David Mellis , a PhD student at MIT has created a DIY cellphone capable (for now) of making and receiving calls using a standard SIM card from any GSM provider.
He has made all the design and source code files available
here
. David says the prototype cost $150 in parts. The display is a color 1.8″, 160×128 pixel, TFT screen with a laser-cut plywood and veneer enclosure.
(Image by
David Mellis
)
He claims “By creating and sharing open-source designs for the phone’s circuit board and case, we hope to encourage a proliferation of personalized and diverse mobile phones. Freed from the constraints of mass production, we plan to explore diverse materials, shapes, and functions. We hope that the project will help us explore and expand the limits of do-it-yourself (DIY) practice.”
Who knows, the retro design just might catch on – OEMs take notice!