Perplexity Trillion-Parameter AI Model : Mixture-of-Experts (MoE) on AWS EFA

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Perplexity Trillion-Parameter AI Model : Mixture-of-Experts (MoE) on AWS EFA

What if the most complex AI models ever built, trillion-parameter giants capable of reshaping industries, could run seamlessly across any cloud platform? It sounds like science fiction, but Perplexity has turned this into reality. By overcoming the technical hurdles of deploying trillion-parameter Mixture-of-Experts (MoE) models, Perplexity has achieved a feat that many in the AI […]

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Oakley Vanguard vs Ray-Ban Meta Gen 2 : Which Smart Glasses Are Best For You?

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Oakley Vanguard vs Ray-Ban Meta Gen 2 : Which Smart Glasses Are Best For You?

Imagine this: you’re gearing up for a morning run or heading to a bustling café downtown. You slip on your smart glasses, ready to capture the world around you, stay connected, and elevate your experience. But here’s the catch, do you choose the sleek, fashion-forward Ray-Ban Meta Gen 2, or the performance-driven Oakley Vanguard? These […]

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iOS 26.2: Major Performance & Feature Overhaul

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iOS 26.2: Major Performance & Feature Overhaul

Apple’s iOS 26.2 delivers a robust set of updates designed to enhance safety, productivity, and creativity. The software is in beta with the recent release of iOS 26.2 beta 1. Whether you’re a casual user or a professional relying on your device for daily tasks, this update introduces tools that simplify workflows and improve overall […]

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Vosteed Vombat Review: Why This M390 Pocket Knife Is an EDC Modder’s Dream Come True

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Picture the typical launch cycle for a new folding knife. The company teases a product on Instagram, drops some specs, maybe partners with a YouTube reviewer or two. Enthusiasts argue about blade steel and lock mechanisms in comment sections. Someone complains about the price. Someone else points out the handle color options are boring. Launch day arrives, and the knife goes out into the world exactly as the manufacturer intended, sealed behind screws most buyers will never touch. Months later, modders start posting custom scale builds, aftermarket clips, and anodizing projects. The manufacturer either ignores this entirely or, in some cases, sends cease-and-desist letters.

Vosteed took one look at that cycle and designed a knife that skips straight to the modding phase. The Vosteed Vombat arrives as something closer to a platform than a finished product, complete with swappable scales, adjustable internals, and a construction system so deliberately user-friendly that all the body screws use the same T8 driver. They even provide the 3D files for printing custom scales, turning what’s usually a gray-market activity into an official feature. Pair that openness with a 2.92-inch M390 blade and a patent-pending Ball Roll Bar crossbar lock, and you have a knife that refuses to choose between performance and personalization.

Designer: Vosteed

Click Here to Buy Now: $83.40 $139 (40% off). Hurry, deal ends in 48-hours! Amazon Here.

It’s a hell of a gamble, trusting your customers not to mess things up. Most brands are terrified of this, preferring a locked-down ecosystem where they control every aspect of the user experience. Vosteed is basically handing over the keys to the kingdom, admitting that their vision ends where yours begins. This transforms the Vombat from a static object into a dynamic project. It’s a brave move that says more about their confidence in the EDC community than any slick marketing campaign could. But it also raises the stakes. An open platform is only as good as its foundation, so the core knife has to be absolutely dialed in from the factory.

And deliver it does. The whole thing is built around their Swappable Adjustable Scale, or SAS, system. This is the beating heart of the Vombat. Sure, you can swap the slick, CNC-textured aluminum scales for aftermarket kits in G10 or micarta, or go wild with your own 3D-printed designs. The real magic, though, is under the hood. You can actually tweak the crossbar’s omega spring tension using clever little “music note” indicators on the liners, letting you dial in the perfect action. There’s even a dedicated service hole that gives you access to the pivot for fine-tuning blade centering without having to perform the dreaded full takedown. This is the kind of obsessive-level tuning that knife nerds live for, and it’s all part of the stock package.

