DIY $60 Cradle: Landscape, Audio out, Antenna - 8525, TyTN, MDA Vario II, JasJam Accessories

First, let me say I'm a bit more of a hack than a hacker. My soldering skills are based on a heathkit I built 20 years ago, and my dremel is old an out-of-balance. Still, I'm getting a new car (well, truck, actually) and wanted a good mount to go with my 8525.
Cutting right to the chase, I took an 8125 mount ($35), a martin fields stereo adapter ($10), the dual adapter that came with the kit, an FME male antenna adapter ($10), a radio shack panel mount stereo 1/8" socket ($4), and $1 worth of epoxy, and cut, ground, spliced, soldered, epoxied, and reassembled to get the net result below. Total time was about 2 hours, but most of that was spent running between my office in the house and the workshop to get various tools / drill holes (I have a cheap drill press, which made drilling for certain parts marginally easier).
If I can find another hour, I'll try to write up a step-by-step if anyone is interested, along with a linked list of parts.

I'm very much interested!

Not to burst your bubble but.......
http://www.daydeal.com/product.php?productid=15879&cat=2380&page=1
or
http://www.daydeal.com/product.php?productid=12660&cat=1801&page=1
And they are only 28.00 bucks

fresh801 said:
Not to burst your bubble but.......
http://www.daydeal.com/product.php?productid=15879&cat=2380&page=1
or
http://www.daydeal.com/product.php?productid=12660&cat=1801&page=1
And they are only 28.00 bucks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
those dont have audio out.. and the 2nd one is for the 8125/wizard, not the 8525/hermes... i am very interested in this project since i have one of those cradles laying around from my 8125... never thought about using the Y adapter.. good call since i dont use it for anything else..

fresh801 said:
Not to burst your bubble but.......
http://www.daydeal.com/product.php?productid=15879&cat=2380&page=1
or
http://www.daydeal.com/product.php?productid=12660&cat=1801&page=1
And they are only 28.00 bucks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, aside from the audio out and antenna connector, the more unusual hack in this is the landscape format with the ability to open the keyboard (or, more exactly to leave it open) while it is docked.
Since I'm running short of time this weekend, the key to getting this to work is to open the back of the 8125 cradle and pop off the connector (gently) and remove the glue that holds it in place. You'll need to dremel out the "top" of the cradle to allow the 8525 to fit.
To get the new connector, I just - carefully - stripped the plastic away from the 2-in-1 connector that came with the unit. Of course the connector is in a different place than the 8125, so you have to cut a new one. I used a marble-sized wad of play-doh rolled and flattened into a 1cm x 3cm patty and pushed it gently into the bottom (connector side) of the cradle. Then I gently slid my 8525 into the cradle so that the connector would make an impression in the playdoh. I them removed the 8525 (keeping the playdoh in the cradle) and "marked" the corners of the connector location with a pin (just push thourhg to make a dot). I heated a utility knife (xacto-like) in my gas stove and gently scored from point to point. A dremel with a fine tip then hogged out the area so that the coneector would fit. I also drilled the location for the antenna at this point (same playdoh trick, but just a single pin prick in the center of the hole area).
Now, to secure the conenctors in the right place, I put the 8525 in the cradle, flipped the whole think upside-down, pushed in the connectors into place, and then put epoxy on both connector areas.
***warning*** the epoxy is likely to "leak through" the old connector location, and around the connectors if your holes aren't pretty tight. BEFORE you put the unit in the cradle for the epoxy step, cover the bottom and antenna area with scotch tape, and just cut out the exact connector area with a knife. This will keep any errant epoxy from making the cradle a permanent fixture on you unit!
I did need to use scotch tape to make a "dam" around the usb connector because it was so thin it wouldn't mound up (set too slowly).
Everything else was just connecting up wires (the M-F conenctor was tough to strip cleanle and I broke the ground wire, but just soldered another one on).

