r/cyberDeck

He is so amazing. Asked me for random parts over the past few months to go with his raspberry pi 5 we got him for Christmas.

I built the scaffold of a DnD site idea I had so his friend and he could all get notified when things happen in their campaign. My idea was a code based system so any kid with a browser could join the campaign and we don’t log anyone’s personal info. He took it and RAN with it.

It has culminated in this: a cyberdeck he built that runs LoreKeeper (our software, I didn’t know about Lorekeeper.com when I named it) and does all kinds of things. It uses an onboard LLM using Ollama to generate NPCs and other things. He’s bringing it to DnD club in Friday. Did I mention he’s 14? I had zero hand in any of this other than setting up the initial site and handing it over to him on GitHub.

This is is a modified Furuno marine radar that I stripped the guts out of and turned into a raspi PC.

Some background; I received this as scrap as part of an old project yacht I bought some time ago. It was originally a CRT display marine radar used for tracking landmasses and other bodies in the ocean.

I decided to totally strip it, install a raspi with a 7-inch LCD and repurpose the buttons and dials with the intention of turning into an FX box for my synthesizers (think reverbs, phasers, distortion, etc).

The entire process was quite simple as I had heaps of room to work with. I'd never done any kind of electronic work before such as building my own circuit boards of even soldering for that matter.

All in all I learned a lot and the next one will be a lot easier (as I have a second one!). There's still a few things to fix on this v1 machine , such as 2 push buttons not firing, and the entire 3D-printed buttons needed to be redesigned from scratch, but the entire experience was a lot of fun and I feel satisfied repurposing something that likely otherwise would have ended up in landfill.

Finished my cyberdeck project that I started in December 2025. Stumbled upon cyberdecks after buying a Hackberry Pi, with no intention of designing and building my own. Went down the rabbit hole and ended up learning CAD, soldering and general electronics.

Specs:

• CM0-IQ (essentially a Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W with a DSI port)
• Adafruit PowerBoost
• 5000 mAh battery
• Waveshare low-profile screen
• M5Stack CardKB with rubber keypad
• CNC'd aluminium case

Why "Cyberdad"?

I started watching soldering and CAD videos while settling and holding my baby (now a toddler) to sleep. So every night I was just watching random shorts on electronics and CAD. I had zero prior knowledge, and it quickly went from "what is voltage and current" to "how do I set up 2S LiPos to get to 5V 5A". Same story with CAD — I couldn't even rotate a model at first, and ended up doing parameter sheets in FreeCAD, filleting and array transforms. By no means an expert (my soldering is terrible) but pretty happy with how it's come together just from watching Youtube.​

Purpose:

This is the only tip I have for anyone looking to build their own cyberdeck: really understand what you want out of the project. Initially I wanted a replacement for my laptop. I have a Framework laptop that I love, and thought the next natural step would be to build my own device, free from any company.

What was meant to be a CM5 device became a Banana Pi Zero M2 project, then a Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W project, and finally landed at what I have today. I kind of realised along the way that nothing I designed would ever be as useful, sleek or portable as something like the Framework, designed by actual engineers and designers (of which I am neither).

It can be hooked up to a screen via HDMI, and I put in a spare Logitech dongle so my keyboard and mouse are always connected. It works as a PC, but web browsing is basically impossible, so now it's a note-taking, emulator and email-checking device.

Parts:

Found the CM0-IQ by chance, but it was perfect for my original goal of a laptop replacement. It has both DSI and an HDMI port, so I can connect it to a monitor and use it on the go.

I designed some adapters to convert the CM0-IQ back to the layout of a regular Zero module, so that if/when Raspberry Pi releases a 3 W, I can swap it straight in. Because the CM0 has the SoC on the bottom, it can be passively cooled via a thermal pad through the aluminium case.

Because I set out to build a laptop replacement, I only used "branded" parts — most items are Adafruit (even the cables) because I needed it to be reliable. I run my own business, so I need it to turn on and off reliably every day, but not using Aliexpress parts definitely added to the overall cost.