A tinkerer’s dream is a user’s nightmare if the knife itself can’t cut worth a damn. Vosteed knows this, which is why the Vombat is rocking a 2.92-inch blade made from Bohler M390, a super-steel that holds an edge forever and laughs at corrosion. You get two blade shapes to choose from: a classic, clip-point Bowie and a beefy Zulu spearpoint for more demanding utility work. They’ve also milled in their signature dual jimping, one set on the spine for your thumb and another up front for when you need to choke up for detail work. It’s one of those tiny ergonomic details that feels incredibly right once you use it, making the knife feel both secure and nimble.

Even the crossbar lock, which is everywhere these days, gets a thoughtful upgrade. Vosteed noticed that some crossbar locks can develop a bit of grit or stick over time, so they developed what they call a Ball Roll Bar. It’s a tiny, polished sphere at the heart of the mechanism designed to make the action smoother and more reliable over thousands of deployments. That’s the kind of obsessive detail that separates a good design from a great one. They didn’t just copy a popular feature; they identified a point of friction and engineered an elegant, almost invisible, solution.

So what we have here is not just another knife release. The Vombat is a premium folder built like a kit car. It gives you a fantastic M390 engine, a cleverly refined chassis with that Ball Roll Bar lock, and then invites you to build the rest of it exactly how you want. Everything from the single T8 screw size to the etch-friendly wire clip plate is designed to be pulled apart and personalized. With the current 40% launch discount bringing the price down to $119, it’s a no-brainer for anyone who’s ever looked at their EDC and thought, “I could make this better.” I’m genuinely stoked to see the weird, wonderful things people do with this knife.

Click Here to Buy Now: $83.40 $139 (40% off). Hurry, deal ends in 48-hours! Amazon Here.

The post Vosteed Vombat Review: Why This M390 Pocket Knife Is an EDC Modder’s Dream Come True first appeared on Yanko Design.

Top 10 World’s Thinnest MagSafe Power Banks That Give Your Phone Battery Without Any Bulk

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The current war in the tech industry isn’t about megapixels anymore. It’s moved on from cameras to folding displays to AI… and now the battleground is slimness. Companies like Samsung, Tecno, Honor, and Apple are actively locking horns here, shaving off precious millimeters off their phones to make them slimmer and sleeker, without really any strength tradeoff. The iPhone Air is a legitimately strong phone, and took over 200 lbs of pressure to break according to JerryRigEverything’s strength test. The problem, however, with a slim phone isn’t bendability or breakability… it’s battery capacity.

These slim phones end up boasting pro-grade performance, but at the cost of battery life. To be honest, nobody ever asked for ultra-slim phones – go on the streets and ask anyone and they’ll tell you day-long battery is more important than a slick gadget. The solution exists in broad daylight too – MagSafe power banks… but slap a chunky power bank on even a regular phone and it ends up looking like you’re using a massive Nokia Communicator phone. So we sifted through the internet to find the slimmest MagSafe power banks out there. These power banks are all under 10mm, which means they should attach to your phone without adding too much visual bulk. We’ve zeroed down on 11 power banks that fit this unique problem statement… I’ve added the 11th one not just because it’s technically impressive, but also I begrudgingly had to add Apple’s MagSafe Power Bank for the iPhone Air to this list (even though it literally only works with one smartphone). Here are our picks and what we love about them.

01. SnapWireless PowerPack Slim 2 (5.8mm)

You know what, shame on me for assuming that only legacy companies like Apple, LG, Samsung, Xiaomi, and Huawei have advanced battery R&D. The thinnest power bank on the market comes from a company you’d least expect. SnapWireless is known for its smartphone accessories like cases, chargers, and MagSafe wallets, but they also hold the title for selling the world’s thinnest power bank. The SnapWireless PowerPack Slim 2 may just pack 5,000mAh, but it does so in a form factor nearly as slim as the thinnest part of the iPhone Air.

