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From Sand to Phones - Part 2: Building Billions of Switches

Lights, lasers, and lithography
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Tech is everywhere. But context is fading. With Nexus, we bring back the opinions that shape your knowledge.

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From Sand to Phones - Part 2: Building Billions of Switches
Your phone chip has around 20 billion microscopic switches. Here's how light, chemistry, and atomic precision build them onto a sliver of silicon.
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
Ditch Windows, Here's How To Build Your Own Steam Machine
Valve's Steam Machine costs $1,049. You can install SteamOS free on a PC you already own, this is the exact step-by-step, screenshots included.
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
From Sand to Phones - Part 1: The Sand in Your Phone
From sand to silicon wafer: how chips are made, why the purity is absurd, and why only a few companies on Earth can do it at scale.
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
Why Europe Is Quietly Ditching Microsoft
Denmark, Germany, and France are moving government systems off Microsoft to Linux and open source. Inside Europe's push for digital sovereignty.
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
Why We’re Going Paid
We're going paid so our deepest work isn't treated as disposable. Most of SK NEXUS stays accessible, but here's what changes.
 • Saqib Tahir
Beyond the Frame - Part 3: The Fix for Screen Tearing and Input Lag
High FPS but the game still feels off? Here's how G-Sync vs FreeSync, VSync, and Reflex fix screen tearing, stutter, and input lag.
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
The Illusion of Stability: The Internet Runs on a Handful of Companies
The internet feels reliable, but internet centralization means a handful of providers hold it up. Here's how it got fragile, and what you can do.
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
Beyond The Frame - Part 2: Smoother, But Not Faster
Frame generation makes games look smoother by inventing frames between real ones. Here's how it works, and why it can hurt you in competitive games.
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
How Voice Communication Moved to the Internet
Every call you make now travels as data packets. How VoIP works, how it beat the old phone network, and why voice can now be faked.
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
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From Sand to Phones - Part 2: Building Billions of Switches
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Yousaf Babur
From Sand to Phones - Part 2: Building Billions of Switches
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Mohib Ur Rehman
Why Europe Is Quietly Ditching Microsoft
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Breaking down Tech for the Mango Man (Aam Aadmi/Regular Person)
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Consumer Tech

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Ditch Windows, Here's How To Build Your Own Steam Machine
Valve's Steam Machine costs $1,049. You can install SteamOS free on a PC you already own, this is the exact step-by-step, screenshots included.
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
The Illusion of Stability: The Internet Runs on a Handful of Companies
The internet feels reliable, but internet centralization means a handful of providers hold it up. Here's how it got fragile, and what you can do.
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
Hacking Didn't Start With the Internet
Long before the internet, hackers were breaking AT&T with whistles. The story of phreaking, the 2600 Hz flaw, and how phone hacking began.
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
Tech Ecosystems - Part 2: The Cost of Staying
Ecosystems hook you with convenience. Then they shift control. Here's how lock-in actually works.
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
Tech Ecosystems - Part 1: How They Get Built
How tech ecosystems are built step by step, why they work, and what it costs you to stay inside one.
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
What The Heck is AI
Most products labeled AI aren't using generative AI at all. A breakdown of machine learning, deep learning, and the marketing label on top of them.
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
Ensh*ttification - How Platforms Turn Against You
Platforms start useful, then get worse on purpose. Here's the business model behind Enshittification and what you can do about it.
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
The Battery Inside Your Phone Is Running Out of Ideas
Lithium-ion batteries have powered your devices for 30 years. Silicon-carbon and solid-state tech are finally here to replace them. Here's how.
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir

Everyday Security

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Privacy Fundamentals - Part 4: Networks and Tunnels
Your IP address exposes your location and activity. Learn how VPNs, WARP, and proxies actually work and which one you should use.
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
Privacy Fundamentals - Part 3: Your Browser
Cookies, tracking pixels, and browser fingerprinting explained. Learn how web tracking works and how to protect yourself with Firefox, Brave, and better…
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
Privacy Fundamentals - Part 2: Communication
Encrypted doesn't mean private. This guide breaks down metadata, secure messaging tools, and the habits that matter more than apps.
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
Privacy Fundamentals - Part 1: Authentication
Your accounts get hijacked through reused passwords, fake login pages, and recovery flows you forgot existed. Here's how to fix that.
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
Privacy Is Not Security - The Difference is Important
Privacy and security aren't the same thing — and the confusion benefits everyone except you.
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
Social Engineering - When People Become the Exploit
Always the weakest link
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
The Illusion of Privacy: Why You’re Data Isn't Secure
Unmasking the False Sense of Safety in Our Connected World
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
Strong Passwords Still Get Hacked - Here's Why
You can do everything right and still lose
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir

