A Simple open-source Phone programmable with Arduino
wiphone.io
wiphone.io
If a GSM module is also included, this would be a lovely device to have. Also, would be nice to have a much larger screen.
The primary function of a "phone" in the modern sense is to allow people to reach you (by means of SMS or voice) wherever you happen to be at the time. Something that doesn't meet that need isn't an unqualified "phone".
To its credit, the thing under discussion is literally called "WiPhone", which sounds to me like a direct play on "WiFi phone".
It's can't make calls but it does send SMS via a low-frequency radio, so you can send text messages in the middle of a jungle. Technically your cellular phone can't do that unless it's connected to starlink.
Anything else seems absurd.
Plenty of people actually use "phone" to mean not only "cell phone" but specifically a "smart phone" and feel the need to qualify it if they mean a "dumb phone". Like it or not, that's the way the word is going.
Like plenty of people talk about phone calls that only take place on zoom or meets without ever using a smartphone or dumb phone (but the call is joinable via an assigned phone number)
They are asking to make a phone call, not play angry birds.
Phones make phone calls. End of story.
A landline is a type of phone in the same way that a panda is a type of bear. Technically it's true, but if you say you went to see the bears at the zoo it's your own fault that people aren't picturing something with black and white splotches.
Where I am, simply making calls over IP is not enough to qualify a device as a phone.
If it cannot phone the local police station, the local pharmacy or the local clinic, it's not really a phone.
It can if you have a SIP provider. The only limitation depending on your provider might be emergency numbers.
What it is not is a mobile phone. But it is totally a SIP phone.
If we're getting technical it is a mobile phone, just not a cellular phone. A cellular phone will work anywhere it can get a compatible cellular signal and this will work anywhere with decent WiFi.
If you want to get technical, the dictionary definition of a phone is "electronic equipment that converts sound into electrical signals that can be transmitted over distances and then converts received signals back into sounds"... which landlines, VoIP/WiFi and cellular all fit the bill.
I've been wanting a simple, open source phone (a cell phone that is) that allows me to easily hook into events with some code. Like for example, when a phone call comes in, I want to be able to run certain logic based on what number is calling etc.
[1] https://www.wiphone.io/FAQ.html (under CAN YOU ADD A SIM CARD...)
> No. You might be able to get one into the microSD slot if you really push.
This made me smile :D
It is definitely a phone.
For me a phone is something which allows me to make/receive a phone call (at the very least) - to any phone number without requiring some special software to be installed on either end of the phone call.
For instance, even on a cellphone, I distinguish between calls made directly via the phone dialer vs Whatsapp video/audio calls or any VOIP call - because the other side has to have a compatible/supporting application/app to receive that call.
* A multi-touch screen
* Dedicated app store
* AI voice controlled personal assistant
* Face ID to unlock the phone
* 48MP front facing and back facing cameras capable of 4K video
* Maybe have a fruit as a logo on the back of the phone
I see it more as a clever way to sell a Flipper Zero -ish device where the former has been or would be banned. Hardware is similar, it just need capable firmware to be written or ported over.
I've done some work in this area - CGNAT is to be blamed when using UDP for voice traffic.
Very hard to reliably hole-punch CGNAT.
We've also specifically avoided adding many additional features while the calling and texting was brought up, so you aren't wrong on the philosophy, maybe you just bought yours before the work was done.
You can enable logging errors to a serial console. We don't add that by default because it slows down the OS. My email is in my profile if you'd like me to walk you through how to enable that.
If you wanted to use encryption, you could set up a VM or Pi on your local WiFi network running Asterisk, and have the calls bridged, such as Asterisk <--> Jitsi, with the person on the other end using Jitsi; this would encrypt everything except the local Wifi portion, but anything leaving your home would be encrypted.
Any time a phone number touches the "regular" phone network, it must by law be allowed to be eavesdropped on (CALEA) by the government. So anything completing over SIP that used regular phone service could be intercepted. If you had encryption from the WiPhone to a shared Asterisk, such as with a group all using the same PBX then you might be able to avoid it.
GSM modules and supporting Arduino libraries are readily available, e.g. https://www.adafruit.com/category/281
Edit: I just saw there's a LoRA daughter board developed, so a GSM board seems not too far fetched! See: https://www.wiphone.io/docs/LoRa/latest/
I really like the fact that Wiphone has LoRA add-ons!
- Remove any SIM card
- Install VOIP softphone app and configure with WiFi.
- Go enjoy the $175 you didn't spend on this.
my old phone doesn't have:
20 pin programmable header on back of phone (including SPI, UART, I2C)
I2C Qwiic port (a lot of adafruit sensors have qwiic ports)
and code that i can modify in arduino ide
I guess there will be awesome niche applications for this phone that are supper useful to an audience of one person.
Answer: they didn’t. WiFi only.
Yes there are Arduino GSM modules , but they are old (2G or 3G), expensive, and do not work well or at all in the US.
It was actually a real phone based on ESP32 + a GSM/LTE module. It could make phone calls, SMS, had games, apps, etc. at the level of what early 2000 GSM phones could do. Project is abandoned now.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/albertgajsak/makerphone...
The makerphone was a learning tool and built to that spec. It wouldn't survive being carried around in your pocket, for example, but it was fine for teaching you how to program and how a phone works.
Unfortunately a non starter for myself and I suspect many others. I am happy to hook into a push notification plane or build by own polling etc, but without LTE this device isn't useful as soon as I step out the door :(.
The minimalist android shells feel pointless because the inherent complexity still exists.
> WHY ARE YOU USING BUTTONS AND NOT A TOUCHSCREEN?
> Because they are simpler and (at this scale) cheaper than buying a larger touch-enabled screen. We want to make a low-cost phone that's easy for people to adapt to their needs. We think physical buttons are easier for people with limited hacking skills (or simply better things to do than configure soft buttons) to adapt to their needs.