Log My handheld PC projects

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Shrink Ray Wielder
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Nov 1, 2015
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I printed the left bottom piece from the updated design, but it doesn't seem as good as I had thought. These side handles were printed in more steep angle, since the finish with the layer lines would look better going across as much of the area as possible. Layers don't look really good in very shallow angles.


Previously, I had printed both handles from the old design. They ended up being a very good fit but little room for error. It's why I went for a longer design.


The following day I let the printer run overnight, took 8 hours to make the larger left piece. More spacious, but still had some noticeable imperfections.


I added a locking tab at the top because there was little room to fit in a screw post. But it interfered with the board and won't sit completely all the way. This tab could be filed down more with a Dremel but the other flaw is harder to fix.


Printed material tends to warp around the edges in longer areas, and the difference can be seen between opposite ends. The piece was printed upside down with the shoulder button and exhaust area pointing to the bottom, because it had the shorter print time. But it's harder to account for the temp differences when that side cools faster and less supports near the top of the print while it remains long and thin.

I also stacked together the display bezel I printed with the bottom handles. Here's the back of the display with most boards taped down, and shows how the power and HDMI would have to be routed.



Trying to see how much room there is left inside for parts, there's barely any. My calculations were too tight trying to allow the cables and the laptop battery I plan to add in later.


So, I've decided that maybe I won't go further tweaking the design and making more prints of it for now. Time to backtrack and come up with another plan.

Then I remember someone making a portable PC using a Pi inside a Wii U gamepad shell, and then saw this recent video of a portable PS2 using the same gamepad. And so I'm thinking this might be my other option.

Here's an inside view of the Wii U gamepad with the Pi build (not my own). I definitely would need to make more compromises to fit the much larger Framework board inside but it's still possible. It just means I have to re-organize some of the parts during the planning with the new design.



This photo illustrates how roomy the gamepad can be once it's hollowed out, especially when you consider the battery placement. Not that I will necessarily re-attempt to make a custom battery pack, but it does show how much extra vertical space there is. Also, here's an approximate to scale mockup of how the mainboard could fit inside.



It may not be as slim or as sleek as I hoped, but it would be more approachable as a stronger starting point to mod an existing enclosure to put the PC in. Plus, I already had bought Wii U controller parts to try to do this with a NUC so maybe I could make those parts work here, too.
 
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CC Ricers

Shrink Ray Wielder
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Nov 1, 2015
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So, I've decided not to use the Wii U gamepad for the shell as I'd rather still have an original shell design to go with the Framework parts I'm using. But I've gotten inspiration from the Wii U as well as some other handhelds for my new design. And I have to say I like this one a lot, and it's working out better than the previous one.

Overall, the new design is highly inspired by the Retro Champ portable



The parts are also made with thicker walls and with a flat top surface in mind, so it's a bit more tablet-like in design.

Here is a sneak peek of the back. Still need to add a few things (I/O ports, etc.)



It sits 120mm wide by 250mm long by 32mm tall. Appearance-wise it look more like a chonky boi but that also means there is more room to fit the inner components to make assembly less of a pain.

The left half is already printed out and mostly cleaned up. Despite sharing similar dimensions as my old design, it definitely feels more sturdy and refined thanks to its thicker walls and using a print orientation that is more suited for the contours of the shell.
 

Elaman

Cable-Tie Ninja
Sep 13, 2020
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Loving where this is going!
highly inspired by the Retro Champ portable
Only thing is, looking at where your model has the triggers, probably the buttons are to be placed upper still.

What is more or less the power target of the CPU? Are we aiming for 2+hours, 1280 x768?
 

CC Ricers

Shrink Ray Wielder
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Nov 1, 2015
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Loving where this is going!

Only thing is, looking at where your model has the triggers, probably the buttons are to be placed upper still.

What is more or less the power target of the CPU? Are we aiming for 2+hours, 1280 x768?

I've printed both test pieces and placed the board inside to get a feel of holding it in my hands, and the placement of the shoulder triggers/buttons actually feels pretty good. There really is little room to spare for the triggers in this layout, but this design isn't going to use analog triggers. It's a needed compromise for the design, as it's easier to just use simple push buttons in this limited space.

