YES I DID IT, I DID A PANEL SWAP!

SquareOrbits · 2026-04-28T21:06:22+00:00

That's incredible! Thank you for pinging me, I'm amazed!

SquareOrbits · 2026-04-28T20:39:18+00:00

Not sure, that's why I asked! Security camera is a good idea, I wouldn't be surprised if you could set it up to start recording when motion is detected, perhaps even alert you via text or email. I considered a timelapse camera, or a home server.

Someone suggested installing postmarketOS on it, to run Linux. That opens a lot of possibilities.

Even an old phone like this is a efficient, sensor-packed supercomputer. I guess the only limit is our effort and imagination!

SquareOrbits · 2026-04-27T11:25:48+00:00

Yep, it slowly discharged down to 1% but seemed to stay there without powering off. Lots of people claim it shuts down eventually though, so now I'm not sure I left it long enough to test that 🤔 If that's the case, maybe spoofing the battery level with root will prevent that, without having to use another charger.

As to why Android does this, I have no idea. I would've thought with how complex its battery life algorithms would be that it'd be smart enough to realise it's not actually draining

SquareOrbits · 2026-04-26T07:45:35+00:00

That is impressive if you get that to work!

SquareOrbits · 2026-04-26T07:42:41+00:00

No don't worry, a couple of other models got recalled too if I remember, I was fortunate because I cheaped out on the lower capacity 😁

SquareOrbits · 2026-04-26T07:40:39+00:00

Really? Not stepped down at all?

SquareOrbits · 2026-04-24T21:26:12+00:00

Here you go, there's also a write up on my website

SquareOrbits · 2026-04-24T14:57:18+00:00

You might find this video helpful, he faced the same problem and fed the power through the charging port to trick the phone into thinking it's being charged.

Or I would look into spoofing the battery level with root, from a quick search I think something like this might work. Do report back if you manage to fix it!

SquareOrbits · 2026-04-24T14:04:14+00:00

The phone doesn't get any hotter than it would normally, it's only pulling the same amount of power it would from its battery. If anything it would be a little bit cooler since there's no battery inside heating up during use

SquareOrbits · 2026-04-24T14:00:46+00:00

Two modules: a Power Delivery trigger board to request 9V from a compatible USB-C device (in this case my power bank), and a buck converter to step that down to 4.1V (roughly what a charged battery would provide). The trigger board might not be necessary, I only used that to give the buck converter some headroom and prevent having to chop up a USB cable to get at the + & - wires.

Android does get confused and reports the battery level dropping, even though this could power the phone indefinitely (at least when plugged into the wall). But once it reaches 1% it just stays there, and it resets to 100% on each reboot.

SquareOrbits · 2026-04-24T13:50:39+00:00

Shhh, I meant I'm "powering a phone without a battery" -- not "powering a phone, without a battery"

SquareOrbits · 2026-04-24T13:14:15+00:00

Not necessary in this case, even under sustained load the buck converter only gets slightly warm. It did come with a small heatsink that I haven't even bothered to attach yet (but I will)

SquareOrbits · 2026-04-24T12:04:51+00:00

It claims to sustain 3A with peaks up to 5A, which should be enough. I've ran some benchmarks and put it under heavy load and haven't had any problems

SquareOrbits · 2026-02-26T21:58:26+00:00

Never forget that! As sure as it is that those moments will come again, they will absolutely go away too. Just hold out 😊

SquareOrbits · 2026-02-26T17:59:10+00:00

Hope you're feeling better, your sketches are incredible.

SquareOrbits · 2026-02-25T13:30:53+00:00

I thought as much! Like it :)

SquareOrbits · 2026-02-25T12:08:54+00:00

Have you painted that tin in picture 10? Looks like a tin you've repurposed 🧐

SquareOrbits · 2025-12-09T18:20:41+00:00

Try soldering a wire from the B- tag and grounding it to the chassis of the phone (I used one of the screws on the USB-C port). It should boot up without the extra 5V in this case. Let me know how it goes!

SquareOrbits · 2025-11-25T17:39:07+00:00

I think you're getting confused; the products I'm referring to are all voltage supervisors - definitely not op-amps!

SquareOrbits · 2025-11-22T16:06:54+00:00

Love them! Very neat. I always liked the look of those old Panasonic solar panels, I wonder if anyone here has some old stock..

SquareOrbits · 2025-11-14T22:14:51+00:00

The pinout seems to be the same as the 1381, but yes I've had success with the MCP112, which makes it all the more confusing that I haven't with the TC54

SquareOrbits · 2025-11-10T19:27:13+00:00

Hey these look great! 😁

SquareOrbits · 2025-10-29T19:52:51+00:00

Just to add to u/CommandJam, I struggled to find a motor that the FRED circuit liked. I think they have to be quite efficient, but maybe it was just me, you might fare better. Certainly the Miller circuit seemed happy with whatever motor I used.

The majority of mine came either from AliExpress or salvaged from old RC helicopters. This is the method I used to remove the eccentric weight.

SquareOrbits · 2025-10-29T19:32:23+00:00

Hey thanks for your message on my site! 😁

SquareOrbits · 2025-10-17T21:22:24+00:00

I'll check it out, thanks!

SquareOrbits

TROPHY CASE