@billt

I think this is the options.

a) Modifying an exiting case.
b) 3D printed case.
c) Fiberglass custom case, built on top wood.
d) Fiberglass mold, you can poor something into, to make more than one.
e) Metal work.

Evaluating options:

a)
I think if you modify a exist case, it going to be hard to make it look good, you need make room for larger motherboard, the CDROM will need to be taken out, and you need block of the opening, the biggest issue is that motherboard we have are not low profile, all plugs are 90 degree angle, and not flat, the RAM modules are strait up, on most of the motherboards.

b)
Is probably going to be bit of an investment, I do not know if they are only good for prototyping or if they are can be used.

c)
It look like a lot of work, from the youtube videos I have seen.

d)
I do not know what material that people poor into the molds, it has to be something that can last, and does not melt.

e)
it's should be relative easy to bend metal (all you need is a clamp), its likely end whit some gaps and sharp edges, welding might be nice to close the gaps, then you need to grind it down and sand it.

You need think about heat, how to get cold air into the computer, and hot air out of it (some sort of air tunnel maybe).
You need to find room for DC/DC converters and battery, you need some electronics to prevent over charging battery's and a fuse to prevent motherboard from short circuit, you need a keyboard that fits, (there are lots of nice keyboards on the market so it should not be the biggest problem)

Last edited by NutsAboutAmiga on 21-Nov-2013 at 09:50 AM.
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@NutsAboutAmiga

a) It doesn't mean it can't be changed. The Wii U uses a low-profile motherboard with PPC so it can be done. All we need is for AmigaOS to support that kind of hardware, then built it into the case and bada-bing bada-boom. I'm not saying it's a piece of cake, but it's far from impossible.

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@NutsAboutAmiga

I think you misunderstood billt here. He's talking about NOT wanting to put an existing board in a new case but rather a new board in an existing case. You see, some of us are approaching this from the angle of "how do we design new motherboards?"

I for one have done a successful POWER design this year. How about you other guys?

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@Vistaus

A single T1022 or P2041 on a new motherboard with a minimum set of features is doable. 1 man, about 4-6 months work (depending on luck and skill). Plus a few months of waiting inbetween proto, trial and production batches. Cost: 10000 EUR per proto run, 20000 EUR for the designer's time and then whatever cost you rack up per board for the manufacturing. Plus AOS4 porting, of course. When I design hardware I have to port UBoot to be able to test the hardware anyway, so that comes "for free".

Porting AOS4 to the Wii-U would also be very awesome, though. But a bit beside the scope of what I as a hardware designer can do

_________________
This weeks pet peeve:
Using "voltage" instead of "potential", which leads to inventing new words like "amperage" instead of "current" (I, measured in A) or possible "charge" (amperehours, Ah or Coulomb, C). Sometimes I don't even know what people mean.

@olegil

Maybe if you want to shorten development time a board design should focus on relayouting an existing solution(sam440/460) and just adding the missing things ( power handling, Etc)
That way you save OS4 porting and time to market.

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@Ami603

Except I don't have the original design files for those, and they're already getting a bit long in the tooth. A 1.4GHz 64-bit dual-core with DDR3L (or DDR4) can't be a BAD thing, no?

But yes, I think it would be a good idea if ACube did a laptop respin of their Sam460. All the problems of fitting within a laptop form factor can be solved fairly easily.

Last edited by olegil on 21-Nov-2013 at 12:21 PM.

_________________
This weeks pet peeve:
Using "voltage" instead of "potential", which leads to inventing new words like "amperage" instead of "current" (I, measured in A) or possible "charge" (amperehours, Ah or Coulomb, C). Sometimes I don't even know what people mean.

@olegil

Well, what I meant was not per se using the Wii U's hardware. I just meant that a smaller form factor with PPC is possible given how small the Wii U is. I don't see any reason, besides maybe lack of manpower, why we can't do the same for an Amiga small PC or laptop. The form factor is possible.

Like Ami603 pointed out, we could modify an SAM460. It's relatively low-power and if we add a few things while also making the board itself smaller, it'll do a fine job. It's not like we want to make something astonishing like a X1000 in a laptop case. It's more like a proof-of-concept that can be further developed after we have the basic stuff working. Therefore, we don't need a pretty casing or a state-of-the-art motherboard/CPU. Let's start by getting it all together first.

