wi-Fi router looks like these days. TP-Link’s Archer C7 dual-speed wireless router delivers 1,300 Mbps over the 5 GHz band and 450 Mbps over the 2.4 GHz band. That should be enough bandwidth for HD streaming, online gaming and other bandwidth-intensive tasks. The idea behind using two […]
Video Teardown: Inside the Apple watch sport model
Though most of the Apple watch electronics are inaccessible because they sit within a 26 by 28-mm motherboard that’s overmolded with a special packaging compound, we were still able to discern a number of interesting features on the watch, including its use of a taptic engine and a special display light sensor.
Video Teardown: Could Mr. Robot have really hacked the Steel Mountain HVAC system?
TV viewers who tuned into episode five (having the catchy title “eps1.4_3xpl0its.wmv”) of Mr. Robot watched the main character employ a hack that destroyed magnetic tape data backups held at Evil Corp.’s Steel Mountain facility. Technology-literate viewers might wonder whether the events of episode five could really unfold in real life the way writers envisioned […]
Teardown: Inside an electronic ice cube
You might say an electronic ice cube makes for a cool teardown – literally. Here’s what’s inside cubes that lighten up drinks. Lee Teschler Executive Editor Transparent plastic…