The Slim 2 comes in 5 colors that match the iPhone 17’s palette (so you can get a power bank that matches your phone), and boasts a nifty matte metallic outer body that works as a heat sink, dissipating heat while your phone charges away. Snap the power bank on and it barely adds any thickness or weight to your phone (the thing weighs just 82 grams or 2.8 oz), and it gives your iPhone (or even Qi2-ready Android phone) an extra 5,000mAh, or just enough to get through a weekend.

Why We Recommend It

At 5.8mm, this thing is as thin as 7 credit cards stacked together… Snap it onto your phone and it practically blends in, considering most camera bumps are a comfortable 4-5mm thick anyway. At $45.56 on the SnapWireless website, this power bank is dirt cheap thanks to the Black Friday promo… let’s not also forget that it literally managed to beat stalwarts like Apple, Baseus, and Anker for the title of the ‘World’s Slimmest MagSafe Power Bank’.

02. Apple iPhone Air MagSafe Battery Pack (6.5mm)

Apple had a MagSafe Battery Pack that was discontinued in 2023, just 2 years after it launched. That battery pack notoriously got the nickname of ‘Camel Hump’, because of how it added this strange malignant growth to the back of the phone. Apple, however, quietly relaunched the MagSafe Battery Pack in September, as an iPhone Air exclusive. The reason? Because the iPhone Air’s battery could only pack so much power.

That being said, this $99 Battery Pack basically doubles your iPhone Air’s extra battery. The Air has a 3,149mAh battery itself, and the MagSafe Battery Pack adds an additional 3,149mAh to the phone. It does so while being just 6.5mm thick, and iFixit managed to tear it apart to reveal that the actual battery cell inside the pack was just a mere 2.72mm. The rest of the thickness can be attributed to the insulation/cover, the wireless charging coil, the MagSafe magnets, and the microcontroller that runs the battery pack along with its charging status LED.

Why We Recommend It

We don’t. Well, unless you’re one of the rare few people who splurged on the iPhone Air (apparently the Air only accounted for 3% of iPhone sales since September), this power bank really doesn’t make sense. It’s oddly shaped (and won’t mount on any other iPhone except the Air), and it also has the lowest mAh rating of any power bank in this list, making it an extremely niche product. But despite all that, a 6.5mm-thick power bank is quite the feat.

03. KUULAA Magnetic Power Bank (6.9mm)

Here’s what I love about this list – companies that most consumers wouldn’t have heard of are genuinely pushing boundaries by building well-engineered, slim devices. KUULAA’s slimmest power bank is just 1.1mm thicker than the thinnest power bank in the world. At 6.9mm, it sits third on this list, packing 5,000mAh of battery capacity, which is enough to charge most phones from 0-100 all the way through.

This power bank sports a glass back that matches most glass-back iPhones, and offers 7.5W standard MagSafe charging, but a pretty neat 20W when plugged in using the USB-C port on the bottom. At 110 grams (3.88 ounces), this thing is lighter than Apple’s own MagSafe Power Bank mentioned above, while still having nearly an extra 2,000mAh of capacity.

Why We Recommend It

What’s not to recommend? This thing’s a full $20 cheaper than Apple’s power bank. Super-strong N52 magnets hold the power bank on securely, and the thing supports dual-charging, working simultaneously as a wireless as well as a wired charger. The power bank comes in black or white, and if you want a pop of color, there are purple and pink variations too, although I’m personally a fan of subtle classic colors.

04. KUULAA MagOn Power Bank Ultra-Thin (7.2mm)

Back again on this list, KUULAA’s MagOn Power Bank sits at 7.2mm thick, making it just a fraction of a millimeter thicker than its own sibling. The specs are exactly the same – 5,000mAh on the inside, 7.5W wireless charging, 20W wired charging, and the ability to support dual charging. The difference, apart from the thickness, is its use of materials.

