

Ask HN: Is it possible to build your own cell phone? - kapilkaisare

Any online resources would be preferred.
======
retroafroman
Yes, it is possible to build a cell phone that can perform the functions of
making calls, sending SMS, and even data transfer. For an example of a GSM
module that would be the main component of such a system, see here:
<http://www.sparkfun.com/products/10138>

However, from a cost and performance point of view, it doesn't make any sense
to do so. The cell phone OEMs have a large amount of engineering and logistics
resources to put behind building devices that are aesthetically pleasing,
small, and powerful.

------
runjake
You can and a simple Google search will link you to a number of homebrew
projects.

Hint: include terms like "avr", "Arduino", or "arm" in your searches.

The problem with home brew cellular systems is, unless you have access to some
pretty advanced chip/board fab equipment, they're usually way too bulky to be
practical, and they use too many mAh's (battery life).

The stuff on Sparkfun and Adafruit are great for hobbyist projects, but aren't
going to be better than a cheap series 40 Nokia that's hackable via a serial
interface.

------
bschiett
major chip manufacturers probably have reference designs you can get, which
include some of their parts, and which should be a good starting point.

you will indeed need to have access to advanced PCB fab and assembly
subcontractor, but with some digging around you can find those.

the biggest problem is that you'll need hardware and software engineers who
really know their job and can do the schematics, layout and firmware - doing a
cell phone well is not an easy or small project, certainly not if you want to
do something at a serious level and go beyond hobbyist type hacking.

you'll also have to do research on where to get an OS - developing this
yourself is a huge project, probably just as big if not bigger than doing the
hardware design. I don't know if it's possible, but perhaps you can get
android OS source code and use that as a starting point.

you'll have to make each part of the hardware talk to the OS which means
writing some driver or glue code, which is a whole other job. I'd try to use
standard peripherals/ICs in your design for which android already has drivers.

without knowing more about your project, I can't really help more than this -
if you want to talk about it feel free to msg me.