Related

XGPS Car Kit Mod

In continuation of this topic http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=284909, i used all the information collected in this forum and other forums and i will briefly present you the procedure i used to modify XGPS car kit, so that it provided me with audio/microphone outputs, so that i can connect it to my car stereo, using it's line-in OR using an RF modulator.
First of all, i disassembled my car kit, using just a screwdriver
Then, using a soldering iron, i removed the integrated speaker (since i will not need it).
After that, i removed the existing 2.5mm connector, and i cut all the wires that lead to it. I used some plastic welding epoxy, to give strength to the plastic base that the PDA "sits". I then drilled a hole, in order to insert the new 2.5mm 4 conduct plug!
This is the new plug, taken out off my old handsfree
And this is how it looks inserted into its place
Then, i screwed it back on the car kit, and i used my "Wizard" in order to assure that it fits as before. With the "Wizard" still in place, i put some plastic welding and finished!!! Wait for 15 minutes for the epoxy to dry, and my 2.5mm 3 conduct factory plug, is replaced with a 4 conduct taken out of my old unused handsfree
I prepared 2 small "boxes", for holding speaker/microphone connectors(rear box) and for adding some small blue leds to give my mod a more "artistic" look(front box)!!! I mainly used some acrylic sheet(2mm) and aluminium sheet(1mm). I curved acrylic by heating it, using a heat gun i had. Generally, i had almost all the necessary tools/material already from my previous PC mods.
Acrylic boxes and alluminium covers, we painted black using a spray gun. The rear box, was(i have to admit) better prepared. I'm already planning to redesign the "front" box.
Rear and front boxes are screwd on the factory cradle.
Some more pics!!!
Here are the connectors i'll use. 2 for speakers(stereo-black) and 2 for microphones(mono-beige). I'll explain more on my decision in next posts
Here are the connectors mounted on the rear box
Here is my hand!!!
Alright!!! It took me some practise in order to solder the small wires of my old handsfree. In fact, i extended them using some wires i had, so that soldering on the connectors would be easier-and it was!!!
Now, why did i use more connectors than needed? The reason is simple. The connectors are setup as master-slave(at least in Computer hardware, this is how it's called). That means, one of each 2 connections of each type (speaker/microphone) come first. So, i'm planning to connect the 2nd connector to my car stereo(maybe using an RF transmitter). If i need to make a private call(that means cancel audio from my car stereo), then i simply plug in a stereo headset. This way, i can hear from the headset, without having audio from my car stereo! If i change my mind, i simply unplug the headset, and audio is directed again to my car stereo. Hope i didn't make it very complicated!!! The same applies for microphone (i already bought a small cheap microphone from ebay).
Now, on the picture below, you may notice a greenish layer(actuall it's ocean blue). This is actually some sort of UV acrylic. Some leds are inside the front box, so that when connected to the car, it displayes a light blueish color (Uv acrylic makes it look fantastic!!!)
Now, you can preview the back cover(made off 1mm aluminium) of my cradle. It's also painted the same black color. 4 holes will be used to insert 4 black rivets to secure it in place
Unfortunately no more pictures for now... I'll try to post more in the next days, as the cradle is ready and already installed in my car. I get power from my car's switch(12V) to drive the cradle and an RF transmitter (Monster Radioplay 300). My stock head unit doesn't have an audio-in, so this explains my decision. Sound is perfect when using it for handsfree (no echo, great sound). Now, when playing music, it sounds as it gets from a strong radio station, so i guess this means success!!! Plus, i have the option to connect it to my future head unit (if it has a line-in of course!!!).
Now, my next steps;
1)I'll redesign the front cover, so that it looks more tidy(i used some ugly screws-paint also is very glossy)
2)I'll make a small stand for my car, to mount the RF transmitter and the microphone.
3)Prepare my "Wizard" for speach recognition, used to make calls-play songs etc-Do you have any suggestions on that?
So.... more pictures to come in the next days!!! Pls ask for any questions or any help you need if you want to make something similar or better OR if you have any suggestions/questions

