Silver

While I'm still tinkering with the last details on the silicone molds for the case, there is progress on the electronics side as I just received my order from JLCPCB, containing 20 mostly-assembled boards for a larger batch of prototypes. I had to rework the layout a bit in order to  move most components on the top side (since this cheap assembly service only allows one-side assembly) but the result looks nice. The missing components are mainly the microcontroller, a few ICs, and most mechanical parts (connectors and buttons). The brand new soldering hot plate I just received should help with that. The only trouble is my order for the OLED display for which shipping is taking longer than usual. I suspect Christmas might be to blame here.

I have been experimenting a lot in the past few months with silicone molds and urethane resins in order to make the case that I want for these modules, and after trying and comparing different techniques I am finally starting to get decent and usable parts. I will write a more detailed article on the process as soon as I fix the last few remaining imperfections, but for now let's look at the result :

As you can see there are still a few things to fix, such as details on the border of the screen and tolerences around the buttons, but I'm getting close. I also need to make the clear parts : the screen protection and the 3 led guides on the sides. All of this should be fixed in the coming weeks if all goes well.