This tutorial brings you from start to finish in constructing your very own smartphone. You will start by 3D printing a case, then soldering printed circuit boards together, assembly, and finally installing a mobile OS onto your phone and using Python to make it yours. You can learn more about this project at hackaday.io/project/5083
Skills Required:
- Basic Soldering
- Familiarity with the Raspberry Pi
OR:
Lots of time and patience
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Signing UpStep 1: Gather Materials
Before we begin, lets gather the components required for the build. You will need the following electronic components and PCBs:
- Raspberry Pi A+ 256MB
- Adafruit FONA uFL Version
- 3.5in PiTFT Assembled
- Raspberry Pi Camera 5MP
- Powerboost 500 Basic
- GSM Antenna
- 1W 8 ohm Metal Speaker
- USB Wifi Adapter
- Electret Microphone
- 1200mah Lithium Ion Battery
- 4-40 x 3/8in screws
- M2.5 x 5mm screws
- M2.5 x 20mm screws
- M2 x 5mm screws
- Slide Switch
- Wire
While waiting for your parts to ship, you can 3D print the enclosure.
Step 2: 3D Print the Enclosure
The smartphone consists of two 3D printed parts that make up the enclosure: The top and the bottom. Download the .stl files on thingiverse http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:752746. If you do not have access to a 3D printer, you can pay a company like Shapeways to do it for you. If you would like to customize the case to suit your needs, download the Solidworks files from my Github page.
I myself paid a company to do the 3D printing for me because I do not have the funds to buy one myself. If you would like more 3D printed projects from me, please vote for the tyfone in the 3D Printing contest. Thank you!
That's so nice! But I've few questions:
Does it work with a non-Adafruit PiTFT screen? Because I already have this one (Waveshare LCD TFT 3.2″) and I won't be able to buy another one x(
All SIM cards are compatible with this projet? <== Ya I know, this is a quite stupid question, but... ...I can't get an AT & T or T-mobile sim card.
Thanks for answering! (and excuse my very bad english, french people are famous for their english-speaking :D )
Sorry, the Waveshare LCD has too low of a resolution to work with my software, plus it is also to small for the case. All full size SIM cards will work with a provider supporting 2G.
Can we still work with Raspbian when needed? Like go on Midori or LibreOffice?
Yes. Just a small modification in the software is required to use a HDMI screen instead of a SPI port.
Can you charge it?
Awesome job! I've been planning to make something similar with my own hardware interface via PCB. Quick question though: What tools did you use to build the GUI? Python + Tkinter?
can I use other touchscreens like Samsung Galaxy S4 or the main board Will reject it?
And the same with the camera...
I really like this project, it's really interesting.
I would really appreciate if you answer me.
The Raspberry Pi will work with most TFT displays with a SPI interface. Adafruit has many displays compatible with the RPi that are proven to work. If you are feeling a little more daring, you could buy a cheap display off of ebay. As for the camera, there are only two designs for the CSI interface, but a webcam should work two. But by not using the components recommended I cannot guarantee my software will work or my case designs will fit. My software requires a display with a Minimum of 480x320 resolution and a camera connected to the CSI port.
I'll ask Qs later in case I face any other problem.
hey there, i need the concept behind the electronics of displaying your data on phones screen ,components related that.
And change the camera for example 10mp
Can i ?
Hey,
If you upgraded to a Pi 2, take a look at this: https://www.raspberrypi.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=56&t=107947&p=743059
Great job on the win!
Congrats on the win! Some useful stuff here for sure, gave an idea or two!
hello sir, i want to buy lcd screen as u mentioned above..from adafruit the cost is 44 dollars and i'm from india if it is shipped to my place total cost for the lcd product is 95 dollars it is very hard for me to buy.. please tell me where can i buy the same screen to do this phone from india..? please guide me bcz i'm doing this phone as my college mini project i want to complete this soon..!
Check out these two retailers:
http://www.exp-tech.de/adafruit-pitft-assembled-480x320-3-5-tft-touchscreen-for-raspberry-pi?___store=en&___from_store=de
http://ex-en.alliedelec.com/adafruit-industries-2097/70460850/#tab=overview
Does anyone have link(s) for enclosures you can buy?
120x75x35mm is the outer dimensions of the case. You can get more detailed dimensions by examining the CAD files. https://github.com/spadgenske/tyfone
Thanks! and where did you gt your screws from?
Can you erase an old sim card and use it?
Thanks!
?
hi sir.. i'm currently doing this phone.. i have some doubts that .. as i'm from india. i want to know my local network sims like idea or aircel or airtel works with this smartphone or not? is it possible for me to buy t mobile network sim card? how can i get new t-mobile network sim card /? i'm from india..!
Any network with a 2G GSM network will work. I recommend T-Mobile because they have a 2G network and don't plan on shutting it down plus it is what I used so you know it will work. A card from an India cellular company will work just fine as long as it supports GSM. I don't think T-Mobile has coverage in India.
you can put samsung out of business...great project!
Great project, Tyler. Kudos.
Still couldn't find an answer if we can build this project with the new RPI 2. I've already purchased few RPI 2s for different projects and I would love to know if there's any issue in regards to compatibility. Thanks and keep up the good work, man.
The Pi 2 should work just fine. Adafruit says the PiTFT works with the Pi 2 and the UART and GPIO are the same so everything should work. You may need to do extra configuring (I have read extra configuration is required for the I2C interface but that is not used) but that is about it. The case would also require modifications because the Pi 2 is taller and longer than the A+.
Thx for your quick reply. I do have the PiTFT already and that's correct, it does work with the new RPI2. Now my concern is the 2G ntw which is really on the lethal injection (or it'll be by mid 2015 as per T-mobile's statement when they'll switch to LTE). So not sure what can we do afterwards with this FONA module?
T-Mobile plans to keep their GSM 2G networks at least for awhile although AT&T is shutting theirs down in 2017. I contacted customer support on this issue and they said "We do plan in enhancing our networks by balancing the number of users of
the 2G towers compare to those that needs 3G/4G/LTE thus we may reduce the
number of 2G towers in certain location and convert it to 3G/4G/LTE networks
but will never be shut down completely." So it sounds like 2G will stay around for at least a few more years, but I don't expect my phone to work forever. Hopefully Adafruit updgrades the Fona to 3G soon.
Congrats on getting featured on the Raspberry Pi blog! You have high chances of winning the contests :)
Absolutely fabulous! A huge well done on a great and inspirational project :-)
From PiPhone to TyFone! Great Job!
https://learn.adafruit.com/piphone-a-raspberry-pi-based-cellphone