I would like to know the battery life as well, as I haven't done any actual testing with a battery on the motherboard. I would hopefully just want a flexible power target between 12w and 25w. Unfortunately, battery life is one of Framework's weaker points. I have a 11th gen Intel board, and from reading accounts of the laptops, power efficiency is even worse on 12th gen.
 

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Shrink Ray Wielder
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Here's a photo of the motherboard finally fitting inside the full case. For the second version of the design, this first test print turned out great.


There's still a noticeable air gap just under 1mm between the parts due to the positioning of the built-in stands. I'm going to move some of them a very small distance apart to see if that improves things.



Those familiar with 3D printing might notice that, from the layer lines, I did not print the pieces flat against the bed surface. Each half was printed at a 45 degree angle with the ends on the surfaces so that the surface finish is more even throughout.

That said, this is a draft quality print with .28mm layer thickness. But by changing the nozzle from .4mm to .6mm, I can get the layer height down to .2mm without adding much printing time.

If the case looks too tight for expansion cards and standard USB connectors, that's because it really is. I kind of rushed out the second part to be printed so there's no openings to connect anything yet. So this is only a mechanical test fit and I can't power it on inside the case. At least not until I get a Framework battery OR some right-angle type C flat cables



I'll need a pair of these to make them part of the build and make most of the add-on components work.
 
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CC Ricers

Shrink Ray Wielder
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Nov 1, 2015
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USB C connectors are ordered and I'm printing new shell parts with a few tweaks: First, the shell is 8mm longer, now 258mm, to make it easier to install the battery, and to prevent any problems with it interfering with the interior cables. Second, an opening for the expansion card in the right side. I will temporarily use this free connector to power on the machine. As of right now, the right half is being printed in a white color.

Continued progress with the design, and now working on the bezel and face area.



Someone over at the Framework discord asked about the possibility for a SD card reader built into the case. That is very possible, if I use the USB connectors wisely. There's also still the option to use the USB to keyboard connector shim. Still not sure how I'll organize all of them exactly. I'd have to power up to 5 interior devices- the two microcontrollers for keyboard and gamepad controls, display, touch panel, and card reader. As work progresses I will keep an eye on power consumption as I integrate more of the parts.
 

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Shrink Ray Wielder
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Nov 1, 2015
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The next case prints are done and they came out looking better in many ways, and worse is others.

For these parts, I changed the nozzle from 0.4mm to 0.6mm while also using finer quality for the prints going from 0.28mm to 0.2mm layers. These two changes together helps improve the quality of the finish while barely adding more print time. But, these prints did turn out with many more blobs and stringing along with the increase in nozzle size. Most of these strings and blobs can be scraped or sanded off, though.



On the other hand, the parts themselves are accurate with the measurements. The mechanical fit of the board is still great. Vents line up properly and so do the built in standoffs, and now with a little extra room to fit in the side cables and battery. When screwed together, the gap between the two halves is much smaller. I just need to remove all the blobs from the prints and figure out how to reduce that for future prints.




If I decided to print another case, I'll try to print without supports. The tree supports seem to do barely anything as the part was being printed and they may have contributed to a fair share of blobbing on the edges. The parts are at a 45 degree angle when printed and each layer holds up just fine whether it is solid or with holes.

The side opening for the expansion card seems to line up well but I need to actually get some cards (or print some since that's also possible) to test the fit.
 

Elaman

Cable-Tie Ninja
Sep 13, 2020
155
119
The next case prints are done and they came out looking better in many ways, and worse is others.

For these parts, I changed the nozzle from 0.4mm to 0.6mm while also using finer quality for the prints going from 0.28mm to 0.2mm layers. These two changes together helps improve the quality of the finish while barely adding more print time. But, these prints did turn out with many more blobs and stringing along with the increase in nozzle size. Most of these strings and blobs can be scraped or sanded off, though.



On the other hand, the parts themselves are accurate with the measurements. The mechanical fit of the board is still great. Vents line up properly and so do the built in standoffs, and now with a little extra room to fit in the side cables and battery. When screwed together, the gap between the two halves is much smaller. I just need to remove all the blobs from the prints and figure out how to reduce that for future prints.




