build a raspberry pi-powered linux laptop

7/26/2019 Build a Raspberry Pi-Powered Linux Laptop

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MAKE: PROJECTS

Build a Raspberry Pi-Powered LinuxLaptop That Fits in Your PocketBy Chris Robinson Difculty: Difcult

I made this little Nintendo DS sized

computer using a Raspberry Pi and a bunch

of off-the-shelf parts. It is a fully functional

linux computer that can do most things a

full system can (games, web stuff, videos,

music etc).
http://makezine.com/author/chris-robinson/http://makezine.com/projects/build-raspberry-pi-powered-linux-laptop-that-fits-your-pocket/http://makezine.com/projects/http://makezine.com/2016/04/18/bypass-your-monitor-with-a-headless-raspberry-pi-interface/http://makezine.com/2016/02/12/build-a-raspberry-pi-command-center-for-a-connected-home/http://makezine.com/projects/send-ticket-isp-when-your-internet-drops/http://makezine.com/2016/04/18/bypass-your-monitor-with-a-headless-raspberry-pi-interface/http://makezine.com/2016/02/12/build-a-raspberry-pi-command-center-for-a-connected-home/http://makezine.com/projects/send-ticket-isp-when-your-internet-drops/


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You can also output the video to an external monitor, transforming it into a desktop-ish

computer.

I make other stuff like this on my youtube channel.

Estimated Cost ~$120

FEATURES:

Raspberry Pi 2 (900MHz CPU, 1GB RAM)

3x USB ports

1x Ethernet

Fully QWERTY keyboard

backlit 3.5inch Touchscreen

1000mAh battery Clamshell case (made from 2x hard drive enclosures)

Full Linux OS (Raspbian, using i3 window manager)

Audio/Video out

How to build it
http://youtube.com/NODEtv


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Heres everything broken down into steps for easier following.

The rst thing to do is remove some components from the Raspberry Pi board to make

it as thin as possible. This includes: The 2x USB sockets, ethernet plug, GPIO pins, 2x

camera connectors, composite audio/video jack, and HDMI port. You can use a

soldering iron in conjunction with a solder sucker or solder wick


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Not everything is easy to desolder from the board, and I made good use of the mini

hacksaw blade and cutters too. Just be careful not to damage components or scratch

the board, and youll be ne.

You should be left with a really thin Raspberry Pi 2 board


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Desolder the pins from the PiTFT board. This frees up lots of space, and make it super

thin. Again use the soldering iron to heat up the solder and the pins come off easily.

Cut and prep some wires and create extensions for the USB, ethernet and audio/video

ports.

Its much easier if you tin the end of the wires, as well as the contacts on thecomponents, and it makes bond together. If youre having trouble, use a helping hands

stand to free up your hands.


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I modied the keyboard, allowing it to be powered by the Pi instead of its own battery.

All you need to do is snip the red and black wires on the battery, being careful not to

damage or puncture anything else. Be very careful with these lipo batteries, since they

are volatile. Do not puncture or squash them.

I just added a 5v to 3.3v step down regulator to the battery contacts. Just add the red

(voltage) and black (ground) wires to where they were for the battery. Again, tinning the

end of the wires makes the soldering much quicker.


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I also added a button switch to turn the backlight on and off. It doesnt matter what

colors you use for this, just solder both ends of the button to each contact.

All this does is momentarily connects the contacts together once the button is pressed.

Now we need to prepare the case. I used two 2.5hard drive enclosures. Theyre super

cheap and available on ebay and amazon


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Again, this is pretty straight forward, but takes quite a bit of time. I measured and cut

the top and bottom halves of the case, mostly with the hacksaw blade, then nished it

with plastic sheeting and vinyl tape. If you have a Dremel, you can save a lot of time.

I added the piano hinge at the back and drilled a few holes for the wires. I afxed the

hinge using a couple really small nuts and bolts.

I also glued on some rubber nubs to stop the screen overextending.


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To reduce the height of the powerboost, cut the top of the JST battery connector off

using the hacksaw or cutters.

Place everything in the case, and feed the wires between the bottom and top halves


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Now you can solder everything together. I made sure the 2 battery wires went through

different holes to minimize the risk of shorting if they break in the future.

It might seem like a lot of wires, but all youre doing is basically soldering the extensions

onto where the components used to be on the board.

Close the case up, cross your ngers, and power the computer on.


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PARTS

Raspberry Pi 2 (1)

Adafruit PiTFT Plus 3.5 inch touchscreen (1)

Laptop Hard Drive Case (2)

3.5mm 4 pole Audio/Video jack

(1)

Low Prole Ethernet Socket (1)

Adafruit Powerboost 1000c (1)

You can output the video from it to a TV or monitor. Not the best resolution, but works

nice for videos.