While the KUULAA Magnetic Power Bank had a glass-encased design, this one boasts an aluminum outer shell with a glass panel on the back (where the wireless coil is). The aluminum shell does two things – it helps dissipate heat efficiently, keeping the MagOn power bank cool, but it simultaneously also blends well with more premium Pro-grade iPhones that have muted metallic tones. The MagOn’s Titanium and Grey finishes complement the Pro-series iPhones wonderfully, making them a great pick if design matters to you.

Why We Recommend It

It might be thicker than its sibling, but it’s somehow lighter, clocking in at 104 grams or 3.67 ounces. I personally prefer the aluminum back because it visually blends in with my 15 Pro Max wonderfully well. That 0.3mm size bump is negligible, and your eyes (or even your hands) will never be able to tell the difference. The MagOn’s also priced at $76.5, making it even more affordable than its marginally slimmer sibling.

05. Baseus Picogo Ultra-Slim (7.6mm)

We’re sort of venturing into this grey area where all the power banks begin offering the same features. The Picogo Ultra-Slim comes from Baseus, known for their chargers and dongles (I swear by mine), measuring 7.6mm, tying it in with the TORRAS MiniMag which is next on the list. The one (actually two) thing/s giving the Picogo Ultra-Slim its edge remain, firstly, the fact that it’s the lighter of the two, measuring 3.8 ounces or 107.7 grams in weight… The next pro is just pure affordability.

As of this article, the Picogo Ultra-Slim is just $34.99, making it the most budget-friendly power bank on this list. That does matter to most people, and to seal the deal, Baseus also makes some pretty wild claims, like the Picogo Ultra-Slim having its own AI chip for monitoring and managing the power bank’s temperature for ‘cooler charging’. It also helps that the Picogo Ultra-Slim has an aluminum outer shell, helping dissipate heat.

Why We Recommend It

I recommend it for the sheer price. Baseus’ Black Friday discount gives this power bank an undeniable edge (apart from the one its slim design already has). It also supports pass-through charging, and has a 2-year warranty, which feels pretty compelling considering it’s double of what most companies offer.

06. TORRAS MiniMag (7.6mm)

TORRAS is an interesting company because while they make some pretty remarkable personal cooling wearables, they’re also absolute masters at casemaking. I still have (and cherish) their Ostand cases with the built-in rotating kickstand, but that’s not what this is about. Aside from neck-based phase-changing coolers and slim creator-friendly cases (and tempered glass protectors), TORRAS also owns bragging rights to the MiniMag, a 7.6mm-thin MagSafe power bank that packs 5000mAh of power in a deceptively thin form factor.

The MiniMag is the size of a playing card, and measures 0.01 inches thinner than the iPhone 17 (which clocks in at 0.31 inches). This, along with the fact that it weighs 115 grams or 4 ounces makes it a perfectly portable pack of power, phone and pocket-worthy. The limiting factor with thin power banks is usually being capped at 5,000mAh (and the MiniMag is limited by that too), but TORRAS also sells a thin 10,000mAh MagSafe power bank that’s a mere 0.5 inches thick… although that one clearly doesn’t make this list.

Why We Recommend It

It’s small, it’s light, and as of today, it’s $43.99 on TORRAS’ website thanks to Black Friday deals going live well in advance. The thing supports super-fast wired charging, making it faster than standard power banks, and the battery’s rated to last 500+ cycles, which easily gives you years of use without any signs of slowing down.

07. SAVEWO EVA MagCell (8mm)

Here’s an unexpected one – truly, because not only have I never heard of SAVEWO as a company, their 8mm-thick power bank looks nothing like any of the ones before it. The EVA (short for Evangelion) comes with an anime-inspired aesthetic, with graphics, characters, and motifs from the anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion. That outer aesthetic adds character to the otherwise fairly template-ish internals.

5,000mAh, 15W of wireless power delivery, 20W of PD3.0 thanks to the USB-C on the bottom – there’s nothing extraordinary here if you purely look at the spec sheet, but that’s a pretty scummy way to judge a design. The design is how it looks too, and the EVA MagCell definitely gets our vote in that department.