The system light is light-piped to the top of the case so I can see if it's on. The key adds a bit of cyberpunk-ness, and shuts off the PowerBoost when not in use. The battery indicator shows remaining charge, but I don't know how to turn it off without a battery cut-off, so it just runs 24/7 (lol).

Cost:

Honestly, too much for what is essentially a Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W. "Hobby electronics is not cheap" is 100% true. I didn't own a soldering iron and wrecked $$$ worth of parts while learning, too — starting from scratch was expensive. Because the scope kept changing, I've also ended up with a box of new and unused parts, including 2x Riikey keyboards, 2x Waveshare displays, a Banana Pi, and Raspberry Pi CM5 parts. Total cost I'd say is around 2K AUD, including all the prototypes.

Would I do it again?

I'd do something like this with my son if he was interested — design and build a little music/gaming device. I might try again and make a CM5 tablet/slate, but not any time soon.

"You mentioned that you originally wanted to replace your laptop — wouldn't it have been cheaper and quicker to just use an iPad with a keyboard? Not to mention resale value, which this will have zero of. And parts and accessories are available at every shopping centre and airport. Wouldn't that have made more sense?"

Yes

Happy to answer any questions.

Got this IMac G3 for 20 bucks and at the moment I saw I knew it would be my next custom project. When arrived home tried to turn on but it gave no life signal, so the next step is to disassembly and turn into a pc.

Made my pi zero running Pi OS and waveshare 2.13 e ink v4 display into a tinyterm powered by pisugar 3

After a long time lurking I finally decided to try my hand at making one! She looks a little rough, but my next big step is cable management and getting a more custom case. I am currently using a plastic paint brush holder I found at the Container Store (not pretty but it fits everything inside and I can snap it closed for storage). I plan on using it mainly as a word processor, but I have also downloaded way too many games.

Running a Pi Zero 2 W with Pi OS Lite, a 7" screen and mechanical keyboard.

So this is my first cyberdeck. i got inspired by u/nilseuropa 's cases for the ESP32-S3-RLCD-4.2 and Rii 518bt keyboard, and also wanted to try changing to a 10000 mAh battery and see how long it would last, also made both the keyboard and ESP kit use the same battery, and rerouted the keyboard pair switch.

it uses no glue or screws, its snap-fit, tried keeping it thin and light as possible. But the mod on the hardware need some soldering and removing some parts as you can tell.

As for the battery, its the first full charge I'm doing, so it's too early to tell, I'm thinking it should last more than a week at least (always on), or more using stand-by when not needed

Edit:

The CAD files are now available here https://github.com/andre-barata/sol.01/tree/main

Saw a few posts here discussing similar ideas, which reminded me of this old project, so I figured I’d share it. I’m planning to pick it back up and continue working on it.

I started this project back in 2022–2023, but it ended up being put on hold in the later stages and has been sitting ever since.

The original approach was to reverse-engineer and bypass the ANX7580, break out the internal eDP signal, and use an eDP-to-MIPI bridge to drive the display. Later on, thanks to the open-source BIOS work from the DeckHD project, I found that modifying the eDP panel parameters in the BIOS could also get the screen working. That turned out to be a much cleaner solution.

The goal was to make the whole device as compact as possible. Basically, the original Steam Deck motherboard is the only major part I’m keeping. The controls, battery, and cooling system all need to be custom-made.

Compared with a standard Steam Deck, I removed the left trackpad and the right analog stick.

Specs:

• Battery: 4×18650 cells, 4×3500mAh
• Display: 5.5" AMOLED, 1280×720
• Custom cooling module with two fans — one mainly for the CPU, and the other to help circulate air and cool the internals overall.

Is this a cyberdeck or did I just build a little laptop?

Running on a Raspberry Pi 5, Waveshare 11.9" display, and Anker 20kmAh power bank.

The main issue I'm running in to is the display brightness. Does anyone have any experience with these displays? Do I need a different power supply for the display?

