VoltJots | Electronics and IoT

Issue 74

Author

VoltJots
January 01, 2026

Welcome to the first edition in 2026 of the VoltJots newsletter, linking you to the very best electronics and IoT news, products, and projects.

Hope you enjoy! Until next week,

VoltJots

NEWS & ARTICLES

Transient electronics are designed to work for a limited time before dissolving into safe materials when triggered by water, heat, or light, offering a new way to reduce e-waste by making devices that disappear instead of piling up in landfills.

Edited by Edge Impulse, this 124-page ElektorMag covers emerging edge AI tech with expert advice and practical examples for building motion recognition, voice-controlled, and vision-language AI models on hardware.

We’ve gathered the most intriguing 2025 research news featuring innovations such as rubber CMOS and washable electronics, presented in the order they happened.

The latest research shows that redesigning fullerene connections in carbon battery materials can improve safety, extend battery life, and increase power output beyond what graphite-based lithium-ion batteries offer.

By generating its own +/-10 V rails from a single +5 V supply, the MAX232 replaced bulky bipolar drivers and made RS-232 serial communication straightforward and compact.

According to Skyworks, edge AI has evolved from vision to reality thanks to mature architectures, leaps in silicon performance, network upgrades with 5G/6G, and automotive innovations, creating a clear business case for processing intelligence right at the edge.

OQ Technology has certified Nordic’s nRF9151 cellular IoT module to operate on its MSS S-band satellite network, enabling direct IoT data transmission from the chip to OQ’s LEO satellites.

PROJECTS & TUTORIALS

In the first of two parts, this guide walks you through the Arduino Uno Q’s hardware setup, firmware and OS updates from the command line, running example Apps in Arduino App Lab, and experimenting with different hookup options including USB, standalone SBC, and network modes.

Dive into some practical computer science projects ranging from setting up a personal home cloud to creating a DIY examination grading system, plus AI tools like facial expression recognition and suspicious activity tracking cameras.

Using MicroPython on the Raspberry Pi Pico, learn how to access its flash file system to create and manage files and directories, keeping data safe across power cycles.

Combine an ESP32 microcontroller with an OLED display to build a voice assistant that records your queries, processes them through Google’s Gemini AI, and shows the responses visually on the tiny screen.

DMX512 is the main way to command lighting gear, and you can use an Arduino plus a simple isolated driver circuit to run your own light fixtures for shows or projects.

Combine ESP8266 NodeMCU with Blynk IoT to control relays on a smart plug from your phone or manual switches, with offline functionality and EEPROM memory to keep things running smoothly even without internet.

Bring the offline Chrome Dino game to life on a compact Arduino setup with an OLED display, featuring jumping, obstacle avoidance, and score tracking.

This project fits an ESP32-C5 dev board, a 2-inch IPS screen, and a LiPo battery inside a Tic Tac mint box to create a compact, rechargeable WiFi analyzer that works on both 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands.

Running classic Tetris on a mini WS2812B LED matrix, MatTris combines a custom 14×20 LED display, input buttons, and a power circuit on a single PCB, all powered by a LiPo battery and managed by an onboard IC.

Turn an ESP01 or ESP01s into a weather display by fetching data from WeatherAPI and showing it on an SSD1306 OLED screen. Connecting over WiFi, the ESP01 refreshes weather info every minute to stay within free API limits.

PRODUCTS

This ultra-compact development kit uses Espressif’s ESP32-H2 to deliver Zigbee, Thread, and Matter support in a single board. It’s got a Grove port, LEDs, an IR transmitter, a button, and USB-C for easy power and coding.

The 0.3.2 update for Arduino App Lab improves reliability, automates setup, and adds AI model control, plus a load of fresh examples to spark new projects with the Arduino UNO Q.

These NPN and PNP transistors from Diodes deliver industry-leading conduction efficiency and handle up to 10A continuously, all in a tiny 3.3mm square package with enhanced thermal management and high ESD robustness for reliable automotive use up to +175°C.

With up to 8GB LPDDR4, optional eMMC, HDMI 2.0 4K60, Wi-Fi 6, and a PCIe M.2 2242 slot, the VisionFive2 Lite delivers a fully open-source Linux experience on a compact, low-cost RISC-V platform.

ProtoV MINI is a credit-card-sized power supply that fits on your breadboard and independently powers both rails from one USB-C input. It features adjustable voltage up to 20 V, built-in protection, and real-time monitoring, plus open source hardware and firmware for easy customisation.

Summary: ScioSense's new UFM-02 ultrasonic flow module cuts power use to just 50µA, letting battery-powered devices measure flow and detect leaks for years without a recharge.

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