Why We Recommend It

At $40, this one feels like a good bargain. You get a power bank that’s slim and looks good enough that it won’t get lost or mixed up with your friends’ power banks any time soon. You’ve also got multiple designs to choose from, making this the only themed product in the entire series.

08. Native Union (Re)Classic MagSafe Power Bank (8.6mm)

If the EVA was the edgy one, Native Union’s (Re)Classic power bank is the classy one, sporting not a plastic or metal outer casing, but one made from faux leather for that extra oomph. You’ve got 5 very dapper colors to choose from, all echoing very pristine leather tan hues, blending in perfectly with any leather case you may put on your phone.

At 8.6mm, this isn’t the thinnest of the bunch, but it’s certainly impressive in its sleekness, and comes with a 5,000mAh internal, along with both MagSafe and Qi2 support (so that works for newer Android phones too). Each power bank gets paired with one of Native Union’s braided USB-C cables, upping the class-factor on this gizmo.

Why We Recommend It

Why rock plastic or glass when you could rock vegan leather? And this isn’t some run-of-the-mill vegan leather – Native Union designed it to be durable, and even gave it a gorgeous diamond texture that your fingers will love. At $69.99, it’s on the pricier side, but then again, you’re paying for style and substance as well as sleekness.

09. Anker Nano MagGo Power Bank (8.6mm)

About time Anker made it to the party. The company that practically pioneered an entire industry of charging accessories, Anker’s Nano MagGo barely makes the cut, tying in with Native Union’s (Re)Classic power bank at 8.6mm in thickness. I dock points for being basic looking, given that Anker’s power bank sort of looks like a mirror image of Apple’s own MagSafe power bank.

The only difference is that the Nano MagGo comes in 4 colors as opposed to Apple’s singular white. This bad-boy packs a 5,000mAh capacity too, with 15W fast wireless charging as well as fast-recharging for the battery pack itself. Anker claims it charges an iPhone 16 to 25% in just half an hour if you plug it in (delivering 20W of power), but marginally longer if you rely on the MagSafe charging protocol.

Why We Recommend It

Is it thicker than Apple’s own power bank? Yes, but it packs more capacity, works with all iPhones, and costs $54.99, which makes it cheaper than what Apple offers. I’d pick this if the only other option was Apple’s MagSafe power bank, but if you want style and substance, or even a competitive price point, there are others on this list.

10. PITAKA Aramid Fiber Magnetic Power Bank (8.8mm)

Vegan leather is nice, but Aramid fiber is infinitely cooler. Made from the same material used to make Kevlar, PITAKA’s power bank has a reputation that precedes it. Sure, it won’t deflect bullets, but that Aramid fiber weave is genuinely one of the coolest things I’ve seen on a power bank. PITAKA’s perfected the ability to weave the fibers in different patterns, creating unique designs that truly stand out. While blending in thanks to the sleek 8.8mm profile.

Sure, 8.8mm isn’t the slimmest, but if you’re trying to find a power bank that truly is a treat for the eyes, this one’s your bet. It packs 5,000mAh on the inside (a standard at this point), has MagSafe and Qi2 support, and even packs a 4 LED battery indicator that tells you exactly how much juice you’ve got remaining on the bank.

Why We Recommend It

At $69.99, it’s not your budget option, but one look at the Aramid fiber weave and you’d never think of using the word ‘budget’. This thing looks gorgeous as heck, and pairs rather well with PITAKA’s woven Aramid fiber cases too. Here’s the best part, each case comes with a magnetic array on the inside, which means the Android cases all instantly become MagSafe compatible in seconds!

[Bonus] KU XIU 2025 Solid-State Magnetic Portable Charger (9.9mm)

This otherwise-unheard-of brand gets a special mention on this list – not for just being slim, but for pioneering a technology that no company on this list has managed to so far. This KU XIU power bank features a solid-state battery, which is significantly more advanced than any of the Li-ion batteries on the competition. Solid state batteries are pretty much the holy grail of consumer-grade battery technology at this point. They’re a lot more durable than Li-ion, and unlike the latter that tend to catch fire or explode under duress, solid state batteries can literally get crucified with a nail and a hammer and they’ll still work. Don’t do that though. Just know that your battery is ridiculously durable.

