FrankenBook: A Phone-turned-Linux-Laptop

This website is running my 2019 Redmi 8T Android phone. And I wrote the this post on my FrankenBook. The FrankenBook is a very DIY laptop. It runs Debian Linux on a damaged 2020 Samsung Galaxy S20 using a screen from a broken 2012 Apple iPad.

The FrankenBook runs LibreOffice - an open source alternative to Microsoft office - on Debian OS (Linux). It also runs VS Code (Microsoft Visual Studio Code) for on the go-coding. 

While there are plenty of sleek 3D-printed ways of combining an iPad screen with a Samsung phone, I went with felt cloth and plastic boards to demonstrate a more low-tech and a more accessible approach

What’s the big deal?

1. Older, broken tech is still useful:
   A phone with a broken screen can be a laptop. An old tablet can be repurposed as a second screen. And here I happened to put them together to make an functional laptop you can use for work.
2. It should be easy to adapt/remix your old digital devices:
   Anyone should be able to easily take an old tablet screen and connect to their laptop or phone. But today, that's not true.. And it took hours to figure out how to unlock and root the Samsung phone, so I could run Linux on it. And most manufacturers have blocked phone owners from this ability! 
3. You don’t need a 3D printer, but they should become more accessible:
   I used felt, plastic board, and lots of glue to prove anyone can make a passable case. A 3D-printed case would have cost over 30 EUR where I live. But it shouldn't. Saving tech from landfills by repurposing them have long-term environmental, social, and financial benefits. 
   

Imaging if modding digital devices was the norm? Even required as a best practice?

• Anyone can convert their old smartphones into a laptop running Linux or even Windows for lightweight work and browsing, just by installing some software and connecting to a large display (including wirelessly!)
  
• Touchscreen screens from old tablets can be quickly removed and repurposed as an extra screen or added to different devices (e.g. security system, music player, and more). 

What's Next: A Polished FrankenBook?

For the first build, I've gone the cheap-end by repurposing a 2012 iPad display, some plastic cardboard, and a lot of glue to create the FrankenBook. There's a community of folks who make more polished version of these devices (cyberdecks) that push the edges on form, function, and aesthetics. 

Want to comission your own FrankeBook?
Ask here!

But actually, you can get a great set-up setup just by using a portable monitor (for under 100 USD):