RPi LineageOS Tablet

[PiGraham]

This might be interesting. It's the most compact RPi 'tablet' I've seen.

http://ZeroTerminal.org

More a 'palmtop' with a 5.5" screen.

[pidd]

Wow, I wasn't going to bother looking at it thinking it is yet another Pi-in-a-box but I'm glad I did watch the video, he's done loads of work and thought things through - he will go far in life!

[Adamanewtown]

Thanks for getting me a 'flame post' guys!

[Konsta]

If you want an Android tablet just buy one that's made for that purpose. You really can't make one using Raspberry Pi that can compete in price or size.

The CutiePi tablet on Kickstarter is ~£150 for the Kickstarter exclusive price.
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*HUGE FACEPALM* it's not even running android. (im a flippin' 9yo with asperger's ok)

I saw that CutiePi had reached funding goal for a community driven port of LineageOS so interesting to see how they'll manage that.

Android isn't isn't ready on Pi.

What is missing from current releases for you to consider it 'ready'?

[Imperf3kt]

I've made something akin to a tablet a couple of years ago (still unfinished)
It works... somewhat, if you can tolerate these drawbacks, I say go for it.

- It doesn't use Android, I use the Raspberry PiOS.
- It has a low battery life. I haven't used it until it ran flat yet, nor have I properly calculated how long it will run on a single charge, but a 2000mAh battery has lasted me over an hour with no power issues. I have not used it longer than that in one sitting. When shut down, I physically remove power so the battery doesn't drain even while the Pi is off completely. This makes charging a bit tricky, I should have used a battery terminal instead of soldering it into place.
- The 5" touchscreen is 800x480, a reasonable resolution, but nothing spectacular.
- I added an amplifier, speakers and an RTC (clock) as extras to support a few features I wanted.
- As I used a Pi3A+, a USB hub is required (I am yet to solder the one I'm using into place)
- Power is sometimes glitchy at boot (when the highest current is drawn) and when charging. When running purely off the battery, everything works as expected, with no undervoltage issues even when running something insane like CPUburn-A53

of particular note:
- Heat - Removing the processor heat is the biggest challenge I have faced. The SOC can reach temperatures that burn you, and getting that outside the case, without causing discomfort, noise or burning the user's hands, has proved difficult.
- Size - the thinnest I could make it (without extra parts removal and a few case redesigns) was 31mm, thats including a mere 1mm thick case.
I 3D printed mine, but there are other ways you can make a case.
- Weight - The battery weighs about 45 grams and everything else adds up (I haven't weighed the rest) to make the whole unit quite heavy and bulky.
- Keyboard/mouse - I am yet to find a suitable on screen keyboard so I can ditch my bluetooth keyboard and just use the touchscreen.
- Price - The whole build was pricey. Even buying from Asian markets, I still ended up paying quite a lot. For the money I spent, I could have bought three 'regular' tablets that were thinner, run for longer, and were slightly more powerful, and don't risk falling apart while just holding it. I did it for the DIY aspect, and a few other reasons, but looking back, if I were to do it again today, I wouldn't bother.


I can post a list of the parts I used if you want, but honestly, the people before me are right, this project isn't worth undertaking**. You need a fair amount of knowledge and tools as well as skills to build something remotely like a tablet.


** I say this, and yet in my head I've been planning another version of the project using a Pi4B (Once I find a suitable power source)

[PiGraham]

If you want an Android tablet just buy one that's made for that purpose. You really can't make one using Raspberry Pi that can compete in price or size.

The CutiePi tablet on Kickstarter is ~£150 for the Kickstarter exclusive price.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

*HUGE FACEPALM* it's not even running android. (im a flippin' 9yo with asperger's ok)

I saw that CutiePi had reached funding goal for a community driven port of LineageOS so interesting to see how they'll manage that.

Android isn't isn't ready on Pi.

What is missing from current releases for you to consider it 'ready'?

I don't know specifics, but every time I see "Android on Raspberry Pi" it comes with caveats such as a very old release of Android, or some bit of hardware not supported or slow frame rates or limited / no Play store support, 'unsupported'. Has it reached a level of equivalence with a cheap Android tablet now? Does Lineage achieve that?

Are tyou he guy who has done this LineageOS build for RPI4B : https://konstakang.com/devices/rpi4/LineageOS16.0/? Excellent work!

it looks like it is getting closer.

[msl]

I've made something akin to a tablet a couple of years ago (still unfinished)
It works... somewhat, if you can tolerate these drawbacks, I say go for it.

I’m working on something like this at the moment. Could you share your requirements and usage scenarios?

[Konsta]

I don't know specifics, but every time I see "Android on Raspberry Pi" it comes with caveats such as a very old release of Android, or some bit of hardware not supported or slow frame rates or limited / no Play store support, 'unsupported'. Has it reached a level of equivalence with a cheap Android tablet now? Does Lineage achieve that?

Are tyou he guy who has done this LineageOS build for RPI4B : tps://konstakang.com/devices/rpi4/LineageOS16.0/? Excellent work!

it looks like it is getting closer.

Yes, the one and only.

https://konstakang.com/devices/rpi4/LineageOS17.1/ is the latest. It's also currently the latest Android version. You can install Play Store separately (Google apps are proprietary and can't be shipped with the image).