It’s going to be a while before we see this tech in phones, but the fact that you’re getting them in power banks this slim (at a respectable 9.9mm) is still impressive. Go to KU XIU’s website and you’ll see someone literally hammering the power bank’s battery cell, puncturing it with nails, even clipping the corner off with pliers. The thing still works without catching fire or heating up. I’d call that mighty impressive considering it isn’t even a decade since the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 fiasco we had in 2016.

Why We Recommend It

Three words. Solid State Batteries. One more word. $49.99. You read that right, this 5,000mAh solid state power bank is literally cheaper than most of the other contenders on this list. Is it thicker? Yes, but is it also safer, more long-lasting, and quite literally the future of battery tech? Also yes.

The post Top 10 World’s Thinnest MagSafe Power Banks That Give Your Phone Battery Without Any Bulk first appeared on Yanko Design.

This One-Of-A-Kind Tiny Home Has a Staircase That Hides A Fridge

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In a world where housing costs continue to soar and environmental consciousness grows, the tiny home movement has found a compelling advocate in Spindrift Homes’ Shasta model. This 26-foot sanctuary represents more than just downsized living—it embodies a complete lifestyle transformation designed for those seeking simplicity, tranquility, and freedom from traditional housing constraints.

Designer: Spindrift Homes

Crafted with Intention

Spindrift Homes, a boutique tiny house builder based in Bend, Oregon, has been crafting eco-luxury, compact dwellings since 2019. The small team focuses on enabling owners to live more simply, connect more deeply with nature, and experience what they call “the liberating and thriving world of small-scale living”. The Shasta perfectly exemplifies this philosophy, serving as a custom-designed home originally built for a single mother who wanted to escape conventional housing pressures.

The home sits elegantly on a double-axle trailer, measuring 26 feet in length and 10 feet in width, yet manages to incorporate all the comforts and amenities of a modern residence within its compact 280 square feet. This extra-wide design maximizes both functionality and comfort, proving that square footage doesn’t determine quality of life.

Modern Farmhouse Aesthetics

The Shasta’s interior design screams modern farmhouse from every corner, featuring clean, modern lines balanced with cozy, rustic elements. The exterior showcases beautiful cedar siding topped with a distinctive dormer-style roof, while 15 strategically placed windows flood the interior with natural light. Two French or sliding doors create seamless indoor-outdoor connections, essential for the “slow living” philosophy the home represents.

Inside, thoughtful design utilizes every square inch effectively. The layout includes a first-floor bedroom and a loft guest space, accommodating both permanent residents and visitors. The kitchen features butcher block countertops with a clever fold-up extension, a custom backsplash, and open shelving that combines functionality with aesthetic appeal.

Smart Storage Solutions

One of Shasta’s most impressive features is its innovative staircase design. Rather than simply providing access to the loft, this multi-functional element incorporates built-in storage cupboards, open shelves, and even a dedicated space for a refrigerator. This clever integration addresses one of tiny living’s biggest challenges: adequate storage without sacrificing living space. The home also includes modern conveniences like ample USB and USB-C outlets throughout, dedicated 20-amp outlets in the kitchen, and four exterior outlets for outdoor activities.

Starting at $135,000, the Shasta offers extensive customization options, allowing buyers to choose their favorite colors for tile, upholstery, trim, and siding . Spindrift recommends considering a four-foot extension to accommodate additional features like washer-dryer hookups, dishwasher installation, and expanded living space.

 

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YouTube TV is giving subscribers a $20 credit as consolation for the Disney blackout

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YouTube TV has notified subscribers that a $20 credit is heading their way in light of its ongoing standoff with Disney, which has resulted in numerous channels going dark on the platform, including ESPN, ABC News and Disney Channel. In an email to subscribers, the YouTube TV Team said subscribers should expect to see an email in the coming days about the credit, which will be applied to their next bill after it's redeemed. 

