Have you ever ever seen how new applied sciences are inclined to arrive with all types of untamed and attention-grabbing variations, then finally coalesce round an identical closing design? Early vehicles, as an example, got here in all sizes and shapes, from three-wheelers to steam-powered fashions, however finally standardized across the primary kinds we see at the moment. Smartphones have an identical story, from the Motorola Rokr with its built-in iTunes integration to the BlackBerry with its bodily keyboard. Now it is all about touchscreens, minimal bezels, and AI-powered cameras inside a black rectangle.
Possibly that is for good causes. The early designs are inclined to have quite a lot of issues and failures, so maybe we’re simply standardizing on the most effective, hottest concepts. And take a look at what occurs when system builders step approach exterior of established norms, like with the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5 and its folding display. Yeah, a complete lot of damaged shows and a horrible fame. However even nonetheless, these uncommon designs that break the mildew are inclined to seize our curiosity way over the identical previous stuff we now have seen one million occasions.
It is for that reason that YouTuber Marcin Plaza determined to offer the Galaxy Z Flip5 some particular consideration in a current challenge. The folding display could also be a misplaced trigger, however there may be nonetheless quite a lot of good {hardware} there that may be repurposed. So Plaza determined to make a completely new telephone out of simply the duvet display (the non-folding one which doesn’t break) and the interior {hardware}. With the addition of a bodily keyboard scavenged from a BlackBerry, that half display would have sufficient obtainable actual property to be helpful.
After arising with a hinged design that exposes or hides the keyboard, Plaza received busy disassembling the inventory telephone. Subsequent, he tossed apart the whole lot that was not completely important and designed a brand new case. After many iterations with a 3D-printed model to good the match, an anodized aluminium model was produced.
For essentially the most half, the present {hardware} was simply squeezed into the brand new case. Nevertheless, there was no direct solution to interface the BlackBerry keyboard with the Samsung {hardware}. To make issues so simple as attainable, Plaza developed a brand new versatile PCB that makes use of an Arduino-compatible Professional Micro growth board. This translated the inputs and offered them to the telephone as an ordinary USB keyboard.
The construct was quite a lot of work, and the supply of limitless frustration, so it’s not one thing that many individuals would wish to repeat. Additionally, quite a lot of the telephone’s {hardware} was tossed apart, so it’s restricted in its capabilities. However, there isn’t a query that Plaza has developed one thing very cool and distinctive. Take that, little black rectangles!
A brand new tackle the flip telephone (📷: Marcin Plaza)
Booting from minimal {hardware} (📷: Marcin Plaza)
Assembling the keyboard interface (📷: Marcin Plaza)
