Blog Posts

Blog Posts

LightInk: Solar-Powered ESP32 E-Ink Smartwatch with 10-Month Battery Life – CNX Software

LightInk

Daniel Ansorregui has developed LightInk, an open-source solar-powered E-ink watch inspired by 90s solar digital watches. It features a 1.54-inch e-paper display and supports Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, LoRa, and GPS, running on a 100mAh battery. The project integrates a custom low-quiescent-power design using a TPS63900 buck-boost converter, capacitive-touch input, and deep-sleep-driven firmware, along with ultra-fast partial e-ink updates (<1 ms active time) and precise RTC timekeeping with drift calibration. It also supports solar-first operation (no dedicated charging IC) and dynamic power gating of peripherals, enabling around 9–10 months of operation on a small battery supplemented by solar power. LightInk specifications: System-in-package – ESP32-PICO-D4 SiP CPU – Dual-core processor @ 240MHz Memory – 520KB SRAM Storage – 4MB flash Wireless – 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi 4 up to 150 Mbps and Bluetooth 4.2 BR/LE connectivity Display – 1.54-inch 200×200 B/W e-Paper panel (GDEH0154D67 or compatible) Audio – 10-15mm piezo electric disc speaker Connectivity […]

The post LightInk – An ESP32-based, solar-powered E-ink smartwatch with up to 10 months of battery life appeared first on CNX Software – Embedded Systems News.

Trump Dismisses Entire National Science Board

Multiple sources are reporting that the Trump administration has dismissed the entire National Science Board (NSB). The NSB advises the president and Congress on the National Science Foundation (NSF), which has already been funding research at historically low levels and has seen significant delays in doling out that funding. The NSF has been fundamental in […]

How to Guarantee the Privacy of Deleted Messages in Signal

Vic Hood

Signal stands out as one of the most secure private messaging applications available. Established by the nonprofit Signal Foundation, this free messaging platform provides end-to-end encryption for all messages exchanged, encompassing texts, voice calls, images, and videos — enabled by its cutting-edge open source Signal Protocol.

Consequently, no one, not even the Signal organization, can access your discussions on the app. Furthermore, the service only necessitates a telephone number for registration, with the Signal Foundation assuring users there are no ads, affiliate marketers, or tracking practices involved. Engineered this way, Signal has gained traction among hackers and activists, as the company openly supported protests in 2020 and introduced a feature that allows users to blur faces to safeguard protester identities. Additionally, with growing concerns regarding privacy, Signal has seen an uptick in usage as individuals searched for secure messaging app alternatives following WhatsApp’s 2021 privacy policy changes.

Nevertheless, while Signal gives users the option to set messages for automatic deletion after a specific period through its disappearing messages feature, this does not guarantee the privacy of incoming messages. A defendant in Texas discovered this when the FBI was able to retrieve some of their deleted incoming messages from their iPhone’s notification database. Below, we outline how to stop Signal message content from showing up in your phone notifications on both iOS and Android to ensure your conversations remain private.