Emerging Tech

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Prediction Markets - Part 2: When Odds Become the News
Prediction market odds are being cited as news before events even happen. How speculation is quietly becoming the lens we read reality through.
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
Prediction Markets - Part 1: Betting on Reality
Betting on Reality.... fun times we live in
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
The CPU Wars are Back!
$299. 24 cores. And a grudge match that's only getting started.
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
What The Heck is AI
Most products labeled AI aren't using generative AI at all. A breakdown of machine learning, deep learning, and the marketing label on top of them.
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
The Battery Inside Your Phone Is Running Out of Ideas
Lithium-ion batteries have powered your devices for 30 years. Silicon-carbon and solid-state tech are finally here to replace them. Here's how.
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
From Queues to QR Codes: Pakistan's Payment Transformation
Meta Description: Your parents stood in line to pay bills. You scan a QR code. Here's how EMIs and digital wallets changed everyday payments in…
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
Valve’s Bold Bet on the Future of VR: Steam Frame Explained
Holiday season came early for gamers
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
Road to Autonomy - Part 3: Billion Dollar Fails
Road to burning money away
 • Saqib Tahir and Yousaf Babur

Gaming

View all
Ditch Windows, Here's How To Build Your Own Steam Machine
Valve's Steam Machine costs $1,049. You can install SteamOS free on a PC you already own, this is the exact step-by-step, screenshots included.
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
Beyond the Frame - Part 3: The Fix for Screen Tearing and Input Lag
High FPS but the game still feels off? Here's how G-Sync vs FreeSync, VSync, and Reflex fix screen tearing, stutter, and input lag.
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
Beyond The Frame - Part 2: Smoother, But Not Faster
Frame generation makes games look smoother by inventing frames between real ones. Here's how it works, and why it can hurt you in competitive games.
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
Beyond the Frame - Part 1: Your GPU Is Lying to You
AI upscaling lets your GPU fake half the pixels in modern games. How DLSS, FSR, and XeSS actually work, and why every game now uses them.
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
Valve’s Bold Bet on the Future of VR: Steam Frame Explained
Holiday season came early for gamers
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
How Far Is Too Far: War Against Cheaters
Kernel-Level Anti-Cheat
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
The Indie Uprising: How AI Layoffs Accidentally Saved Gaming
How the Industry’s Struggles Are Powering a New Era of Creativity
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
Piracy - When a $60 Game Meets a $100 Income
The internet wasn’t built with us in mind
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir

Industry Highlights

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The Illusion of Stability: The Internet Runs on a Handful of Companies
The internet feels reliable, but internet centralization means a handful of providers hold it up. Here's how it got fragile, and what you can do.
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
Prediction Markets - Part 2: When Odds Become the News
Prediction market odds are being cited as news before events even happen. How speculation is quietly becoming the lens we read reality through.
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
Prediction Markets - Part 1: Betting on Reality
Betting on Reality.... fun times we live in
 • Mohib Ur Rehman and Saqib Tahir
The CPU Wars are Back!
$299. 24 cores. And a grudge match that's only getting started.
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
Why Old Hardware Makes Sense in 2026
AI demand spiked hardware prices. Your old PC still works fine. Here's why upgrading in 2026 is the wrong move for most people.
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
The Blue Board and the Behemoth: Why Qualcomm Bought Arduino
Qualcomm acquired Arduino, the open-source board behind millions of DIY projects. What this means for students, startups, and the future of accessible…
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
Inseparable From Magic: The Tech Behind ASML
Every advanced chip in your phone, GPU, or car runs through one company's machines. Why ASML's EUV lithography can't be replicated — even with billions.
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir
Why RAM Prices Jumped 400%
A bubble is causing your wallet to burst
 • Yousaf Babur and Saqib Tahir

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