TechEBlog -

Google’s Pixel Watch 5 Delivers Solid Health Tracking and Endurance Matching Apple Watch Series 12

By Jackson Chung October 10, 2026

Google introduced the Pixel Watch 5, priced at $379.99 (was $430), a couple of months ago with the same familiar round case as its predecessor, yet the 45mm version carries meaningful refinements that let it compete directly with the Apple Watch Series 12 for daily wear. The aluminum housing uses recycled material and measures 45 by 45 by 12.3 millimeters while weighing 36.7 grams without the band. A domed Actua 360 AMOLED display reaches 3,000 nits of peak brightness under Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection, remaining readable outdoors and switching between 1 and 60 Hz depending on content. Water resistance reaches 5 ATM and IP68, covering swims and everyday exposure without requiring special care.

Super Mario 64 Arrives on the Microsoft Zune HD via the sm64-zune Port

By Bill Smith October 10, 2026

Microsoft’s Zune never matched the iPod’s hold on the culture, yet the Zune HD has just gained a new purpose as a Super Mario 64 machine through a fresh open-source port.

DamnationX Fan Remake Adds HD Textures Ray Tracing and Online Play to Diablo 1

By Bill Smith October 10, 2026

Fans who still wander the dark streets of Tristram and the levels beneath it now have another way to return. DamnationX is a fan project built on top of DevilutionX, the long-running open-source port that already lets people run the original 1996 Diablo on modern computers with higher frame rates, controller support, and other practical fixes. Troygentic has taken that foundation and layered on optional high-definition art, lighting that uses ray tracing, and an online lobby so groups can play together.

First Look at DirectHop, the Tiny One Gram Robot Precisely Hops Over Stairs with Motor Control

By Jackson Chung October 10, 2026

Photo credit: Mark Stone/University of Washington
University of Washington engineers have built DirectHop, a one gram robot small enough to sit in a palm that clears a standard stair step while setting its jump height to single centimeter accuracy. The prototype performs multiple hops in sequence and rights itself after most landings, steps toward an autonomous version that could move through varied spaces.

Xii-Boy Ultra Packs Real Wii Hardware into a Wire Free Game Boy Shell

By Bill Smith October 10, 2026

Modders have spent years trimming Nintendo Wii motherboards down to the absolute minimum so they fit inside handheld shells that resemble the original Game Boy. Xenii refined that approach across earlier Xii-Boy versions until the latest Ultra revision arrived as a fully modular kit. Tito from Macho Nacho Productions assembled one, and the result sits at roughly 145 by 86 by 27 millimeters while still containing a genuine Wii board that has undergone the standard OMGWTF trim.