Hope to see a tablet come next!
Building my Own Laptop
21–30 of 91 posts
Re: Building my Own Laptop
#22FPGA development has been one of those things that I've really wanted to get into, but each time, I spend days trying to get a toolchain set up (using the free Xilinx tools on Linux and/or Windows), and by then I'm tired, and decide to take a break. By the time I get back to it, the toolchain doesn't work anymore (because of some licensing crap) so I have to start all over.
I don't think I've been this excited about hardware in a long time. I'd kickstart this thing in a heartbeat.
Re: Building my Own Laptop
#23Analog battery meter? Why go through all this trouble, and then take a step-back by including some analog meter?
Because they're hackers and it's fun. Like having a steam bleed valve on the side of your electric car :)
Re: Building my Own Laptop
#24This is an absolutely awesome project, mad props to the guy for envisioning it and pulling through. The cost must work out to something terrible but I can totally see why someone would do this.
Having an FGPA on there is a very clever idea, it adds flexibility to the design in a way that a prototyping area would but much cleaner. The one corner with all the PWM and other connectors is the most interesting part, I really wonder what kind of plans he's got with this but it goes way beyond 'just another laptop'.
If someone did a 'Bunnie Huang uses this' post I'd be all over it, the tool collection to create a design like this would be extremely interesting reading.
Re: Building my Own Laptop
#25I'd be conscious about the LIPO battery choice & potential fire risk.
They're absolutely fine when treated with care (i've had many for years for RC planes & helis and never had more than minor issues), but i'd be concerned people are used to not having to care about their batteries.
If you discharge them below ~ 1.1v per cell (higher for cheaper ones) they don't quite explode but it's not a slow burn either: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcwOwf55Rtc
There are other options like li-ion or, slightly lower voltage per cell but you can pretty much abuse them and they won't blow up: A-123's.
EDIT: for clarity, discharging to 1v alone shouldn't cause a fire, it's the act of charging them from that state.
Re: Building my Own Laptop
#26This is an absolutely awesome project, mad props to the guy for envisioning it and pulling through. The cost must work out to something terrible but I can totally see why someone would do this. Having an FGPA on there is a very clever idea, it adds flexibility to the design in a way that a prototyping area would but much cleaner. The one corner with all the PWM and other connectors is the most interesting part, I rea…
Kind of old but there is one, http://andrew.huang.usesthis.com/
Re: Building my Own Laptop
#27The raspberry pi expansion header is genius. I really hope this sees the light of day.
Re: Building my Own Laptop
#28WANT! I will buy one. Meanwhile maybe someone can come up with something based on the Raspberry Pi. :-)
Re: Building my Own Laptop
#29Analog battery meter? Why go through all this trouble, and then take a step-back by including some analog meter?
Analogue meters have uses that you don't get from digital readouts. Watching a signal slowly fluctuating on an analogue meter is "nicer" than seeing some numbers go up and down.
Re: Building my Own Laptop
#30It's like watching a Jedi construct his own light-saber.
If not more ambitious, considering the small, unfriendly nature of laptop hardware. Good luck to OP!
I would assume that building your own lightsaber, given it's form factor, would involve significant amount of laptop-like small, unfriendly electronics (not to mention fiddling with force fields and other advanced physics) :)