AwesomeCast: Tech and Gadget Talk

Xbox Cloud Limits, Retro Gaming, and MapQuest’s Comeback | AwesomeCast 795

September 8th, 2026  |  51 mins 51 secs

alarm clock app, carplay, cartridge save backups, chachisays, cholera mapping, clucky, console affordability, dave podnar, dungeon crawler carl, epilogue gb operator, game boy, game boy camera, gaming news, geek culture, great pumpkin, john snow, katie dudas, lego ideas, mapquest, michael sorg, nintendo switch 2, ocarina of time, panic, pittsburgh podcast, playdate, princess donut, project helix, questies, retro gaming, roman reigns, sn operator, snoopy, star trek 60th anniversary, starbucks peanuts, strange new worlds, street fighter 6, super nintendo, tariff refunds, technology podcast, tetris, the legend of zelda, wastewater surveillance, xbox cloud gaming, xbox disc to digital, xbox game pass, xbox series s, zelda 40th anniversary

Xbox cloud limits send Sorg back to his console, MapQuest gets an 8-bit makeover, and Clucky makes you earn your snooze. Sorg, Katie Dudas, and Dave Podnar talk Star Trek at 60, Zelda, retro gaming gadgets, Snoopy collectibles, and Dungeon Crawler Carl LEGO fan projects.

AwesomeCast 794: Xbox Discs Go Digital, Gamescom’s AI Problem, $100K Keyboards & Retro Tech

September 2nd, 2026  |  1 hr 3 mins

ai in video games, brütal legend, cable management, chachisays video game minute, commodore 64, cyberpunk, dave podnar, dolly parton, donkey kong country, double fine, exoplanets, game preservation, gamescom 2026, generative ai, katie dudas, lego advent calendar 2026, luxury keyboards, mechanical keyboards, nancy grace roman space telescope, nasa, nintendo eshop, nintendo switch, nintendo switch sale, peter cullen, physical media, physical video games, pittsburgh podcast, pro football hall of fame, retro computing, retro gaming, roku city, sorg, sorgstock, tech news, technology podcast, tim curry, usb-c cables, virtual races, xbox, xbox discs to digital

Xbox is finding a new way to bridge physical and digital gaming, Gamescom 2026 has restarted the debate over generative AI in game development, and somehow we’ve found a keyboard that costs around $100,000.

Sorg, Katie Dudas, and Dave Podnar discuss Xbox’s Discs to Digital program and what it could mean for used games, delisted titles and game preservation. ChachiSays looks at AI use in Gamescom titles and the continuing decline of physical game sales. Katie explores Roku City’s tributes to Dolly Parton, Tim Curry and Peter Cullen, while Dave dives into the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope.

Plus: LEGO Advent Calendars arrive early, Brütal Legend honors Tim Curry with 666 minutes of free gaming, the bizarre Donkey Kong Country CGI cartoon returns to our lives, the Nintendo Switch bargain bin gets weird, Katie labels a slow USB-C charger, Dave finds luxury keyboards with unbelievable prices, and a Cyberpunk-themed Commodore 64 sends us back into retro-computing memories.

Hosted by Sorg, Katie Dudas, and Dave Podnar.

AI Graphics Get Smarter + Xbox Classics on PC & LEGO Star Trek | AwesomeCast 789

July 28th, 2026  |  54 mins 51 secs

accessibility technology, adobe photoshop, ai, ai education, ai image editing, artificial intelligence, atari, atom smasher, audible, audiobook, audiobook history, autobot blaster, centipede, chachisays video game minute, chatgpt, chatgpt images, commercial street bridge, dave podnar, dungeon crawler carl, education technology, game preservation, generative ai, graphic design, hasbro, humanoid robot, jem and the holograms, katie dudas, lego, lego smart play, michael sorg, optimus prime, peter cullen, photoshop, pittsburgh history, pittsburgh tech podcast, pittsburgh technology, pong, retro gaming, robosen, robotics, sorg, squirrel hill tunnel, star trek, steam deck, tech news, technology history, technology podcast, transformers, universal pictures, uss enterprise, video game news, westinghouse, xbox, xbox backward compatibility, xbox pc

AwesomeCast 788: Pew Pew - Retro Gaming on Apple TV, Minimalist Flip Phones & the AI Backlash