DIY Wizard Desk Stand

Wizard desk Stand on the Cheap
Ok so I was kind of envious of my friend’s HP iPAQ 6340- primarily because it looked slick on his desk sittin a pretty in its desk stand. So when I saw an old Casio stand (I think it came from a Casio but I don’t know for sure) in a tech junk shop I picked it up with an idea. The thing was so useless that I got it for free. It was all scratched up and had a white paint smear on its side! It was not even a perfect fit for the Wizard, but then, it did come for free.
I already had a 2.5-3.5 stereo converter as well as an extra USB Mini cord. All the things I needed for my stand. And yes My trusted battery operated drill.
I began by ripping out the existing circuitry present in the stand. The Stand had a non-functional tilt mechanism (It would have been cool if it was working). Since a crucial spring was missing and it did not add any extra functions, I decided to do away with the tilt thing and hot glued the Base and the receiver fixed at the standard 65 deg angle.
The existing connectors were of no use so I just drilled them out. Then carefully measured the center of the slot and drilled a hole for the mini USB. (remember the slot was much wider than the vertical Wizard and much smaller than a horizontal wizard). With a cardboard cutout made by tracing the bottom part of the Wizard, I was able to get near perfect measures. From the same cutout I also marked-off the location of the 2.5 stereo pin. I adjusted the required height of the pin and the USB plug by actually plugging in the Wizard. The USB plug and the stereo pin were then hot glued to the receiver base.
The Casio had a translucent ‘start’ button and I had salvaged the LED that was part of the original circuit. I spliced the USB cable and soldered the LED leads to the + and – wires (carefully and not messing with the data wires). Now I also had a LED charging light (Ok it does nothing but look cool). Some more hot glue to fix every thing into position and it was done. I fixed a fairly heavy metal bolt to the underside of the base with industrial grade duct tape to provide extra stability.
I even drilled a hole to one side for the extra stylus. So there, a stand for the Wizard.
I am able to charge the Wiz on my desk- it looks real cool with Innobek Side window running. I am also able to use a wall wart with USB female to charge the Wiz while I play tunes on it with the audio piped through my Music system.
Time Spent- 20 minutes
$$- 0
Next upgrade- sand and paint the thing (I guess Black would look nice)
Pretty cool looking. Nice job.

[Q] Hardware - power connector broken

Does anyone know how to take a G-Tab apart and repair a broken power connector? My son pulled it off of the table where it was charging and it landed squarely on the adapter where it was plugged into the GTab. Everything else works, but charging, of course, does not.
stalnakerz said:
Does anyone know how to take a G-Tab apart and repair a broken power connector? My son pulled it off of the table where it was charging and it landed squarely on the adapter where it was plugged into the GTab. Everything else works, but charging, of course, does not.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Buy a dock, that's what I did
stalnakerz said:
Does anyone know how to take a G-Tab apart and repair a broken power connector? My son pulled it off of the table where it was charging and it landed squarely on the adapter where it was plugged into the GTab. Everything else works, but charging, of course, does not.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Choice 1: Buy a dock.
Choice 2: Open it up and solder it back in.
Choice 3: Sell your son to a slave labor camp and use the money to buy a new tablet.
Stolen from another forum about performing a hardware reset:
Disassemble the tablet. Remove the four rubber stoppers on the bottom of the tablet (put them aside). Next, unscrew the screws under them (keep those too). Next we need to get the back half of the tablet off. Put the tablet face down on a piece of paper or another protective material. Gently work one corner of the tablet until the two halves are slightly separated, then use something thin like a business card to keep them slightly parted. You can then use something thin and strong, like a plastic gift card to zip around the edges and break the seal. Prying will only damage your plastics.
snowzach said:
Stolen from another forum about performing a hardware reset:
Disassemble the tablet. Remove the four rubber stoppers on the bottom of the tablet (put them aside). Next, unscrew the screws under them (keep those too). Next we need to get the back half of the tablet off. Put the tablet face down on a piece of paper or another protective material. Gently work one corner of the tablet until the two halves are slightly separated, then use something thin like a business card to keep them slightly parted. You can then use something thin and strong, like a plastic gift card to zip around the edges and break the seal. Prying will only damage your plastics.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
pulling it apart is one thing, resoldering the connection is another. I've read that it's really tricky (and small) Mine started acting up, had to have the plug on a weird angle for the tablet ot start charging. I thought it was the chord, but it must be the hardware inside the tablet that caused it. I bought a dock, and a second charger...the dock works BEAUTIFULLY for charging, and for watching movies on the big screen via the HDMI port on the dock...
Viewsonic G connector input jack power jack
If you need to replace the jack, you can get it at Ebay.....just type in Viewsonic G jack or power jack and they have them there.

Anyone using the Touchstone mod to wirelessly charge SGS3 ? (how to loose buldge?)

