TL;DR
- A YouTuber attached a BlackBerry Q10 keyboard to a folded Galaxy Z Flip 5 with a broken folding screen.
- The YouTuber also added a magnetic slider mechanism akin to phones like the Nokia N97.
- A video shows that the keyboard works in apps like YouTube and in games.
What happens if your Galaxy Z Flip‘s folding screen breaks? Well, you could get it repaired, or you could do what one enterprising person did and attach a BlackBerry keyboard to it.
YouTuber and inventor Marcin Plaza decided to attach a BlackBerry Q10 keyboard to a folded Galaxy Z Flip 5 with a broken screen. Plaza even built a satisfying magnetic slider mechanism akin to the Nokia N97, Samsung D500, and other slider phones.
Don’t want to miss the best from Android Authority?
Getting the keyboard to actually work with the Z Flip 5 was no laughing matter, as it requires some soldering, a custom PCB, and an Arduino Pro Micro board to emulate a USB keyboard. He also removed the Z Flip 5 hinge and a variety of internal components. In fact, the YouTuber transferred the remaining parts, the cover screen, and the BlackBerry keyboard into two machined aluminum frames.
The result is a gloriously hacked-together device with a keyboard that actually works. Plaza’s video shows him typing on YouTube and playing games like Minecraft and Terraria. Don’t care for the keyboard? You can still use the touch screen and virtual keyboard.
The Clicks keyboard case already brings a physical keypad to Flip foldables in a similar way. However, this case only supports recent Razr phones (in addition to iPhones and Pixels). Nevertheless, this is still a very cool project and a neat way to circumvent a broken Z Flip folding screen.
Thank you for being part of our community. Read our Comment Policy before posting.