July 21st, 2026  |  1 hr 6 mins

adaptive cruise control, ai ethics, ai image editing, ai video production, apple tv gaming, arduino, artificial intelligence, ask photos, browser games, consumer technology, creative ai, cruise control, data centers, data-center electricity, dave podnar, digital detox, digital ownership, digital privacy, diy electronics, dumb phones, dungeon crawler carl, flip phones, gadget podcast, gamestop, garmin connect, garmin fitness tracker, generative ai, google gemini, google photos, google photos search, gta iii, gta san andreas mod, gta vice city, katie dudas, light flip phone, machine learning, maeve chocolate, maker technology, mama’s night off, mars flyby, mike sorg, minimalist phone, minimalist technology, nasa psyche, nintendo wii remote, openmote, pastfinders, physical media, physical video games, pittsburgh bridges, pittsburgh film office, pittsburgh movie locations, pittsburgh podcast, playstation 5 emulation, ps5 emulator, ralph teetor, retro gaming, retro technology, retroarch, retroarch apple tv, sae, screenless fitness tracker, smart-home controls, society of automotive engineers, sony physical discs, sorg, sorgatron media, space exploration, tech news, technology news, technology podcast, technology regulation, video game emulation, wearable technology, wiimote

Sorg, Katie Dudas, and Dave Podnar explore the return of retro technology and the growing demand for digital tools that give users more control.

Katie shares the Dungeon Crawler Carl-inspired Mama’s Night Off browser game. Dave introduces Garmin’s new screenless fitness tracker, while Sorg explains how he set up RetroArch on Apple TV to play games from classic consoles and computers.

The crew also discusses PlayStation 5 emulation, GameStop’s response to the decline of physical discs, and why consumers are returning to vinyl, CDs, cassettes, flip phones, and other forms of physical technology.

An extended conversation examines how AI is being incorporated into creative tools, business software, search, image editing, and video production. The hosts consider responsible AI use, the difference between generative AI and other machine-learning features, and the environmental and infrastructure concerns surrounding rapid data-center growth.

Other stories include NASA’s Psyche spacecraft capturing a Mars flyby, Pittsburgh movie locations in the Pastfinders app, the minimalist Light Flip phone, the OpenMote Wii Remote development board, Google Photos restoring classic search, and Ralph Teetor’s invention of cruise control.

Support AwesomeCast at https://www.patreon.com/awesomecast and find more shows at https://sorgatronmedia.com.

F1 Drone Tech, AI Video Chaos & the World’s Largest Camera| AwesomeCast 725

July 1st, 2026  |  58 mins 41 secs

3200 megapixels, aew, ai glasses, ai tools, ai video, apple price increases, astronomy, augmented reality, dark energy, dark matter, dave podnar, digital games, drone camera, f1 drone, filming drone, five nights at freddy’s 3, formula 1, gadget podcast, gadgets, game ownership, generative ai, gta 6, gta vi, hover soccer ball, ipad prices, it came from ai, lgbtq tech history, mac prices, martine rothblatt, meta glasses, minions, motorsports technology, nes, nintendo switch game key cards, physical games, pittsburgh podcast, podcast seo, pride month, red bull, retro gaming, rubin observatory, sirius xm, snap ar glasses, sorg, sorgatron media, space camera, steam games, tech news, tech podcast, united therapeutics, vera rubin observatory, viral tiktok

This week on AwesomeCast 785, Sorg and Dave Podnar get geeky with the Vera C. Rubin Observatory’s massive 3,200-megapixel digital camera, Red Bull’s world’s fastest filming drone chasing a Formula 1 car, and the tech legacy of Martine Rothblatt for Pride Month.

Opus Pro vs CapCut, Mortal Kombat Kollection & Amazon Lens Live Tested! | AwesomeCast 748

September 3rd, 2025  |  56 mins 3 secs

80s cartoons, ai tools, ai video editing, airpods 3, amazon lens live, amazon shopping tool, apple event, apple rumors, awesomecast, baja sae, capcut, content creator tools, dave podnar, grogu movie, he-man game, instagram pip, instagram reels, iphone 17, iphone 17 air, katie dudas, live translation, mandalorian movie, michael sorg, mortal kombat kollection, mortal kombat legacy kollection, motorweek, nintendo movie adaptations, nintendo stars, opus clip, opus pro, pbs baja sae, playstation classic, retro gaming, tech podcast

This week on AwesomeCast 748, hosts Michael Sorg, Katie Dudas, and Dave Podnar break down the latest in tech, gadgets, and geek news

Now Playing: Brohemoth | AwesomeCast 524

December 9th, 2020  |  1 hr 8 mins

airpods max, apple fitness+, apple music, apple one, christmas, gears of war 5, google nest, microsoft, monster hunter movie, monster hunter world, neilson ratings, raspberry pi, retro gaming, small business, the new day, toy day, ugly christmas sweater, utah jazz, video games, whatsapp, windows 95, wwe

Chatting the tech news of the week with professional wrestler and living video game boss, The Brohemoth as he joins our Awesome Crew, Michael Sorg, Katie Dudas and John Chichilla!