Projects

💻Cyberdeck small modular pc

There are notes on the mini projects page on miro (link)

TypeProjects
StatusGreenlit
Added22 Nov 2025, 09:44
Last updated30 Mar 2026, 09:17
💻Cyberdeck small modular pc
  • There are notes on the mini projects page on miro (link)
    PREVIEW
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  • Could use a macmini for it
    🔵Questions
    • What is MESA
      • Full software-rendering cross-platform implementation of OpenGL that is open source
    • Do older macminis have smaller PCB’S?
      IMAGES

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      m1 dimensions.jpg
      m1 dimensions.jpg
    • how much aluminum surface area would you need dissapate 60W
      answer

      You’re missing a parameter: temperature rise and airflow. I’ll assume:

      • Natural convection in still air
      • Acceptable heatsink temperature ≈ 60 °C at 20 °C ambient → ΔT ≈ 40 K

      Use:

      So: ≈ 0.15 m² of exposed aluminum surface

      = 1500 cm² total (both sides of fins/plate count).

      If you only allow ΔT ≈ 20 K, you’re closer to 0.3 m² (3000 cm²).

      With a fan (forced convection, h ≈ 50–80 W/m²K), you can get away with roughly 0.02–0.05 m² (200–500 cm²).

      • To keep at 20 degree difference (20 degree ambient) (keep at max 40 degrees) you’d need 3000 cm²
      • At 20 degree ambient
        • to keep at 40 degrees max 3000 cm²
        • to keep at 60 degree max 1500 cm²
      • Macmini by default has 52800.00 mm^2 surface area (528 cm²) which is not enough for passive cooling
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      • With forced convection (a fan) you could get away with 3-5x less surface area
        image.png
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      • this has 1103.8 cm2 pretty close
      • But it does weigh a decent bit
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        • at 1.5mm thick it could get down to 400 gr
    🟢 TO-DO
    • Make a lo-fi physical prototype of different layouts and usecases
    Resources examples
    • Similar solution-idea

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    • MACBOOK in a jar
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    • image.png
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    🟡 Ideas
    • you could 3d print an aluminum case which also has insanely large gyroid type surface area so that it can easily cool it.
    • For extra performance when at home it could be easily actively cooled with a fan
    • Could use solid state fans
    Could you use a termux mobile phone?
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    • can use termux as a server (youtube)
    🟣Resources-Bookmarks
    • ⭐IPAD only with Macmini ‣
      • Yam display app
      • On mac mini yan display downlload client
      • Open Yam display app
    • cool dock for phones ‣
    • Cool mini pc and cyberdeck systems
      • Image compared against a mac mini
        image.png
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    • Linux on arm android devices
    🟠Notes
    • M4 seems to be a great choice
      • Turning chrome box into a pc
          • video
            • he installs proxmox (can handle it but downloads suck, if you have eee enabled)
            • jellyfin (for media)
          • AcerXCI3
          • can book into any UEFI compatible operating system
          • idles at 2.5Watts
          • mooonlight works 4k not great
      • 🚀Windows software on linux and arm
        • Steam coming to all devices
        • Explained ‣
          • Proton (windows on linux) (open-source) (based on wine)
          • FEX Emu binary translator (x86 to ARM64) (open-source)
            • doesn’t touch directX or vulcan for GPU instructions
            • designed for correctness (no random crashes)
          • Lepton (run android on anything)
            • based on wavedroid (android apps to run on ARM linux)
          • What is replaced with what (austin evans youtube)
            • windows ➡️ steamOS
            • Windows API ➡️ Proton (wine)
            • DirectX ➡️ DXVK/VKD3D (GPU)
              • (there was no directX for linux)
            • Prop. Drivers ➡️ Mesa (open-source) drivers
            • x86 CPU architecture ➡️ ARM (FEX for x86 to ARM) (CPU)
        • What about linux on apple hardware
            • Asahi Linux comes to apple silicon
              • GPu and neural engine currently don’t work
                • seems to work pretty well
                • Waydroid can be used to run native android apps
            • codeweavers crossover
            • rosetta 2
            • What is replaced with what
              • Operating System: Windows → SteamOS / Asahi Linux
              • Software Layer: Windows API → Proton (Wine)
              • Graphics API: DirectX → DXVK / VKD3D (running on Vulkan)
              • Hardware Drivers: Proprietary → Mesa (Open-Source)
              • CPU Architecture: x86 (Intel/AMD) → ARM64 (via FEX-Emu translation)
              • Android Apps: Native Android → Lepton (based on Waydroid)
        • ‣ Windows on linux-arm
        • ‣ (for android phones)
          • they might be stealing code
            • from moonlight, winlator, proton
          • Games tested on the gamehub
          • ‣ (this is the original project?)
          • How does gamehub work?
        • Winlator ‣
          • Android application that lets you to run Windows (x86_64) applications with Wine and Box86/Box64.
        • proton10.0-arm64x-2
      • Get base memory and get a 1-2TB upgrade stick
      • pro or non pro
        My M4 Pro (14cpu/20gpu) power draw
        • Idles at about 10W without external drive connected. (external USB4 NVMe SSD adds ~6-7W)
        • It fluctuates between ~11-15W with a YouTube video playing.
        • ~60W when playing inFamous through RPCS3.
        • When running Cinebench 2024, I saw it touch ~80W.
        Consumption is pretty much the same, except the max power. The maximum is higher on the Pro. Usually the maximum is only used for a few seconds, except when rendering or compiling.
        base M4 pro.
        m4 pro has 3 thunderbolt 5(up to 120Gb/s) while m4 has 3 thunderbolt 4 (upto 40Gb/s)
        csm_mac-mini-launch-new_f99bef2af5.jpg
        csm_mac-mini-launch-new_f99bef2af5.jpg
      • You could sell the parts you remove to get some of your money back
        example prices

        https://www.mobileparts.shop/nl/,

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      • You can get the EDU discount
    • Periferals
      • Example
      • Keyboard
        • Combine it with a Apple Magic Keyboard
      • Display
        • Something 120 hz maybe? 2k resolution
        • IPAD on a whim
        • Could you use touchscreen/wacom type tablet?
        • 2K Arzopa model
          • there are high refresh rate, and also high resolution options
        • DIY screenn from a laptop screen (could use nice display)
        • LG Gram (link)
        • Double display
      • Mouse-interface
      • Alternative input device

If you are reading this at the very bottom of the site, you have probably scrolled past prototypes, camera rolls, workshop fixes, and at least one idea that looked better at 2 a.m. Somewhere nearby there is a darkroom that still needs tweaking, a small kiln that is definitely a normal thing to build, a sketchbook full of arrows pointing nowhere, a half-successful weld, a printer asking for bed leveling again, and a strong suspicion that making strange useful things by hand is still the best way to think. |