April 6, 2026
Drama at 5 volts
Make your own ColecoVision at home, part 5
Leako v7 goes USB, fixes the wobble, and splits retro fans down the middle
TLDR: Leako v7, a homebrew ColecoVision, now uses USB power and adds sturdier hardware, but the community is split between loving the convenience and fearing cheap chargers. People memed the board-bending “McTwist,” roasted a footprint oops, and applauded clearer labels—proof this DIY console is slowly becoming buildable for normal folks
The DIY ColecoVision clone “Leako” just hit revision 7 and swapped its fussy barrel power jack for a USB plug—and the comments instantly turned into a USB vs. Old-School cage match. Fans of convenience cheered, saying “everyone’s got a phone charger,” while purists groaned that cheap bricks spit out dirty power (read: unstable voltage) that could toast vintage chips. The $18 Anker wall adapter flex? Also a flashpoint: some applauded dependable power, others cried “elitist accessory.”
Then there’s the McTwist saga: earlier boards bent like a diving board when you jammed in a game cartridge. The fix? Extra support near the slot. Cue memes of the board “twerking” and GIFs of trampoline landings. But drama didn’t stop—because in a custom controller port footprint, the maker forgot the little copper rings the pins solder to. Result: weak strain relief and a comment pile-on of “been there, KiCad’d that.”
Supply-chain blues added fuel: a month-long wait for a humble 74LS541 chip became a running joke about “the buffer that broke my heart,” while a new voltage-flipper chip (ICL7660) got nods for keeping things buildable. On the bright side, silkscreen labels that show part values won universal love from home builders. Verdict from the crowd: bold moves, hilarious mistakes, and a project that’s finally inching from mad science to living-room friendly.
Key Points
- •Leako, a ColecoVision clone, reached its seventh hardware revision aimed at wider buildability and reliability.
- •Power input moved from a DC barrel jack to a USB Type‑B connector to address polarity concerns and improve accessibility.
- •Mechanical changes include added support near the cartridge slot and revised, clip-in controller ports; a footprint error weakened strain-relief pins but was corrected for future boards.
- •Component shortages prompted swapping in a different power-switch FET and a Maxim ICL7660 inverter for -5V; 74LS541 availability delayed progress.
- •Assembly was streamlined by adding component values to the PCB silkscreen to reduce dependency on printed BOMs.