Lab Notes

From the build floor.

Real build diaries, hardware comparisons, and wiring lessons from assembling the Soohoo Labs reference robots.

build diaryroom-navjetson

How We Built the Room-Nav Robot in 3 Weeks

A ground-truth build diary: every decision, mistake, and discovery from assembling the Soohoo Labs reference robot — from unboxing to autonomous navigation.

Spencer Soohoo·May 11, 2026·12m read
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related:Room-Nav
hardwaredepth cameraoak-d

Why We Chose OAK-D Lite Over RealSense D435

The actual decision log from Soohoo Labs: benchmarks, deal-breakers, and the one thing Intel does better that we still had to work around.

Spencer Soohoo·Apr 27, 2026·8m read
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related:Room-NavMobile-Light
wiringpowerelectrical

Common Robotics Wiring Mistakes (And How to Avoid Them)

The six wiring errors that kill more robot builds than any other single cause — with exact fixes and the behind-the-reason explanation.

Spencer Soohoo·Mar 14, 2026·10m read
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related:Room-NavMobile-LightRP2350
bomengineeringbeginner

How to Read a Robot BOM (Without Getting Burned)

A BOM is more than a parts list — it's a set of silent constraints. Learn what to check before you order anything, and what the Soohoo engineering checklist catches that raw BOMs miss.

Spencer Soohoo·Jun 9, 2026·9m read
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related:Room-NavMobile-LightRP2350
computeraspberry pijetson

Raspberry Pi 5 vs Jetson Orin Nano for Mobile Robotics

Two capable boards, two completely different positions. Here's when to choose each, what the benchmarks actually mean for robotics workloads, and how they compare in our real builds.

Spencer Soohoo·Jun 19, 2026·11m read
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related:Room-NavMobile-Light
slamlidarros2

Indoor SLAM on a Budget: RPLIDAR A1 with slam_toolbox

How to get a 360° occupancy map of your home or office using a $99 LIDAR, ROS2 Humble, and slam_toolbox — from zero to navigatable map in under an hour.

Spencer Soohoo·Jun 24, 2026·14m read
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related:Room-NavMobile-Light