Step 5 Preview vs Ling 3.1 Flash
Step 5 Preview took 10 min 44 s and $0.33 at list price, Ling 3.1 Flash took 75 min 28 s and $0.055 at list price. Ling 3.1 Flash took 7.0× as long, and Step 5 Preview cost 6.0× as much.
Step 5 Preview
StepFun · $2.70/M out · 155 HN pts
Ling 3.1 Flash
inclusionAI · $0.225/M out · 1 HN pts
Pelican
Generate an SVG of a pelican riding a bicycle
Watch
Draw a mechanical wristwatch that shows the current local time, with a sweeping seconds hand and a date window. Make it look expensive.
Landing
Build the landing page for Lumen Cycles, a Copenhagen workshop that builds custom cargo bikes to order. Make it look like a real brand you would trust with 4,000 euros.
Breakout
Make a Breakout game I can play right now with the keyboard or the mouse. Give it several levels, a score and some juice.
Logo
Design a logo for Night Heron, an independent bookshop that only opens after dark.
About
Write the opening of the About us page for Patchbay, a three-person studio in Rotterdam that repairs vintage synthesizers. About 150 words.
Patchbay is a three-person workshop based in Rotterdam, dedicated to keeping vintage synthesizers alive and playable. We are technicians, musicians, and obsessive tinkerers who believe that classic analog instruments deserve better than silence. From temperamental Jupiter-8s to worn-out ARP Odysseys, we restore, repair, and maintain the machines that shaped the sound of modern music. Every repair starts with listening—both to the instrument and to the person who plays it. Whether you are chasing a rare fault, need a full calibration, or simply want your old synth to feel new again, our bench is open. We understand that no two synthesizers arrive with the same story, and we treat each circuit, slider, and key with the care its history deserves. At Patchbay, we are here to make sure the sounds of tomorrow are built on those that came before.
Patchbay is a small repair studio in Rotterdam dedicated to keeping vintage synthesizers alive. We are three people — a technician, a historian, and a musician — who believe that the instruments built in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s still have decades of sound left in them, if someone is willing to care for them properly.
We work on everything from early Moogs and Arps to Roland Junos and Oberheim OB-series, handling everything from dead power supplies and leaky batteries to full recaps and voice board restoration. Our workshop is small by design. We take on a limited number of instruments at a time, which means every synth that comes through our door gets our full attention.
Most of our clients are working musicians, collectors, and small studios across Europe, but we also welcome instruments with stories we'd love to hear. If you have a piece of synth history that needs care, we'd be glad to talk.
Specs and numbers
| Step 5 Preview | Ling 3.1 Flash | |
|---|---|---|
| Maker | StepFun | inclusionAI |
| Made in | China | China |
| Released | 8 Oct 2026 | 2 Oct 2026 |
| Price in, per M tokens | $1.00 | $0.075 |
| Price out, per M tokens | $2.70 | $0.225 |
| Context | 1,048,576 tokens | 1,000,000 tokens |
| Weights | open | closed |
| Hacker News points | 155 | 1 |
| Time for the six prompts | 10 min 44 s | 75 min 28 s |
| List price of the six prompts | $0.33 | $0.055 |
Ling 3.1 Flash was cheaper: $0.27 less at list price, and less on each of the 6 prompts. Step 5 Preview was faster: 64 min 44 s less in total, and faster on each of the 6 prompts.
In the recording, both Breakout games play.