"We know it’s been disappointing to lose Disney content, and we want you to know we deeply appreciate your patience," the email said. YouTube TV and Disney had a deadline of October 30 to reach a new agreement about Disney's content moving forward, but that date passed with no deal. Negotiations are ongoing, according to the company. "We've been working in good faith to negotiate a deal with Disney that pays them fairly for their content and returns their programming to YouTube TV," the team said in the email. If that $20 still isn't enough to make up for the weeks of lost content, you can always pause your subscription in the meantime. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/youtube-tv-is-giving-subscribers-a-20-credit-as-consolation-for-the-disney-blackout-231000002.html?src=rss

DJI’s Latest Drone Was Designed To 3D-Scan Landscapes (And Maybe Find Hidden Treasure)

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DJI just made professional-grade aerial LiDAR look affordable – for companies, governments, and organizations, at least. The Zenmuse L3, launched November 4, packs technology that would typically cost $150,000 to $250,000 into a $14,600 package that weighs just 1.6 kilograms. Its dual 100-megapixel cameras and laser system can map 100 square kilometers per day with centimeter-level precision – capabilities that open doors far beyond traditional surveying into realms like archaeological discovery and terrain analysis that were previously the domain of well-funded research institutions.

While the L3 targets professional surveyors, utility companies, and mining operations, the technology has captured imaginations far beyond its intended audience. DJI’s launch video has racked up over half a million views, suggesting that even those who can’t justify the five-figure price tag (like me, for example) are fascinated by what the system can do: strip away forest canopies with laser precision, reveal hidden terrain features, and create detailed 3D models of landscapes that might conceal everything from ancient ruins to forgotten infrastructure – or perhaps even treasure waiting to be discovered.

Designer: DJI Enterprise

So here’s the thing about LiDAR that makes it fundamentally different from just strapping a really good camera to a drone. Cameras see surfaces, whatever light bounces back to the lens. LiDAR shoots invisible laser pulses at the ground, measures how long they take to bounce back, and uses that timing to calculate exact distances. Fire enough of these pulses fast enough, in enough directions, and you’re essentially building a 3D point cloud of everything below you. The L3 fires up to 2 million laser pulses per second, which is an absurd number when you think about it. Each pulse that hits something creates a data point in three-dimensional space, and when you’ve got millions of them, you can reconstruct terrain with the kind of detail that makes traditional surveying look quaint.

What gets interesting is how far these lasers can actually reach. DJI claims 950 meters at lower pulse frequencies, which means you can fly this thing higher than most photography drones and still get usable data. Fly at 300 meters and you’re covering massive ground while maintaining accuracy within a few centimeters. That’s the kind of precision that lets utility companies inspect power lines without getting dangerously close, or lets mining operations map their entire site in a single day instead of sending survey crews out for weeks. The laser spot it creates is tiny, about 41mm across at 120 meters up, which is roughly the size of a golf ball. Smaller spots mean more precise measurements, and the L3’s spot is apparently one-fifth the size of what the previous model could do.

But the real party trick is how this thing handles obstacles like trees. When a laser pulse hits a forest canopy, it doesn’t just bounce off the first leaf it encounters and call it a day. Modern LiDAR systems can capture multiple returns from a single pulse. Think of it like the laser passing through gaps in the leaves, hitting a branch, continuing down, hitting more foliage, then finally hitting the ground. The L3 captures up to 16 of these returns, which is double what high-end professional systems typically manage. Every return gives you another layer of information about what exists in that vertical column of space. For someone trying to map terrain under dense vegetation, this is the difference between seeing a green blob and actually understanding the ground elevation beneath it. Archaeologists have used this exact technique to discover ancient Mayan cities hidden under jungle canopy, and while DJI isn’t marketing this as a treasure-hunting tool, the capability is absolutely there.