If I decided to print another case, I'll try to print without supports. The tree supports seem to do barely anything as the part was being printed and they may have contributed to a fair share of blobbing on the edges. The parts are at a 45 degree angle when printed and each layer holds up just fine whether it is solid or with holes.

The side opening for the expansion card seems to line up well but I need to actually get some cards (or print some since that's also possible) to test the fit.
I know it's not finished yet, but this is already awesome. I hope the Framework folks are aware of this build...
 

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Shrink Ray Wielder
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Nov 1, 2015
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Short update: I got my slim USB cables and they work pretty well. 10cm each, just long enough to reach part way to the middle but not too long. I also soldered a simple USB-C connector with only power and ground wires to a USB-A connector to use with the cheap hub I've been testing to power on the screen. No problems seen there either, and no longer need an adapter.

Next I will attempt to strip the casing from the USB hub de-solder some connections and figure out how to tuck it in the case. I don't want it to turn into a rat's nest of wires, trying to keep connections as short and compact as possible.
 

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Shrink Ray Wielder
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Nov 1, 2015
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I've been quiet on the updates but busy with iterating and testing out printed parts for fit and compatibility. I'm mostly working on the controls and screen area now. There have been setbacks with the USB hub and touch screen but making progress with the screen bezel and panels for the face controls. I've gone through several prints to get the fit just right.

The screen area is an assembly of three parts which hold the LCD and related boards in place. Challenge here is to get this combination of parts as thin as possible, now just 6mm thick if you don't include a bottom piece to hold one of the middle boards that is connected with two ribbon cables.



A section view of the portable shows the gap between the controller/screen assembly and the motherboard, which is where the battery is supposed to go.



Following this post will be photos with various attempts and different fits of the screen assembly with the case. After the screen assembly is done I can focus a lot more on the parts for the controller area.
 

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Shrink Ray Wielder
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First update in almost 4 months. I wasn't sure how to handle the lack of Framework laptop battery with this handheld PC, but it's back in stock! So I can possibly buy it soon. Also, I renamed this topic so it could cover my second, smaller handheld concept in the meantime, but I want to continue forth on finishing the Framework build first.

With it also comes with a design revision. I have learned that PCBWay offers resin printing that's suitable for functional prototypes, and they're not too expensive either.

The new design is longer (284mm vs 260mm) but also bit slimmer. I think it has a sleeker appearance compared to the previous one.



This extra length would accommodate both the WiFi card and Framework HDMI expansion card which I have also bought. This is a more elegant solution than inserting a third party HDMI adapter, which usually have a stiff cable taking up extra space inside. Using the card, all I need is a tiny 180 degree adapter board and a breakout with a thin ribbon to connect the screen.



That just leaves the controller inputs. As before it will use a USB type C breakout board to USB 2.0 for the controller circuitry. The first prototype I'll produce will not have a touch screen, to keep the component setup simpler. The other two USB-C ports are exposed for providing power and connecting any other external devices, such as a keyboard or USB hub.
 

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Shrink Ray Wielder
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Nov 1, 2015
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The Framework battery is finally ordered and this will be the last major piece of the build that will help me design the case around. Currently this case is made at 25mm thickness at the middle area, which hopefully has some room for motherboard, battery, and screen with input components to be stacked, with a bit of breathing room in between. I will have to design some 3D printable props to support the battery and attach it with the motherboard.
 
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Shrink Ray Wielder
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Nov 1, 2015
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After getting the battery and testing it a few days, I would say that the Framework build would be pretty slim still. The connector is short and doesn't allow much room to swivel so there's no way for an air gap to be between the battery and motherboard. Also it would not fit inside the 112mm width dimension of the case and would need to be increased to at least 120mm to make the battery fit. The old case design wouldn't have fit the battery either.

Given what I learned here I may pause the Framework build and move on to a smaller PC that uses the 5.5 inch screen. Unfortunate but it's why I changed the thread title last week. I will continue tinkering around with mini PCs but the Compute Stick has the most appeal to me right now, because of its insane portability.

While I wasn't doing much with the Framework I had also been on-and-off designing another handheld case for the stick PC, using the same 5.5 in. OLED screen. It's just too nice to leave unused. I have already printed out the main pieces but needs refinements still.