Curious if anyone is using the Palm Touchstone wireless charging mod for the SGS3. I got everything for a Palm Pre, touchstone, cable, etc.. Did the mod which was stupid easy... but the buldge of the back cover is driving me nuts. I have no idea how to make it more flush again. There is ZERO chance of putting an case on here now, for 1 it seems like the charging signal wouldn't be strong enough... and the buldge would absolutely prevent it.
Any help would be appreciated.
BTW: I used super thin 24 gauge wire out of a cable (like a usb cable/printer cable) to go from the palm pre charging pads to the pins of the sgs3.
I used the palm pixi's back for my mid. It is thinner that the pre's so there is less bulge.
Edit: I also used copper foil/tape to make my connections. I don't know if that would reduce bulge or not though.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2
I read somewhere the pixi back was thinner but I read that after I ordered the pre back. I didn't have any copper foil tape so I used wire from a usb cable, and if I did use foil tape it seems like I would need something to push down into the phone connectors as they seem a tiny bit recessed.
Don't get me wrong, everything works, and charging works, but the bulge is noticeable and there is no way I could use a case back now. Glad I got the whole body Zagg invisible shield. :thumbup:
How did you address the phone connectors being deep inside? What did you use to make your foil tape touch the leads in the phone? I just kind of pushed the wires in there and used a little rape to prevent shorts.
T-Mobile Samsung Galaxy S3 SGH-T999 Tapatalk 2
On the Sprint model there is no sim card. If you cut a square out of the internal cover to the right of the microSD card you have a nice little space to hide the circuit board that causes the buldge. I just posted a question- where to buy the internal plastic cover? I don't want to risk screwing up my original.. BTW I used copper tape. On the pixie back I soldered the tape to the leads. For the phone connection I cut the tape too long and rolled it up to the spot it needed to be to make contact with the S3 contacts.
I have the touchstone and palm charging back. Is it possible to do this mod without soldiering the GS3?
Roll the tape up...:fingers-crossed: Sometimes I hate myself, I always think of the hardest way to do something.... Of course - why not roll the tape into a little ball. DUH!
I think I could probably get the bulge down a little, but I'm not sure it would make a lot of difference... I guess I could always just buy a pixi back and try again? or just wait for Sept and get the samsung kit.
I had read that the samsung kit will charge when the phone is relatively close by - I read 2 meters, but that doesnt sound right - that would be like 6ft... I would settle for 1 ft. The touchstone has to be RIGHT on it... If I had an otterbox case, I am 99% sure the magnetics wouldn't catch and I doubt think the charging field would work, because I can hold it just above the reach of the magnets and no charge. Touch it to the touchstone and BINGO.

Moving wires on the harness

I know this is barely the correct thread, but anyway;
I purchased a new head unit that has the same connector on the unit itself as my old unit, but the wires for each pin are different. Is there an easy way to remove the pins on the old harness so I can reuse it, or should I just cut the "car side" of the old one off so I can solder wires from the new harness to the "car side"?
Thanks,
if the pins are the same shape you should be able to remove them from the harness and re-insert them in the location you want. I do that all the time with many connectors.
Find something long and thin, i use picks, long tweezers, needles, etc. there is usually a small plastic tab holding the pins or sockets down and preventing them from pulling out. It should be easy to see once you start messing with them.
That's the problem; I cannot see them and was unable to do anything with the needle I was using. As far as I can tell, there is no good spot to stick a pin and no way for me to even know which side the pins are on.
I guess that's question one; with the power/ground wires on the top of the adapter, which side are the pins on?
This type of harness
http://www.carjoying.com/joying-har...re-wiring-harness-adapter-connector-plug.html
I researched and found that standard size staples can be pushed into the sides of the pins from the non-wire-side on both sides (not top or bottom) of the pins to release the two latches. It takes some effort, wiggling, and luck, but the pins eventually come out.
I'm sure it will be easier when my pin extractor finally arrives, but I don't want to wait.
I've moved pins around before. Trouble seems in not damaging the retention tabs. Not sure you'd save much time vs cutting and resoldering.
What would be the point in moving the wire if there is already a wire present? You can't just repurpose the wire? Move the label?

Categories

Resources