You now have a handheld Linux terminal ts in your back pocket. The i3 window

manager, coupled with the touchscreen really helps free up space for multitasking.
http://makezine.com/projects/build-raspberry-pi-powered-linux-laptop-that-fits-your-pocket/?utm_source=MakeNewsletter+20160426&utm_medium=email&utm_term=&utm_content=image&utm_campaign=newsletterhttp://makezine.com/projects/build-raspberry-pi-powered-linux-laptop-that-fits-your-pocket/?utm_source=MakeNewsletter+20160426&utm_medium=email&utm_term=&utm_content=image&utm_campaign=newsletterhttp://makezine.com/projects/build-raspberry-pi-powered-linux-laptop-that-fits-your-pocket/?utm_source=MakeNewsletter+20160426&utm_medium=email&utm_term=&utm_content=image&utm_campaign=newsletterhttp://makezine.com/projects/build-raspberry-pi-powered-linux-laptop-that-fits-your-pocket/?utm_source=MakeNewsletter+20160426&utm_medium=email&utm_term=&utm_content=image&utm_campaign=newsletterhttp://makezine.com/projects/build-raspberry-pi-powered-linux-laptop-that-fits-your-pocket/?utm_source=MakeNewsletter+20160426&utm_medium=email&utm_term=&utm_content=image&utm_campaign=newsletterhttp://makezine.com/projects/build-raspberry-pi-powered-linux-laptop-that-fits-your-pocket/?utm_source=MakeNewsletter+20160426&utm_medium=email&utm_term=&utm_content=image&utm_campaign=newsletter


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Mini Wireless keyboard (1)

Power Switch (1)

Tactile Momentary Switch (1)

5v to 3.3v Step Down Converter

(1)

1000mah Lipo Battery (1)

Piano Hinge (1)

Jack H

This looks like a really awesome project. Thanks for posting it. Can you describe how

you wire the PiTFT to the Pi? I assume, since you removed all the pins, that you have

to wire from each GPIO to each pad on the PiTFT. Also, is there any chance you can

give a little more detail on the power connections?

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Matt Falcon

The PiTFT just uses SPI interface pins, so you dont need to route every GPIO, I

think. Saves quite a number of pins

CHRIS ROBINSON

Chris is a designer and tinkerer based in the UK. He runs N-O-D-E.net
http://makezine.com/author/chris-robinsonhttp://facebook.com/FalconFourhttp://globalsuperjob/http://makezine.com/projects/build-raspberry-pi-powered-linux-laptop-that-fits-your-pocket/?utm_source=MakeNewsletter+20160426&utm_medium=email&utm_term=&utm_content=image&utm_campaign=newsletterhttp://makezine.com/projects/build-raspberry-pi-powered-linux-laptop-that-fits-your-pocket/?utm_source=MakeNewsletter+20160426&utm_medium=email&utm_term=&utm_content=image&utm_campaign=newsletterhttp://makezine.com/projects/build-raspberry-pi-powered-linux-laptop-that-fits-your-pocket/?utm_source=MakeNewsletter+20160426&utm_medium=email&utm_term=&utm_content=image&utm_campaign=newsletterhttp://makezine.com/projects/build-raspberry-pi-powered-linux-laptop-that-fits-your-pocket/?utm_source=MakeNewsletter+20160426&utm_medium=email&utm_term=&utm_content=image&utm_campaign=newsletterhttp://makezine.com/projects/build-raspberry-pi-powered-linux-laptop-that-fits-your-pocket/?utm_source=MakeNewsletter+20160426&utm_medium=email&utm_term=&utm_content=image&utm_campaign=newsletterhttp://makezine.com/projects/build-raspberry-pi-powered-linux-laptop-that-fits-your-pocket/?utm_source=MakeNewsletter+20160426&utm_medium=email&utm_term=&utm_content=image&utm_campaign=newsletter


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KentonS

Nice build, Chris! I saw this on hackaday (I think) when they gave you some props the

other day.

That keyboard is the tricky thing. I couldnt nd it sourced in the states. Is it branded

under a different name or anything?

coolate

Some issue here!

Dannlh

Maybe something like this??

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?

Item=9SIA3JD1E69509&cm_re=mini_keyboard-_-9SIA3JD1E69509-_-

ProductCould be a substitute?

Or any of the tiny BT keyboards that are thumb style.

Jan Zumwalt

How long does the battery last?

David Philipe Gil

Hows thescreen resoltuion with text? I wonder if there is a GNU/Linux distro with

bitmap fonts

BenjaminSutton

Not hard at all congure linux to use bitmap fonts for everything; the exception

maybe being the TTY (Havent looked into that.)

Therese Shellabarger

I use a heat gun at work, I was wondering if it would be possible to heatshrink plastic

on the outside, that is, if you could do it without damaging the computer. It would bea slightly more durable coat than using tape. I suppose some kind of lacquer nish

might work too. I would want to be able to take it apart if it needed xing or for more

mods later.
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geoIndigo

Couldnt you t the 2Ah LiPo battery? Looks similar size

StygianAgenda

Bravo! Id love to see something like this, made professionally with an extremely

polished case design. I love how it has a form factor like the old Sharp Zaurus

handheld. I have an old Sony Clie clamshell type PDA in storage that would be a

wicked design to pair with a Pi-Zero board, or maybe even a stripped down RPi3,running Ubuntu-Mate. ;)

AlleM43

Is there enough space left for a 3G or LTE modem?
https://www.facebook.com/StygianAgenda

build a raspberry pi-powered linux laptop

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