TechEBlog -

Turning Ordinary Silicon Wafers Into Working Solar Cells With a Microwave Kiln

By Jackson Chung October 20, 2026

Silicon wafers sit in online carts for a few dollars, plain p-type disks cut from larger crystal ingots and free of any factory patterns. A short score with a diamond or silicon-carbide scribe splits them into small squares a few millimeters across, then a rinse in isopropyl alcohol and distilled water clears the dust left by the break. Those squares already carry the positive side of a solar cell. The missing piece is a thin negative layer of phosphorus atoms driven a fraction of a micrometer into the surface so light can knock electrons loose and send them around a circuit.

Cranktown City Assembles Massive Backyard Satellite Ground Station to Capture Weather Data From Orbit

By Jackson Chung October 20, 2026

Cranktown City spotted an eight-foot dish online and decided the usual starter kit of a small Yagi or a handheld weather dish simply would not do for a first serious look at signals coming down from space. What followed was a full-scale articulating mount planted on a large post set into a concrete pad, with a custom metal base fabricated underneath to hold the electronics that both receive the incoming radio and command the dish’s motion. That base carries a big metal gear driven by a wheelchair motor for the side-to-side azimuth sweep and a linear actuator that handles the up-and-down elevation, giving the whole assembly enough travel and speed to follow satellites as they cross the sky.

Google’s Pixel 10 Pro XL Still Delivers Bright Screens and Capable Cameras for Daily Use in 2026

By Jackson Chung October 20, 2026

Google built the Pixel 10 Pro XL, priced at $849 today (was $1,200), as its largest phone in the 2025 lineup, measuring 162.8 by 76.6 by 8.5 millimeters and weighing 232 grams. An aluminum frame wraps around Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on both sides, and the whole package carries an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance. In hand it feels substantial without turning awkward for one-handed reaches or pocket carry. A 6.8-inch LTPO OLED panel fills most of the front, running at 2992 by 1344 resolution with a 120 Hz refresh rate that drops as low as 1 Hz when nothing moves. Peak brightness hits 3300 nits in short bursts and holds around 2200 nits for HDR content, which keeps outdoor text readable even under direct sun.

How a Gamer and Claude AI Boosted Frame Rates in Oblivion Remastered

By Bill Smith October 20, 2026

A longtime fan of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion grew tired of the hitching and low frame rates that stuck around after the remaster arrived on PC. Even after moving from an older graphics card to a Radeon RX 9070 XT paired with a Ryzen 7 5800X and 32 GB of memory, towns still crawled and travel stuttered hard enough to pull him out of the world. He turned to Claude Opus 5.5 through Claude Code, linked his accounts for access to Unreal Engine source material, and spent roughly two and a half weeks directing the model through analysis, benchmarks, and changes while he kept playing and testing every result.

Insta360’s Antigravity A1 Follow Me Bundle Puts Reliable Tracking and Gesture Controls on Your Wrist

By Jackson Chung October 20, 2026

Antigravity released the Follow Me Bundle for its A1 drone, pairing the existing 8K 360 aircraft with a Watch Remote, Ring Remote, and full-coverage propeller guards. Complete kits that include the drone list for $799 through the company website and selected Best Buy locations, cutting the previous entry price in half, while the accessory kit alone costs $340 or $272 for people who already own an A1.