from Hacker News

Building a Handheld PC

by lo2y on 5/21/23, 9:25 AM with 27 comments

• by simonjgreen on 5/21/23, 1:40 PM

  This is a fantastic demonstration of how accessible all this stuff is these days. Polish used to be the let down on DIY projects like this but 3D printers (for the case) have really moved the needle when it comes to high quality prototyping. I know this has been the state of things for nearly a decade now, but it still amazes me. Raspberry Pi, Arduino, 3D Printers, and the open source hardware community, will mark a paradigm shift in prototyping accessibility in the history books.

• by _Microft on 5/21/23, 4:03 PM

  Since PCB manufacturing has become super cheap, they could consider having a custom L- or U-shaped custom PCB around the battery box that serves no other purpose than routing signals and power to where they are needed and solder the different boards directly onto that. That would also allow to place supports for this large PCB where they are convenient instead of having to separately mount each of these small PCBs to the case.

  With less cables in the way, they might get better airflow in the case as well.

  Edit: I guesstimated the size and think that they could get five pieces of such a board for less than 20€, including delivery.

• by subtlemuffins on 5/21/23, 1:45 PM

  https://www.clockworkpi.com/uconsole

• by smilespray on 5/21/23, 1:07 PM

  It says the charging voltage is 8.2V, which is double the usual charging voltage for lithium cells.

  Is it really safe to connect two 18650 cells in series like this?

  I've read that you should manage each cell individually to reduce wear and/or risk of fire.

• by sgtnoodle on 5/21/23, 7:24 PM

  I hope they used something other than PLA. I've made some really nice enclosures that warped over time from heat.

• by 5mv2 on 5/21/23, 1:54 PM

  Have you thought of doing the same with an e-ink screen?

  I would find it awesome to get work done while in nature.

• by bullen on 5/22/23, 7:09 AM

  What SoC is this using? For the life of me I can't find it in the article?

  Edit: ok it's a CM4? on the back of the display...

  For others searching for the secret sauce: BigTreeTech Pad 5