Building Your Own Cyberdeck: A Raspberry Pi Project

2024-05-14 | By Jorvon Moss

License: See Original Project Raspberry Pi

If you don't know, a cyberdeck is a custom minicomputer inspired by William Gibson's novel, ‎Neuromancer, published in 1984. Since then, it has been used in many other sci-fi series as a ‎portable, highly custom hacking device laptop. As a big science fiction nerd and maker, I have ‎always dreamed of making a custom design cyberdeck, and more recently, with the power of ‎the Raspberry Pi, many people have dived into creating their own cyberdeck. I love cyberdeck ‎art, and the functional design is just cool, so I hope my cyberdeck inspires you to get into the ‎world of cyberdeck making. ‎

‎ phone_1 ‎ ‎

Parts Used:‎‎

Raspberry Pi 4
Hyperpixel touch 4.0
Keyboard - I like to give credit to a maker known online as “_Arturo182_”, who I originally got the ‎keyboard from

I used Fusion 360 to design my cyberdeck. I decided to make it more Gameboy-shaped, mainly ‎because it reminded me of the retro feel of futuristic technology.

deck_2

I made the design into three basic files: the body, the keypad cover, and the wire covering. I am ‎hoping they are simple to print and will only take about a day on a typical printer. I recommend ‎printing the full body stl file first; it's the largest file, and you can set up your pi while you wait. ‎

Download the 3D model files here: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:6614030 ‎

x_3

I also added this piece of acrylic to add some aesthetics. I realize some of you may not have ‎access to a laser cutter, so I also designed a simple cover. ‎

My main use for my cyberdeck is testing code I don't trust. I am very careful about the programs ‎I use on my desktop, so having a cyberdeck I can SSH or VNC to and test the program on is ‎nice. I know some people would suggest just making a sandbox on your desktop, but I am lazy, ‎and this is way more fun. ‎

Using the Pi imager, you can flash the OS system for the Pi. After you set it up, you'll need to ‎use the Pimoroni setup page to ensure the screen functions correctly. You can find most of the ‎instructions here: https://github.com/pimoroni/hyperpixel4/issues/177.‎‎

Once that's all set up and working, the screen should turn on once the cyberdeck receives ‎power. I am powering mine from an outlet plug now, but that may change in the future. ‎

If you like this, please check out some of the other amazing cyberdeck designs people have ‎created here: https://www.reddit.com/r/cyberDeck/.