Charging N1 wirelessly with Palm Touchstone

[drumdude]

YouTube

YouTube

Didn't document the steps, but anyone with a basic knowledge of circuits can do this in a day

[FastMhz]

Dude, that is sweet!

[serialtoon]

I bet he is just using powermat. You can tell there is something magnetic about the way he places it on top of the palm touchstone.

[lrsone]

The video isn't working anymore.

[ILoveMyNeXus1]

^^^^^ yeah it is, i just saw it...

[drumdude]

Palm Touchstone Charger Teardown - iFixit
Nexus One Teardown - iFixit


There are three pins on the bottom of the N1, the one next to the microphone is ground. The middle one is still a mystery to me, must have something to do with sensing the dock. The last one is the 5V supply from the dock.


I simply popped the battery and lower covers off (instructions linked above.) Solder onto those two pins, run the wires under the metal bezel into the battery compartment. Solder the two wires onto the secondary induction coil from your Palm Pre cover. Place the 4 magnets into the back cover of the N1 and you're done.



If anyone can figure out how the middle pin on the bottom of the N1 works, let me know!

[bugmenever]

just a heads up.

With regards to the video comments on youtube. The reason why you need to jiggle the phone a little to get the charging to work is because of "battery memory". It has less to do with placement of the phone itself. the phone also doesn't "expect" to be "plugged in" shortly after its been "removed".
Many engineers i have come across in the past 10 years or so would probably tell you the same thing.

So this really is a worth while upgrade if your nexus one did not come with a home or car dock, however i would not go into extremes with this. Only attempt this if you are highly skilled at soldering. Keep in mind you also risk injury to yourself.

use EXTREME caution when soldering. I myself have been burned one to many times and had far to many close calls.

if you ARE going to attempt this good luck to you. (You might also want to think about trying a few easier tasks first. or even better yet a easier engineering task that does not involve soldering at all)
Make sure you have nerves of steel and all the pets and other people in your place are not anywhere near you. Most importantly make sure that you do not have ANY distractions and wear protective eye goggles.



solder safety tips are here

YouTube - How to Solder : Soldering Safety Tips

YouTube - How to Solder : Soldering Safety Tips

and here

Soldering Safety Tips: How to Solder | eHow.com


Do yourself a big favor WATCH and READ them!
you would be surprised of the nuances that not everyone knows about soldering. IE: it only takes a small amount of solder fume to scar your lungs for life.


kind regards
david
ShopTimeSaver.com: Comparison Shopping Reviews

[drumdude]

It wasn't as successful a mod as I would have liked. For one, the magnets weren't very strong so any swift turn in a car caused it to fall. Secondly, the gap between induction coils was much larger than in a Palm setup. This caused the device to just barely charge. If the phone was doing anything (bluetooth audio streaming, ect) it would still drain the battery even though the indicator showed it was charging.


A fun mod nonetheless, and it has been repeated on various other phones with better success.