BlackBerry Pi Handheld Linux Computer
Photo credit: Zhou Xu
Scientist Zhou Xu decided to make use of an old BBQ20KBD BlackBerry keypad he had laying around, and the result is BlackBerry Pi. This Cyber Deck-like computer has the form factor of a classic BlackBerry phone, with a touch of the Sinclair ZX Spectrum, thanks to a 3D-printed case.



It features a Raspberry Pi Zero W board, a Gearbest (320 x 240) LCD, a Raspberry Pi Camera NoIR v2.1, an Adafruit Powerboost 1000c power supply, a 5V fan for cooling, and a 2,500mAh Lipo battery. The design was first drafted in SolidWorks before he 3D-printed the enclosure, which will soon be available on Github once everything gets a bit more polished up.

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BlackBerry Pi Handheld Linux Computer

Current status: I’ve open the enclosure again to alter the keypad connection to I2C and spare the USB port. The original BBQ20KBD keypad is held to the PCB by a white foam-like double-side sticky tape, and also acting like a spacer so that the ribbon cable does not get crashed. However, it makes the edge of keypad very flexible,” said its creator.

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