One long-time question has been, can a smartphone be a ? If you have toiled with some experiments in the domain, you’d know, there have been some phone projectors we have seen and some iterations where magnifying glasses are attached to supersize the phone display (but it lacks enough light). Now proving that these are not the only options, a DIYer has taken an old Samsung phone with OTG support apart and has converted it into a DIY Mini Projector in a box, a video of which is doing rounds on the internet.
When I landed on this video, my first journey through its length was only to wait for the DIYer to speak. Nope, none, throughout the video, there isn’t a word. The entire video is mute. Only action, no words. That got me running through the video the second time. This time I was more engrossed in knowing what was happening and how deftly things were being taken apart and soldered together to achieve the outcome.
Designer: Huy Vector
The video starts with the DIYer ripping an old smartphone with an LCD-TFT display, OLED screens won’t work, to be used as the projector source. So, use an old device with USB OTG support. OTG is essential to connect a mouse and keyboard with can extension cable. The small, timely captions are helpful to understand what is happening in the video, or what things are being used. Though they are not even mentioned in the list of items in the video description.
The phone screen parts are removed to separate the backlight and reflector layers. The process is to be done most deft to cause any damage, since the screen is very fragile. Once the parts are securely available, the set out to create the projector box using a piece of 5mm foam board. The case is packed in with a panel to mount a 4.2V 50W LED. A cooling fan is attached to keep the interior from overheating during hours of projection. The LED light and the cooling fan are both controlled by a push button installed on the outside, right above the digital display to show battery percentage.
The battery and charging circuit here are taken from an old power bank, which offers the projector a longer battery life and fast charging support. The same power source is used to charge the LED, the cooling fan, and the smartphone (doing the projection duties). Lastly, a focus lens from a magnifying glass is used to enhance the image five times the original on the phone.
The foam box is nicely wrapped in gray fabric, giving the projector a refined appearance. Making a DIY Mini Projector may have seemed very difficult before this video, but having been through the step-by-step process here, I can say, if you are someone with little patience, understanding of soldering wires, and have the dexterity to deal with fragile parts, this project should not be difficult at all. Let us know if you do give it a try.
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