Also I installed RetroPie to have some old-school games like Mario and Sonic on it - does anyone have any experience getting those to play in ultra-widescreen? Any pointers?

UPDATE: I got the brightness figured out, I had to long-press the single button on the back of the display! woo! Now I just need to figure out how to get my games to play in ultra-widescreen :)

Hey all :)

I wanted to share my Wardriving setup that Ive been working on for the past couple months! Everything was designed by me in Solidworks, and 3D Printed in house.

This build is composed of two main parts, the cyberdeck and the wardriver.

Cyberdeck:

RPI5

PiPower5 UPS

52Pi 10.1" Touchscreen

Kano Keyboard

Inseego 4G LTE Router

Wardriver:

RPI4

Panda PAU09 Wifi Dongle

Startech Bluetooth Dongle

BU-353N USB GPS Reciever

32GB Flashdrive

A lot of parts were even scored from local thrift stores! I managed to find the RPI4 for $3 in a picar kit, the inseego router for $7, and the keyboard for $5.

I've dubbed the Wardriver "TRIDENT", and it actually works completely independently of the cyberdeck. All data is transfered via an Ethernet link between the two devices. It even has its own UI, complete with a joystick and OLED screen.

The cyberdeck powers TRIDENT, and when Wardriving the 2000mah battery will last around 2 hours. I have an inverter built into my car so I usually run it plugged in, but it's a nice feature.

It's pretty portable but is definitely on the bulky side of things; but this setup allows me to gather 2.4Ghz, 5Ghz, Bluetooth, and GPS data and log it to Wigle via 4G LTE.

Thanks for checking it out and I'm happy to answer any questions!

It’s in working order and im thinking I could use the screen and touch screen for something maybe? I don’t know

Also general advice for beginning would be great lol

Edit: it’s a ds lite

I have a Lenovo loq 15irh8 i5 13420h 3050(6gb)(tragic I know) 16gb ram and I’m wondering about a little project. I am thinking of chopping this thing up. Well not really see it has a lot of wasted space around where your arms rest and I had an idea that would serve me well if it worked. I want to put a small oled screen in the chassis monitoring temps so I can monitor 24/7 without thinking abt it or having it on my screen. The picture included shows the space available. So the question is, how hard will it be, is it practical, is it worth it?

Posted a version of this over on r/esp32 and a couple of people said it belonged here. Fair warning up front: it is not strictly a cyberdeck. It doesn't go in a backpack and there's no HMD. But it came from the same impulse, so I'll let you decide.

The first version was three buttons and a small screen. It could tell me that something had happened, a task finished or something needed me, but not what. Which meant every time it lit up I still had to walk back to the desk to find out whether it mattered. It was a doorbell, not a window.

What I actually wanted was dumber and more specific than that. I wanted to lie on the couch and still be following the project.

So this one mirrors the whole thing. Every running session down the left, and the full conversation of whichever one I'm looking at on the right. Not a summary, the actual output, scrollable. When it stops and asks for permission I can approve from here. When it asks a multiple choice question I pick with the knob.

The upshot is that I can now get through most of a working session without sitting at the machine. Not all of it, obviously. I'm not writing code on a 3.5" screen. But the reading, approving and nudging-it-along part turns out to be most of the hours, and that now happens from wherever I am.

Guts: ESP32-S3, 3.5" 480x320 , mic array, rotary encoder, three mechanical switches. The enclosure is printed and then sanded and primed to death, and that part took longer than the firmware did.

(Same disclosure I gave on r/esp32: I am turning this into a product eventually. No link, nothing to sell today.)

Happy to answer anything. Still working out what actually belongs on a screen this size.

Only recently discovered cyberdecks and have been obsessed with idea of building my own. I have no idea what I’m doing yet but saw this vintage Kraft Mac tackle box and thought it might make for a cool case. Idk what you guys think? Too goofy?

I did that before the eee pc in suitcase thats the same motherboard lmao also i used a plastic potato crate lol