Author: Zhan Shi from Quantum Bit | WeChat Official Account QbitAI
Building a palm-sized Linux computer, just need a Raspberry Pi and some parts?
You heard it right, someone has made it.
With a 36-key touch keyboard, a 4.3-inch touch display, and a complete Linux system, it’s compact enough to hold with one hand:
With a battery life of up to 4 hours, it can connect to external displays and input devices:
This project has received over 300 stars on GitHub.
DIY Handheld Computer for Coding Anytime, Anywhere
When asked why he wanted to build a handheld computer, the creator revealed—
Initially, he just wanted to replace his Orange Pi-based homemade computer. When the pandemic broke out, he happened to have a batch of Raspberry Pi RPI4, so making a PICOmputer terminal seemed logical, with the ability to connect to a screen and keyboard.
But he was not satisfied and wanted to redesign the keyboard layout and screen size to enhance convenience—
As for the purpose, he said he hopes to be able to pick up a computer and code anytime, anywhere at friends’ homes or studios.
And so, he got started.
Starting from Scratch
Since he needed to solve the problem of “coding anytime, anywhere”, the keyboard had to be well designed.
However, the creator had previously tinkered with keyboards multiple times and even designed several himself. This time, he chose a type of keyboard he was familiar with called Plaid.
This keyboard has 4 rows and up to 12 columns, with a layer of through-hole shell covering the keys, and the layout is consistent with regular computer keyboards.
Interestingly, the entire keyboard is divided by an AtMega328 chip, allowing each hand to control a portion.
(AtMega328 is an 8-bit microcontroller with a reduced instruction set architecture, capable of simultaneous read and write operations in flash memory.)
Since he had previously released impressive projects, a Chinese company called PCBWay sponsored him a keyboard shell for free, and he even gave it a “good review” in his documentation (manual dog head).
You might be curious about what “impressive projects” he has? Don’t worry, there’s an introduction at the end of the article.
Next is the OS part.
This handheld computer uses the Raspberry Pi OS, a derivative of the Debian operating system.
The window manager chosen is i3, which is lighter and more friendly to various keyboards for terminals with limited resources.
However, the i3 window manager often requires multiple key combinations for operation, which can be cumbersome on a handheld device.
The creator added arrow keys near the bottom middle of the keyboard, allowing for window adjustments and switching back to the desktop using the up, down, left, right keys. To change the default window, he uses the h, j, k, l keys for directional operations.
On the peripheral connection side, this handheld computer provides HDMI, USB, audio output, and PiSugar battery charging ports—
To make the device thinner, the Ethernet port and a bunch of USB ports were removed.
Finally, the creator provided a partial parts list:
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Raspberry Pi 3/4
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Waveshare 4.3” DSI Display
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PiSugar 2 Plus Battery
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SD Card
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Keyboard Circuit PCB 1.6mm
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Keyboard Shell PCB 1mm
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Five-way Switch and Rubber Cap
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6 x 6mm x 7mm PCB Momentary Switch
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……
△ There is also a supervising cat
More DIY Works by the Author
It is worth mentioning that the creator of this handheld computer is a DIY enthusiast, with more projects on GitHub, and these gadgets have helped him gain a lot of attention and sponsorship.
For example, a small computer the size of a GBA has received over 700 stars:
There is also a project using a billiard ball instead of a regular mouse, controlling the cursor by “rolling in place”.
If you want to learn more about the author and their projects, the original link is here: https://github.com/brickbots/HandiPi
Finally, let me ask everyone—
Would you look forward to a computer that you can pick up and code anytime, anywhere?
END
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