RkBlog

PC Hardware

PC on ARM - Linux and Windows on ARM

Benchmarks, reviews and solutions for ARM based PC desktops and laptops.

Before you buy Snapdragon X Elite device - check the chip model number

There are four variants of Snapdragon X Elite with one severely weaker from the oter

A quick test of OCuP4V2 and EXP GDC OCuLink adapter boards

Testing compatibility and performance of new OCuLink adapter boards available on Aliexpress.

OCuLink and Thunderbolt 3/USB4 eGPU on Linux with GPD Win Max 2

Testing performance and support for eGPU solution under Linux

Benchmarking various Linux distributions on GPD Win Max 2

Ryzen 7840U versus Linux. How does it perform and what's the difference versus Windows.

Blast from the past - stand alone DVD movie player

A review of a stand alone DVD/CD movie player from Aliexpress

Adapting custom eGPU cases for OCuLink eGPU setups

Trying to use existing eGPU enclosures with GPD Win Max 2 and OCuLink boards

Benchmarking OCuLink and USB4 eGPU with Nvidia desktop cards on GPD Win Max 2

Performance scaling for Nvidia graphics cards as eGPU for Win Max 2

Programming and electronics

Testing Raspberry Pi cameras with Sony and OmniVision CMOS sensors

Compatibility and image quality testing of various Sony IMX and OmniVision based cameras for Raspberry Pi

Network monitoring applications - taking a look at Glasswire, Sniffnet, Postmaster, and alternatives

GUI network monitoring applications can be handy for checking which applications use the network and how.

Testing Upscayl - local AI image upscaling application

Upscayl is a cross-platform desktop application for AI-powered image upscaling using a few selected models.

Sending cross-email-client-compatible emails with MJML and Python

Sending a good-looking email is not easy due to limited and varying HTML support by email clients. MJML can however help with this problem.

Testing AMD Amuse - local image generation with Stable Diffusion AI models

Generating images from prompt, changing image styles with various Stable Diffusion models

Sending SMS through GoIP GSM gateway using HTTP API

GoIP is a GSM gateway with multiple ways to automate its operations and handle SMS or VoIP features.

PC scripting and monitoring with microcontrollers and custom components

Custom displays, LED, sensors and more. Custom V-slot PC cases, power monitoring done with microcontrollers and custom components.

CloudCannon as a git based headless CMS for static site generators

Showcasing CloudCannon with 11ty as a headless CMS service

Astrophotography

Jupiter 17.09.2023

M27 Dumbbell Nebula

Messier M33 and M15

Jupiter 08.09.2023

Connecting Canon EOS R cameras to T2 and M48 lenses and telescopes

Adapters for Canon R mount for old lenses and astrophotography.

Light pollution effect on deep space astrophotography

How a bit of light pollution can make nebulosity vanish from images

M27 Dumbbell Nebula in common and exotic bands

Narrowband and bandpass imaging from UV to IR of NGC 6853.

Mounting custom industrial filters in astronomical filter cells

How to mount a 25mm filter in a 1,25' filter cell.

Games and benchmarks

The Bazaar - a new card game / hero builder and auto-battler

The Bazaar is a free-to-play card game developed by an ex-Hearthstone pro player aiming at fun and engaging hero-building gameplay.

FFXIV Dawntrail CPU, GPU, and iGPU performance comparison

Testing Dawntrail performance across wide range of PC hardware.

WoW Dragonflight CPU performance comparison

How Dragonflight performance scales across different CPUs, how performant are X3D chips.

WoW Dragonflight iGPU and mobile chips performance comparison

Testing performance of laptop, nettop, SFF integrated graphics and chips.