Because this is a smaller, more portable handheld, the challenges of cramming in the necessary components are even greater. But I have successfully put in the PC stick and battery which work together as a unit, so technically it already is portable :)


 
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dra_phantom

Chassis Packer
Feb 7, 2017
13
16
After getting the battery and testing it a few days, I would say that the Framework build would be pretty slim still. The connector is short and doesn't allow much room to swivel so there's no way for an air gap to be between the battery and motherboard. Also it would not fit inside the 112mm width dimension of the case and would need to be increased to at least 120mm to make the battery fit. The old case design wouldn't have fit the battery either.

Given what I learned here I may pause the Framework build and move on to a smaller PC that uses the 5.5 inch screen. Unfortunate but it's why I changed the thread title last week. I will continue tinkering around with mini PCs but the Compute Stick has the most appeal to me right now, because of its insane portability.

While I wasn't doing much with the Framework I had also been on-and-off designing another handheld case for the stick PC, using the same 5.5 in. OLED screen. It's just too nice to leave unused. I have already printed out the main pieces but needs refinements still.





Because this is a smaller, more portable handheld, the challenges of cramming in the necessary components are even greater. But I have successfully put in the PC stick and battery which work together as a unit, so technically it already is portable :)


Hi, What board are you using for the battery.
 

CC Ricers

Shrink Ray Wielder
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Hi, What board are you using for the battery.
It's a generic 5V battery shield I bought on eBay. You can find lots of these by searching "Li-Ion battery shield" on AliExpress or eBay and they take one or more 3.7V batteries and step up to 5V. They usually max out at 3A current so they're just for low power devices.
 

dra_phantom

Chassis Packer
Feb 7, 2017
13
16
It's a generic 5V battery shield I bought on eBay. You can find lots of these by searching "Li-Ion battery shield" on AliExpress or eBay and they take one or more 3.7V batteries and step up to 5V. They usually max out at 3A current so they're just for low power devices.
thanks
 

CC Ricers

Shrink Ray Wielder
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Nov 1, 2015
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I haven't done any work on the Framework handheld case design as finding parts for it that can fit well proved a bit too challenging.

I'd have to go about it in one of two ways: Make the case at least 2 inches longer or 2 inches taller. I chose taller.

The handheld is no longer going to be a Switch/Steam Deck style form factor but rather a sub-notebook or netbook form factor, with a 9-10 inch screen. Closest thing in the market to what I envision is the GPD Win Max 2, so imagine something like that but DIY and swappable motherboards. I already have the battery and have a good idea of the smallest possible size to make this smaller Framework laptop.
 
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ignsvn

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I haven't done any work on the Framework handheld case design as finding parts for it that can fit well proved a bit too challenging.

I'd have to go about it in one of two ways: Make the case at least 2 inches longer or 2 inches taller. I chose taller.

The handheld is no longer going to be a Switch/Steam Deck style form factor but rather a sub-notebook or netbook form factor, with a 9-10 inch screen. Closest thing in the market to what I envision is the GPD Win Max 2, so imagine something like that but DIY and swappable motherboards. I already have the battery and have a good idea of the smallest possible size to make this smaller Framework laptop.

So are you going to put keyboard etc on it? Like a cyberdeck then?
 

CC Ricers

Shrink Ray Wielder
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So are you going to put keyboard etc on it? Like a cyberdeck then?
A keyboard isn't exactly a priority as it's still going to be more gaming-oriented. So for input, I'm focusing on gamepad controls for now. Just like the Win Max 2, it would have a dual analog stick layout in the top area, the with possibility of buttons for extra functions in the top middle.

These controls are what differentiate it from some other Framework-in-a-case projects. It's meant to be held and not just placed on a desk or lap, so I'll be testing more ergonomics with this. First step is to make the shell/housing for the board and battery. Then I'll add in the controls and have it work with the PC, all before adding in the screen. At first it will be like a "half-laptop" with game controls that can run on battery, connected to an external screen.

Once that is all working well, I'll add the screen as the top half with hinge, and then I could consider a keyboard. Probably will purchase a wireless thin keyboard for that and add it in the bottom half of the case.