cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/64949868
Per my last post, (which can be found here: https://lemmy.zip/post/53113975), I continued to mess around with a mobile broadband modem, and got it working! With a caveat... it only works when plugged into wall power. The battery I have does not supply enough power to fully enable the modem through USB power, due the raspberry pi being very power hungry. Unfortunately, this seemingly simple problem is actually a larger problem that seems to only be solved by an overly complicated solution: designing a custom battery controller PCB that responds to the pi5's (or ideally, a different processor entirely) needs more appropriately.
Take a look at the state of the device here:
Last time I posted here, many interested folks responded with great ideas and feedback. Fortunately, one of the comments lead me to the project that would ultimately end this project in its current state. Link to that comment here: https://lemmy.zip/post/53113975/22779544
Its flaws are visible. While the device has personality, it lacks ease of use. These days I use it as a "cyberdeck"/field debugging computer, and I use it with a small controller-sized Riitek keyboard, because the screen's touch capability is on the fritz, likely because of the poor design choice to leave the screen's ribbon cable partially exposed.
This leads me to the conclusion: this project is falling into "hobby" or more accurately, unsupported status. I like the device for my personal use, and I may update the design in the future for my own purposes, and release it for free for public use, though I don't imagine there will be a huge amount of interest in building this device considering the skyrocketing cost of Pi devices nowadays. There is a more reasonable path forward, and I alluded to it earlier: custom PCBs. That's where the SPIRIT project comes in: https://github.com/SPIRIT-org/SPIRIT
You can see in one of the pictures above, the SPIRIT project is designing a phone that can be completely replicated at home. Well, once they get there it will be. I've exchanged brief communications with the individual running the project, Jan, and while he hasn't stated that these projects are linked in any way, I'd like to think that the SPIRIT project carries forward the values and goals of the project I started. If you were at all interested in my project, give the SPIRIT project github a like or favorite.
Take a look at the v3lectronics youtube channel where Jan livestreams work on the SPIRIT project: https://www.youtube.com/@V_Electronics
The spirit github link again: https://github.com/SPIRIT-org/SPIRIT
Please contribute if you have any level of knowledge to contribute! These projects thrive on the careful contributions of other humans across the world!