[Imperf3kt]

I've made something akin to a tablet a couple of years ago (still unfinished)
It works... somewhat, if you can tolerate these drawbacks, I say go for it.

I’m working on something like this at the moment. Could you share your requirements and usage scenarios?

The reason I was creating mine was so I (and others) could have a portable development and test platform for Ren'Py games.
So I needed speakers, on screen keyboard / mouse, a few hours between charges (around 5 was my aim) and the ability to dock it and use an external monitor / keyboard / mouse.
The RTC was necessary for use when without a network connection.
My secondary requirements were to have an Internet browser and image processing tools, audio editing software, and text editor available, much like a regular PC.

Software all worked, it's the hardware that has been problematic.

[PiGraham]

https://konstakang.com/devices/rpi4/LineageOS17.1/ is the latest. It's also currently the latest Android version. You can install Play Store separately (Google apps are proprietary and can't be shipped with the image).

I've burned that onto an SD card and gone through the basic setup. Looks good. Hard to judge the UX with only mouse & keyboard.
Wi-Fi, BT and Ethernet all worked. No HDMI audio on the one screen I've tried. I'll check out Play store and touchscreen at some point.
I noticed the Pi4 got quite hot

[Adamanewtown]

No HDMI audio on the one screen I've tried.

Audio through HDMI works for me with my current setup (a Samsung TV and the Pi, running LOS 16)

[Adamanewtown]

if you can tolerate these drawbacks, I say go for it.

I can. I got burned a buncha times by my Samsung tablet tho XD

[PiGraham]

if you can tolerate these drawbacks, I say go for it.

I can. I got burned a buncha times by my Samsung tablet tho XD

You hope to build a better tablet than Samsung?!

[Adamanewtown]

Forums, we have a problem here. LineageOS is stuck in a boot loop
EDIT: Forgot to edit, but it works

[fruitoftheloom]

Forums, we have a problem here. LineageOS is stuck on a boot loop

Ask in the appropriate LineageOS Post and the Developer will notice you have an issue

[PiGraham]

Just got a screen:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07YJDSCKR/ ... _at_prodpg
that works nicely with LineageOS on Pi4B. Plug and play for display, touch, audio.

[WoScha]

Hi, what resolution do you use?
Does the touchscreen work with the Mesa Rederer or the Swiftshader renderer?

[PiGraham]

Hi, what resolution do you use?
Does the touchscreen work with the Mesa Rederer or the Swiftshader renderer?

The display is 1024x600. I didn't set anything so I assume LineageOS read the EDID.

How would I test the touch screen with a renderer?
I haven't done anything with LineageOS beyond burning the SD card, trying the UI, newtwork & audio and playing a YouTube video.

BTW that all worked except YT in full screen caused the display to flip out.

[WoScha]

@PiGraham:
How would I test the touch screen with a renderer?

Look here:
https://konstakang.com/devices/rpi4/LineageOS17.1/

Q: I need to use SwiftShader software renderer to use camera, the official 7” display, or I want to boot without any display connected. What should I do?
A: Warning, SwiftShader is a software renderer and using it affects graphics performance. You can switch between MESA and SwiftShader graphics drivers by executing following commands in ‘adb shell’/serial console/terminal (you can enable built-in terminal app from Settings -> System -> Developer options -> Local terminal):

Code: Select all

su
rpi4-graphics.sh swiftshader

su
rpi4-graphics.sh mesa

Have a WaveShare 10.1 touchscreen TFT. It just wants to work correctly in the 1024x600 resolution with the Mesa-Rederer.
Therefore I unfortunately have to use the Swiftshader Rederer, which slows down the graphics position significantly.
Hence my question, which renderer are you using.

[PiGraham]

Have a WaveShare 10.1 touchscreen TFT. It just wants to work correctly in the 1024x600 resolution with the Mesa-Rederer.
Therefore I unfortunately have to use the Swiftshader Rederer, which slows down the graphics position significantly.
Hence my question, which renderer are you using.

Well I'm using an HDMI display and default LineageOS image so I guess it whatever the default renderer is.

Its possible to use SPI interfaced TFTs and still use the GPU rendering (fbcp). Presumably it will be possible to get Lineage to use HW rendering for any display.

[PiGraham]

Another Pi based tablet
RASPAD3
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPYfpia8OgE

[msl]

I’m working on something like this at the moment. Could you share your requirements and usage scenarios?

The reason I was creating mine was so I (and others) could have a portable development and test platform for Ren'Py games.
So I needed speakers, on screen keyboard / mouse, a few hours between charges (around 5 was my aim) and the ability to dock it and use an external monitor / keyboard / mouse.
The RTC was necessary for use when without a network connection.
My secondary requirements were to have an Internet browser and image processing tools, audio editing software, and text editor available, much like a regular PC.

Software all worked, it's the hardware that has been problematic.

Thanks for feedback.
What I got with 5” LCD and 3000mAh battery is ~14mm height. Compared to your specs, only RTC is missing and only one speaker, ie “phone” layout.
Want to print case, but at moment I can’t get satisfying results from my resin 3D printer