The dual 100-megapixel cameras add context that pure laser data can’t provide. Point clouds are incredibly accurate but they’re also just clouds of points, no color, no texture, nothing that helps a human brain quickly understand what they’re looking at. High-resolution cameras flying alongside the LiDAR capture regular photos that get mapped onto the 3D point cloud, giving you models that actually look like the real world. At 300 meters up, each pixel in those photos represents 3 centimeters on the ground, which is detailed enough to see road markings, individual shrubs, basically anything larger than a soccer ball. The system takes both types of data simultaneously, so you’re not making multiple passes or trying to align datasets captured at different times under different lighting conditions.

Traditionally, capturing LiDAR data was the easy part and processing it was where everything ground to a halt. You’d come back with terabytes of raw laser measurements that needed heavy computation to turn into usable maps or models, often requiring expensive software and workstations that could actually handle the processing load. DJI bundles their Terra software for free, no additional licenses, and they’ve optimized it so you can open massive datasets on fairly modest hardware. They’re also doing something clever with real-time preview, letting you see the point cloud data and take measurements while you’re still flying. You’re not waiting until you get back to the office to discover your flight parameters were wrong or you missed a critical area. That kind of immediate feedback changes how you approach the actual data collection because you can adjust on the fly instead of scheduling another expensive flight mission.

The whole package weighs 1.6 kilograms and mounts exclusively to DJI’s Matrice 400 drone platform, which is their heavy-lift enterprise model. You’re looking at around $34,000 for the complete system, drone included, which puts it firmly in the realm of business investment rather than hobbyist experimentation. But that price point is what makes this notable. Five years ago, getting this level of LiDAR capability meant spending six figures on specialized equipment. DJI’s approach has been to take technology that existed only in high-end professional contexts and compress it into something that mid-sized organizations can actually justify purchasing. A regional utility company, a municipal government, a decent-sized construction firm, these are entities that can suddenly afford aerial LiDAR when they couldn’t before. And apparently, based on those YouTube view counts, a whole lot of people who will never touch one of these systems are still captivated by what it represents. There’s something fundamentally cool about technology that lets you see through forests and map the world in three dimensions, even if the only treasure most users will find is more efficient powerline inspections.

The post DJI’s Latest Drone Was Designed To 3D-Scan Landscapes (And Maybe Find Hidden Treasure) first appeared on Yanko Design.

Blue Origin scrubs New Glenn’s second flight due to bad weather

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Blue Origin has postponed the second flight of its New Glenn rocket, which was slated to send a pair of NASA spacecraft on the first step of their journey to Mars on Sunday afternoon. The heavy-lift launch vehicle was scheduled to take off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 2:45PM ET., but multiple holds were issued during the under-two-hour launch window due to inclement weather. Blue Origin called off the launch attempt around 4:13PM.

The next launch opportunity is as yet unclear. Blue Origin was previously given a backup opportunity set for Monday afternoon, but the FAA has since issued an emergency order restricting commercial launches for the time being due to the government shutdown. As of November 10, commercial space launches can only take place between 10:00PM and 6:00AM. Blue Origin said on Sunday that it’s reviewing opportunities based on the weather, and did not mention the FAA’s order.

New Glenn's development has faced significant delays over the last decade since it was first announced, and finally took its maiden flight at the beginning of this year. Its first stage booster is intended to be reusable, and the company plans to recover the booster from the upcoming launch by landing it on an autonomous landing platform vessel dubbed Jacklyn, also known as the barge. Blue Origin attempted the same during its first flight, but failed. 

The spacecraft on board New Glenn are twin satellites built by Rocket Lab and operated by UC Berkeley for NASA's Escapade mission to study the effects of space weather. They'll be following a new trajectory to the red planet, lingering in "a lazy, 12-month kidney bean-shaped orbit" around Earth until Mars is in alignment, according to UC Berkeley. Escapade should reach Mars in 2027. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/space/blue-origin-scrubs-new-glenns-second-flight-due-to-bad-weather-214349212.html?src=rss