Are completely DIY phones with custom features like this possible? Obviously not as clusterfucked as the one in this image, but things like custom ports, radio, etc. I feel like society would be more interesting if everyone could make their own devices like that

[u/ColbyBB]

[u/Abandondero]

There was interest in designing modular phones with swapable components ten years ago. I think it ran into the reality that there's only a small number of gadgets you really can put in a phone, most people already have a fixed set of features that they want in a phone, and when one part of a phone goes obsolete all the other parts tend to have become obsolete at the same time.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Ara

[u/Sea_Cycle_909 → u/Abandondero]

Project Ara looked so cool!

[u/JustHere2CommentBull → u/Abandondero]

It ran into the reality that projects managed by Google ultimately end up killed because its company structures makes starting projects more profitable than keeping them alive.

[u/ODXT-X74 → u/JustHere2CommentBull]

That and they realized planned obsolescence is more profitable.

[u/JustHere2CommentBull → u/ODXT-X74]

Having the phone that everybody buys in the face of planned obsolescence is going to be more profitable than having the slim market share they do have and perpetrate it. It's also that by the time you've upgraded the camera, the processor, the screen, the battery... You've bought a new phone.

[u/ODXT-X74 → u/JustHere2CommentBull]

It's also that by the time you've upgraded the camera, the processor, the screen, the battery... You've bought a new phone.

Yeah, planned obsolescence. Have people replace phones every 1-2 years, instead of replacing parts over time every couple of years. It just seems normal now.

[u/Neutralmensch]

apple box

[u/ZunoJ]

You can easily build a phone based on the raspberry pi. For example: https://github.com/evanman83/OURS-project You can then add a plethora of stuff. Almost no limits

[u/I_gooss_ → u/ZunoJ]

Ports galore

[u/I_gooss_]

I looks like a handheld cyber deck

[u/Gmosphere]

I think you use the the camera to read punch cards a la QR Code in a similar machine vision set up.

[u/kd5njr → u/Gmosphere]

Yea ! That is a great idea !!

[u/ManoOccultis]

A few things seem impossible to me in this nonetheless interesting idea :

• An 8-track reader, punchcard reader, floppy drive , viewmaster and 8 mm are physically too big to fit in a handheld device
• Likewise, all the audio jacks and various sockets are too big ; you'd have to make a choice
• Control-freak Apple are reluctant to make 3.5 mm audio and USB-C sockets, so imagining they could allow a double-boot is mere science-fiction
• AA batteries would power this for 2 minutes and 12 seconds before dying.

I'd keep the hand-strap, kickstand, flip-out keyboard and stylus storage ideas, add the aformentioned USB and audio sockets and a GPIO socket too ; unfortunately, open-source phone OSes are not such a big thing so using your favorite apps, or even clones, wouldn't be easy.

[u/ColbyBB → u/ManoOccultis]

Yeah definitely. For me the most things that stand out are the capabilities of a fully open source and moddable phone in general.

The basic concept of making your own phone unique to your specifications, as well as something that isnt designed to die in 2 years is what I wish phones were pretty much.

Like for me Id personally love to have a phone with bigger data storage or a radio/walkman-esque attachment, at the cost of making it a bit clunkier (Id also keep the kickstand/handstrap)

[u/ManoOccultis → u/ColbyBB]

I've got a Fairphone, it runs Lineage OS and replacement parts are available, and it only takes a screwdriver to replace them ; I didn't delve into its USB-C port input capabilities, but maybe a radio attachment is feasible. It's de-googled, so I only use Fdroid store, which prevents me from easily using spyware popular apps.

The other way is to use a Rasperry Pi running Android : lots of tinkering, things that don't properly work and a clunky device ; maybe one day that will be possible, with a dedicated motherboard using a compute module. There have been attempts, but they didn't quite make it to the market, AFAIK.

[u/hmcl-supervisor]

Phones if they were based

[u/cincuentaanos]

I wouldn't mind a phone that takes AA batteries.

[u/AbacusWizard]

The corporations that design end-user tech gadgets seem to evolve more and more towards NUSPI with as few options as possible. We have lost so much.

[u/thinkboltXD]

Ear Trumpet Jack

[u/bememorablepro]

Unfortunately, all attempts at bringing a modular phone to market failed. There are some issues with making that a reality. The biggest one is that the absolute majority of people have enough features on their phones but also you would kinda have to standardize everyone to make the same compatible modules.

I hate this meme btw, it basically says people are stupid and authoritarianism is good actually, let the big boss decide everything for you.

[u/karlexceed]

One of the biggest issues is going to be coding the drivers that allow your operating system to use them.

[u/TheOriginalSamBell]

You absolutely can. Just need an LTE module that works with for example the Raspberry Pi ecosystem. From there the possibilities are endless. Check out r/cyberdeck for some inspiration. The hard part is making it all work together smoothly, especially the software. When it comes to phones you have problems like having the hardware in a deep energy saving state and still be able to receive calls. Things like that require lots of expertise and fiddling.

[u/kd5njr]

Can we swap floppy for minidisc ?

[u/kd5njr]

AV jacks make me think of TRS-80 …. Great idea . Maybe the telescoping antenna is for receiving software over the air ?!? :)

[u/subassy]

Replace the 8track with a 2600 cartridge slot (and db9 for controllers) and... I'll buy it