*If* we choose the SAM460 as a starting point, I'd say we can start relatively easy by figuring out a way to flatten the RAM trays. With RAM laying on the board instead of sticking out the size can already be slimmed down quite a bit. Also, it's a lower-end proof-of-concept laptop we're making so we can do with onboard audio which means no sound card that's sticking out.

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@Vistaus

And you will need a laptop CPU heat skink, the standard CPU heat sink sticks out too much. Normally, the heat is transferred using heat pipes, to the fan somewhere on the edge of the laptop.

Last edited by NutsAboutAmiga on 21-Nov-2013 at 01:09 PM.

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@Vistaus

With regard to the audio, would the 440 not be a better option?
Also the board size, the Sam440ep (not Flex) is a smaller board than the 460?

Surely a 440 with flattened RAM would be the ideal board.

p.s. Just had to say that my search for an Amiga like laptop has led me to MorphOS and my Sam440 no longer gets much use, so once again my Sam440 is up for modding?

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Case wise I've got something down for this already of course...

But how would you power the thing? Recharge the batteries?

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@NutsAboutAmiga

I know. I wasn't compiling a list of all that needed to be done, I just thought we could start out with such a small thing as flattening the RAM. Obviously, it takes a lot more than just flattening the RAM to slim it down.

@1Mouse

We can choose whatever SAM board. I just thought a 460 would be nice because it provides good 'bang for the buck' so to speak and it's clocked at a slightly higher speed which is also good. But I'm in for whatever works, so I won't rule out the use of a (perhaps yours, like you offer) SAM440.

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@TheDaddy

If we use a generic case (like the ones System76 uses, for example) there's either already a battery in it or there's at least room for one so all we need to do is get one. In bulk, those things are reasonably priced. We don't need the best battery, just one that works good enough for a first try kind of laptop.

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@Vistaus

Here is interesting mod, for a PS3.

http://technabob.com/blog/2011/06/09/liquid-cooled-ps3-laptop/

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@Vistaus

Yes but how do you connect the batteries to the SAM?

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@NutsAboutAmiga

That's a cool mod, thanks for sharing! :)

@TheDaddy: I'm not sure about that yet, but we could always disassemble an old laptop and see how it's done. But even so, that's not so important right now. Of course we need that for an Amiga laptop, but the most important thing right now is slimming down the SAM. If we can get that working, then that's a real win. Even if only for use in a smaller Amiga case (the more options the better). After slimming it down we can focus on getting it into shape for laptop use. But we need a slimmed down SAM at first.

Last edited by Vistaus on 21-Nov-2013 at 01:44 PM.
Last edited by Vistaus on 21-Nov-2013 at 01:42 PM.

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Proud user of AmigaOS 4.1 on an AmigaONE 500. This is the first Amiga I've ever had so I don't know all the ins and outs of AmigaOS yet, so I'm sorry if I'm asking noob questions and stuff.

@TheDaddy

voodoo2 was expermenting on this, see his comment.

http://amigaworld.net/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?mode=viewtopic&topic_id=38301&forum=33&start=40&viewmode=flat&order=0#721455

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@TheDaddy

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/16V-24VDC-200W-Pico-ATX-switch-PSU-Car-Auto-24pin-MINI-ITX-ATX-Power-Supply-/271286017339

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@NutsAboutAmiga

That power supply is a good find! We can easily use that and therefor eliminate some wires, thus reducing the clumsyness and contributing to a relatively slim profile case.

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Proud user of AmigaOS 4.1 on an AmigaONE 500. This is the first Amiga I've ever had so I don't know all the ins and outs of AmigaOS yet, so I'm sorry if I'm asking noob questions and stuff.

@NutsAboutAmiga

PicoPSU is what my X500 Plus

X500 - Assembling -

was designed around...but I'm still not getting how the batteries get charged and how the batteries power the board without the picPSU being connected.

Last edited by TheDaddy on 21-Nov-2013 at 02:13 PM.

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@Vistaus

There are lots power adapter for people who want build a entertainment system for cars, so there is market for this, so no worry there.

Last edited by NutsAboutAmiga on 21-Nov-2013 at 02:18 PM.

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