I made my own cellphone once by purchasing the battery separately.
DIY Cellphone
21–30 of 37 posts
Re: DIY Cellphone
#22Re: DIY Cellphone
#23Does it require any binary blobs for the GSM module or other components? If not, this would be a pretty good choice for someone wanting complete control over his phone's software stack.
I'm pretty sure it does. Binary blobs hidden in the GSM module and communication with the GSM module is done with AT commands via some serial bus.
Binary blobs embedded in hardware are acceptable from a free software standpoint. As long as they can't be remotely updated.
Re: DIY Cellphone
#24Only one question -- can you take this on a plane? A while ago I had a cell phone where the battery charging circuitry went out. The battery was 3.6v, so I hooked up (via Velcro) a AAA battery holder and used rechargable NiMH batteries. However I was told (when I called the airline I was traveling) that it most likely wouldn't make it past TSA.
Permission Procurement difficulty: High.
Likelihood of success: Low.
Forgiveness Procurement difficulty: Low. Likelihood of successs: High.
Re: DIY Cellphone
#25Cool ... this gives me hope for the future I want. The day will come when we will all hold cell phone shaped PCs. You'll be able to interact with them as you do now. However, when placed within 10 feet of a keyboard or mouse, they'll automatically (configurable) and wirelessly use those peripherals ... keyboard and monitors on the fly baby! Imagine optional super thin foldable displays to pack in the bag ... keyboard…
Why bother with peripherals.
Project the display onto a wall and project the keyboard onto the desk, the unit would detect the position of your fingers over the keys using similar techniques to how Kinect works.
Re: DIY Cellphone
#26The creator of this is David Mellis, who is one of the creators of the Arduino project. Apparently he's now in Leah Buechley's group at the Media Lab, which does some great work: http://hlt.media.mit.edu This is fantastic, and I'm excited to see what more David will be working on in the future; his dissertation will be an interesting one :)
I can't wait either! I've seen a few DIY projects here and there involving GSM, but his name is what really caught my eye in the first place. You may also find these interesting: http://www.open-electronics.org/gsm-gps-shield-for-arduino/ http://www.instructables.com/id/ArduinoPhone/ I'm sure there's room to mix and match improvements.
... all of which have totally locked up, closed off baseband firmware. Which can be controlled all the way down to DMA by OTA updates by a provider.
No, none of this is very interesting at all until there is an open, free baseband firmware.
Re: DIY Cellphone
#27Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm pretty sure it does. Binary blobs hidden in the GSM module and communication with the GSM module is done with AT commands via some serial bus.
Binary blobs embedded in hardware are acceptable from a free software standpoint. As long as they can't be remotely updated.
You mean, as long as they can't be updated period.
Re: DIY Cellphone
#28Earlier quoted context omitted.
Keyboard and mouse availability ... it will be configurable. In your own home you'll be able to move from display to display as needed.
That does sound interesting, actually. I might like to have some kind of charging pad that does it, you just take your phone out and toss it on the pad and there you are. Have it be 'automatic' only while in contact with a specific surface.
The somewhat reasonable mechanisms Bluetooth uses to control what to pair with already mitigate much of the problem.
Re: DIY Cellphone
#29Cool ... this gives me hope for the future I want. The day will come when we will all hold cell phone shaped PCs. You'll be able to interact with them as you do now. However, when placed within 10 feet of a keyboard or mouse, they'll automatically (configurable) and wirelessly use those peripherals ... keyboard and monitors on the fly baby! Imagine optional super thin foldable displays to pack in the bag ... keyboard…
Why bother with peripherals. Project the display onto a wall and project the keyboard onto the desk, the unit would detect the position of your fingers over the keys using similar techniques to how Kinect works.
Infrared keyboards already exist, they're generally unsatisfying and tempermental.
Re: DIY Cellphone
#30Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm pretty sure it does. Binary blobs hidden in the GSM module and communication with the GSM module is done with AT commands via some serial bus.
Binary blobs embedded in hardware are acceptable from a free software standpoint. As long as they can't be remotely updated.
Almost all wireless modems can be remotely updated. So this phone is mostly running proprietary software. That will be the case for any cellular technology for the foreseeable future.