This is such a trip, I've got a number of Chumbies (Chumbys?) of the original OMAP processor variety. I even have a "Chumby Guts" kit that I got from Adafruit b

This is such a trip, I've got a number of Chumbies (Chumbys?) of the original OMAP processor variety. I even have a "Chumby Guts" kit that I got from Adafruit back in the day which has all the parts, minus the squishy case! They are a great tool for this kind of project because learning about building embedded Linux systems is easier with something that has all the parts already put together for you (it's just software at that point). It also shows how fleeting in time technology is. Building an equivalent today is certainly possible, but the parts you would use for it would be out of date/obsolete in a couple of years so no real "durability" to the existence of the tool. The biggest challenge is of course display tech. Displays are all custom made these days for products that have runs in the millions, there hasn't really existed a "standardized" parts eco-system for them. I had hoped the phone business might provide that but nope.