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2009-09-19
, 02:06
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Posts: 1,096 |
Thanked: 760 times |
Joined on Dec 2008
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#2
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2009-09-19
, 02:12
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Posts: 1,096 |
Thanked: 760 times |
Joined on Dec 2008
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#3
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2009-09-19
, 02:18
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Posts: 2,014 |
Thanked: 1,581 times |
Joined on Sep 2009
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#4
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The Following User Says Thank You to Bratag For This Useful Post: | ||
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2009-09-19
, 02:20
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Posts: 40 |
Thanked: 34 times |
Joined on May 2009
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#5
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The Following User Says Thank You to epilido For This Useful Post: | ||
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2009-09-19
, 02:37
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Posts: 71 |
Thanked: 34 times |
Joined on Sep 2009
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#6
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If your going to hack maybe start here http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.11691
The Following User Says Thank You to Otaku For This Useful Post: | ||
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2009-09-19
, 03:16
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Posts: 40 |
Thanked: 34 times |
Joined on May 2009
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#7
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2009-09-19
, 03:22
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Posts: 71 |
Thanked: 34 times |
Joined on Sep 2009
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#8
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The Following User Says Thank You to Otaku For This Useful Post: | ||
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2009-09-19
, 04:19
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Guest |
Posts: n/a |
Thanked: 0 times |
Joined on
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#9
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2009-09-19
, 10:55
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Posts: 69 |
Thanked: 53 times |
Joined on Aug 2009
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#10
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The Following User Says Thank You to patstew For This Useful Post: | ||
OK, now that we have top-level conformation that the n900 has no digital compass
I'm not skilled enough in electronics to figure this out by myself, so I hope some of you can offer some advice or ideas.
Basically I think we would need two things: (1) a small digital compass that could be held with one hand flush against the n900 case so that the n900 and the compass move together, and (2) some way of getting the compass data into the n900.
For (1), I found the following compasses that seem promising:
a. OS5000-US. Digital compass with USB interface. Best candidate, but expensive: $299, about half the price of the n900 itself!
b. R117-COMPASS. Digital compass, but no USB interface, instead using a timing pulse and an I2C interface. Reasonable price: $57.00.
c. Dinsmore R1655 analog compass sensor. Provides analog signal only; needs analog-to-digital converter to be useful. The sensor specifications suggest some circuits for extracting the direction, and this project shows how to use a microcontroller to change the analog level to digital. It seems to be a bit involved. However, this sensor is cheap: $37.
Given one of these sensors, the next thing is to get the data to the n900. For that, I could imagine bluetooth or USB. Bluetooth would be nicer that the compass assembly could really be separate and only taken out of your pocket when needed; no need to plug it in to the n900. However I have no idea how complicated it would be to connect one of the above compasses to a bluetooth interface. Bluetooth also has the disadvantage of requiring its own power. USB would need a tethering cable or at least a plug, but might work easier, especially with the above compass (a) that already has a USB interface.
One bluetooth idea I had was to use the cheap Dinsmore analog sensor (c), hook it up somehow
Feasible? Any other ideas?
Thanks guys - the n900 looks super, but the lack of a compass is painful enough that I'm determined to find a DIY solution. After all, the n900 is aimed at hackers, right?