Worklog Kill Mii (Altoids Tin Portable)

[cheese]

Finally heard back from AdaFruit customer support today. All I had to do was email them, post to their forums, wait a week, post again saying I was planning on doing a chargeback, tweet at them linking to the thread, and email again to get a response.

How long did you wait lmao? I haven't had issues with Ada, but I also haven't done much business with them

 

[Shank]

How long did you wait lmao? I haven't had issues with Ada, but I also haven't done much business with them

I emailed them and they told me to post to their forum instead for support instead.
A few days later I posted to the forum.
6 days later (today), after not getting a reply, and many newer threads getting replies, I replied to the thread. I was polite, but stated my frustration, and that I was considering a chargeback.
I then tweeted at adafruit with a link to said thread, saying my post has gone unanswered.
Finally got a response, telling me to email them.
Emailed them.
A new (hopefully working) screen is on the way.

Once I got customer service to address the issue and reply to the thread, things went smoothly, but nobody should have to go through that much effort to get acknowledged by customer support. Its a 2" 320x240 composite display, and I paid $40 plus $10 shipping for it. With prices like that, I expected better support.

 

[DeoNaught]

Powered the Wii off of a single tiny lipo using a tiny board from a portable charger. I was pretty sure it would work, but now I have confirmation. The battery, portable charger circuit, regulators, USB port, and power switch are all wired up.

can you run the wii off of 5V?

 

[cheese]

can you run the wii off of 5V?

Wrong thread, but yes. You will need regulators to bring 5v to the other required voltages as well. Check the noobs thread

 

[Shank]

Thanks to @Noah, the internals of the project are getting a huge overhaul. It has slowly evolved from a portable made to be awful in every way, into one that is well engineered, but still awful. Its going to take a few more weeks of waiting, but the improvements to the internals are going to be worlds better.

 

[cheese]

made to be awful in every into one

 

[pipbug]

im hyped for this

 

[Shank]

View attachment 2424

Fixed a word.

 

[Shank]

FINALLY! I think I got it.
-Bridgeport with mill bits
-Tin clamped to a block of wood
Bit spins full speed, but drill into the tin really, really, really, really slowly, so it's just sanding/grinding the metal away as powder. Leaves a clean hole without applying pressure that deforms the tin or blows out the other side. I'm super excited I finally figured this out. It's been a pain. You guys wouldn't believe how many methods I tried.

The big hole was even drilled with a crooked bit, so a straight bit should leave an even cleaner cut.

 

[Shank]

Got my replacement screen from AdaFruit. AAAAAAAAAAND its defective too. While this second screen doesn't have the visible backlight stripes that the first one did, the screen is jittery and flickery, while the first one was not. I tried swapping the driveboards, and can confirm it is indeed the new screen itself that is flickery. The customer service adventure continues

 

[BocuD]

Maybe you can disassemble both screens and use the backlight from the new one while keeping the. LCD panel the old one had? Most LCD's have tabs on the side which you could use to open it up.

 

[YveltalGriffin]

Maybe you can disassemble both screens and use the backlight from the new one while keeping the. LCD panel the old one had? Most LCD's have tabs on the side which you could use to open it up.

@Shank I second this, it's easy to switch out the backlight assemblies. Might save you some hassle!

 

[Stitches]

@Shank I second this, it's easy to switch out the backlight assemblies. Might save you some hassle!

Unless the backlight issue is further down the ribbon, in which case the warranty for both is moot.

 

[YveltalGriffin]

Unless the backlight issue is further down the ribbon, in which case the warranty for both is moot.

You're right. Further investigation is warranted. (☞ﾟヮﾟ)☞ ...ayyy

 

[Stitches]

You're right. Further investigation is warranted. (☞ﾟヮﾟ)☞ ...ayyy

M8

 

[Shank]

Maybe you can disassemble both screens and use the backlight from the new one while keeping the. LCD panel the old one had? Most LCD's have tabs on the side which you could use to open it up.

I want to wait until I hear back from adafruit. Id rather have the functional unmodified screens to show that they are indeed defective, and not screwed up by me modifying it. Ill consider it, but Im not sure how difficult soldering that will be.

 

[BocuD]

I want to wait until I hear back from adafruit. Id rather have the functional unmodified screens to show that they are indeed defective, and not screwed up by me modifying it. Ill consider it, but Im not sure how difficult soldering that will be.

Ok, thats probably better considering if they send you a new one you can't return the old ones.

 

[Frog]

How long does the battery last?

 

[Shank]

How long does the battery last?

-Tiny LiPo cells with high C ratings from batteryspace for like 15 mins of battery life.

It's not finished yet but I gave an estimate in the first post.

 

[splain]

Jeepers, and I struggle to fit an N64 into one of those huge GBA carrying cases.

I offer my support in the form of purchasing that bag of Altoids.