Having A Zaurus Made Me Want A Full-fledged Minipc

[Tom61]

After having both a M$ Pocket PC and a Zaurus, I realised that what I wanted isn't a souped-up PDA, but a full-fledged mini PC.

Goals of project:
Smaller than laptop/tablet
Playback of video without reencoding
Portable Firefox with flash support
Larger than Zaurus's screen at a high res. in landscape
Cheaper than OQO

Parts:
Advantech PCM-7574 EBX Socket 370 board (about the same dimensions as a CDROM)Unofficial site for board

Via C3 800MHz (x86 CPU that makes a Intel Celeron look power hungry) with 1U blower heatsink

92MB or 256MB SODIMM memory (depending if I just use what I have laying around, or buy some)

20GB laptop harddrive

Trackpoint unit for mouse

Touchscreen a strong possibility (I've ordered one off ebay, but not sure it's suitable)

Keyboard is up in the air currently, could be a PS2 USB mini-keyboard (as in the game console, not PS/2), Sammy PS2 keyboard mini gamepad, or a notebook style 87-key keyboard.

Sony PSOne 5" screen for 640x480i (I'd like to replace it for a higher res/non-interlaced display, if I had the money)

MAX787 based PSU (motherboard only needs +5V to operate)

2x 5.4 AmpHour batteries

USB 802.11g WiFi adapter

Software:
Linux (of course), maybe Ubuntu or K Ubuntu
Mplayer
FireFox
other apps, and some games

Current status:
"Just about done." The last of the parts are either on their way, or just about to be ordered. Once everything gets here I'll start cutting into my current case, and doing the final wiring).

For more info on my project check out my project logs, one on Ben Heck.com forums (Site dedicated to making game consoles portable, also has someone else trying to make one), one on [H]ardForums (PC modding site)

Pictures:
Parts I started out with:

[bam]

sold a z for this project..........all I have to say is good luck. You know that sony puts out this little 12" tablet pc right?

[BarryW]

Or an OQO.

[pgas]

Via C3 800MHz

I think you might  want a slightly more powerfull processor if you want to have "Playback of video without reencoding".

[orange]

why not get a flybook

[jace48]

What display are using? And total cost of the entire project plus where I can source the MDB?

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[icruise]

What display are using? And total cost of the entire project plus where I can source the MDB?

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This looks like it could be an interesting project, but not something to since very much money into. I mean, you can get a pretty nice used subnotebook for not much more than the price of a Zaurus...

Also, isn't the PSOne screen pretty low resolution for use as a computer screen? It's basically a TV monitor after all.

[BarryW]

It's 640X480, just like a tv screen.  I hope that mobo has tv out because I've done the vga hack for the screen and it's a pita to get working right!

[bam]

why not get a flybook
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pretty impressed....but I will still choose my 3100 , but......maybe a future notebook replacement, if I ever get sick of hauling around this Sager....

[adf]

very cool. keep us posted!

[Tom61]

What display are using? And total cost of the entire project plus where I can source the MDB?

I'm using a 5" PSOne display, for now. Once I get some additional funds I'll probably get a Lilliput 7" wide touchscreen 800x480.  I was hoping that the LCD in the screen had a nice native resolution, and I could run it off the on board motherboard controller. However, it seems to have a model of LCD with a native res of 320x240.

Depending on how you estimate things, I've spent between $300-500 on the project. The motherboard, harddrive, and processor are all left overs from other projects. There's also some items I've bought to see if they'd work for this project, but weren't suitable in the end. I kicked off the project by selling my SL5500 for ~$150.

As for the motherboard, I'd recommend getting a PCM-9576 instead, as the breakouts for my model are hard to source. You can pick up a PCM-9576 on ebay for around $50.

This looks like it could be an interesting project, but not something to since very much money into. I mean, you can get a pretty nice used subnotebook for not much more than the price of a Zaurus...

Also, isn't the PSOne screen pretty low resolution for use as a computer screen? It's basically a TV monitor after all.

I'm not sure how much of a sub-notebook I could get for $150-200, but I was thinking of something a bit different anyway. A PSOne screen isn't the best display, but it's probably better than you're thinking, as an RGB connection is alot better than a composite or S-Video connection.

why not get a flybook

Looks neat, but how much does it cost?

I think you might want a slightly more powerfull processor if you want to have "Playback of video without reencoding".

I may have to get another processor, depending on how well the video chip is supported under Linux. The video chip appearently has some decoding acceleration embedded in it.

[Tom61]

Anyone know a natively supported in Linux 802.11g USB (which seems that only ZD1211 based ones are currently) for around $20? That's really the last thing I need, hardware wise.

[TsingTao]

Hmmm...Looks promising.

 You've obviously put a fair amount of thought into this.  I'll go along with what some others are saying a guess there is an off the shelf product available that you could get that would do everything you want.  That said...


 KUDOS AND ACCOLADES FOR NOT BUYING IT!!!!!  


 I've only recently gotten into the open source/homebrew scene having been scared of blowing up investements, but I'm slowly losing my inhibitions.  From the paltry little projects I've done I know there might be slightly higher investment in time and frustration by 'rolling your own'  but the dividends in personal satisfaction are great indeed (equitable certainly if you get it to work...    )


 A question about the mobo/cpu. Was there no available FANLESS option ?  I cruised Advantech's website and nothing jumped out at me, but it seems like it would have saved weight, power, and space.  Or was there simply nothing close enough in power/price without a fan ?

 Looks good though.  I shall follow your progress with rapt attention !!!

[bam]

A question about the mobo/cpu. Was there no available FANLESS option ? I cruised Advantech's website and nothing jumped out at me, but it seems like it would have saved weight, power, and space. Or was there simply nothing close enough in power/price without a fan ?

you could go peltier cooler, but the power req'ts are kinda crazy.

[Tom61]

Hmmm...Looks promising.

 You've obviously put a fair amount of thought into this.  I'll go along with what some others are saying a guess there is an off the shelf product available that you could get that would do everything you want.  That said...


 KUDOS AND ACCOLADES FOR NOT BUYING IT!!!!! 

Thanks!

I've only recently gotten into the open source/homebrew scene having been scared of blowing up investements, but I'm slowly losing my inhibitions.  From the paltry little projects I've done I know there might be slightly higher investment in time and frustration by 'rolling your own'  but the dividends in personal satisfaction are great indeed (equitable certainly if you get it to work...    )

DIY can be quite fun. So far, it's slightly over budget, and oversized compared to what I was orignally planning, but I can make modifications later. I've got alot more respect for the OQO and U70 designers, now.  

A question about the mobo/cpu. Was there no available FANLESS option ?  I cruised Advantech's website and nothing jumped out at me, but it seems like it would have saved weight, power, and space.  Or was there simply nothing close enough in power/price without a fan ?

Actually, the typical fanless configuration for this power of processor would be larger and heavier than what I have now, even moreso for what should be arriving soon. A passively cooled Via Eden (very simular to C3) passively cooled processor generally has a heatsink nearly as big as the motherboard itself and at least 3/4" tall.

Looks good though.  I shall follow your progress with rapt attention !!!
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