What have I been up to? DIY Gamepad with cooling fan!

Well, I have been updating this blog for a while... I'm busy with other stuffs ...

1) DIY a cooling fan + "gamepad" (just for better grip)
2) DIY gun that shoots!

Yes, I've been quite into DIY recently.

In my previous post, I've mentioned that I've gotten a gamepad cum cooling fan for my phone, but then its not only uncomfortable to use (for PUBG) but also has a short battery life.

So I decided to try DIY one on my own!

 

 

I didn't take much photos of the process of the "casing", but its basically divided into "3 parts"... the left and right handles and the middle compartment. I tied them together with Elastic Strap used for clothings an rubber band.

Yes, it stretches to accommodate the phone (and a flat charging cable when needed).

Next, I started reading online about "wiring" and simple electronics. I looked at others' project and then I search online for the parts (modules and switches) and find out about them. Of course, I'm still half-ass and I still couldn't do soldering :/

After the parts arrived, I tried wiring everything and then tested that it works before I get my dad's help to solder up the wires!

If you're curious about the parts...

I've a 5V fan, a TP4056 charging module (the board with the micro-USB), a switch and some heat shrink. For the battery, I reused an old NDS battery which is 1600mAh. Surprisingly, it last almost 4 hours! Anyway, I'm searching for a battery with more juice and plans to get a booster with LED indication!

I DIY a heatsink with aluminum from drink can... not sure if it works well, I learn this from a Youtube video... LOL

There, done!

Will I use these clip-on lenses for my phone?

 

Impulse shopping can be really scary ... I mean, I didn't even want to buy these lenses! (And this is not the only lenses I bought!) 

Ok, maybe I'm a little fascinated by Macro photos. I thought they were really cool with all the details.

But seriously, I don't really have a great need for such lenses. Still, I got them... The things is they aren't that expensive - ~SG$11 for 5 lenses - Fisheye, Macro, Wide-angle, Telephoto(2x Zoom) and CPL.

Well, the lenses are pretty well built and they comes in a case with a clip for easy carrying. And they serve their purpose quite well.

I'll be showing a few examples I took with the lens. (All photos are taken by my iPhone 7 Plus)

The wide-angle lens

"This type of lens allows more of the scene to be included in the photograph" - Wikipedia

With the lens

Without the lens

 

Telephoto Lens

My understanding is that such lenses "bring" the subject closer, like a zoom-in effect.

 With the lens

 Without the lens

Macro Lens

"Macro photography is the art of taking photos of things very close up, allowing you to see details in the photo that your eyes would never be able to see." - BorrowLenses

I've been experimenting with this lens the most... I actually find it hard to find the focus and I've to get really close to have a sharp image. The lens tends to blur the "surrounding" a little too much for my liking.

 

Fisheye Lens

I've tried the Fisheye lens and it create this ugly black border around which I really dislike!

 

 

CPL Lens

I've NO IDEA what CPL does. I don't see much differences when I put the lens on. A quick search online shows that it darken skies, manage reflections, or suppress glare from the surface of lakes or the sea.

Left: No CPL, Right: With CPL

(Image taken from Wikepedia)

 

Conclusion

 

Pros:

- 5 lens to choose from, 5 different effects
- Easy to carry
- Comes with carrying case 
- Clipper is tight
- Comes with lens cover
- Improve photo quality
- Macro is great, captures lots of details

Cons:

- Troublesome to use/change lens (screwing the lens)

- Cannot use with most phone casing

- Have to adjust and align lens

- Have to get really close for sharp image for macro len

Back to the question, Will I use the lenses? 

It depends. 

I mean although they're easy to carry, they aren't that easy to "setup". You need to do some adjustment and alignment to get a good view or you'll end up with "black border" (like the ones created by the Fisheye lens).

And the most turn-off reason is that I can't use them with my phone casing on! I guess there are reasons why the lenses are always advertised with a phone without casing on!

I believe unless your casing is really thin (almost non existent), you'll have to remove your casing to use the lens!

But of course, the lens produce quite good quality and serve their purpose well.

My PUBG Package - None-Obstructing Lightning Adapter + Cooling Gamepad + Trigger!

I was recently very much into the First Person Shooting game, PUBG Mobile. Most gamer will know, the game drain battery really fast and also makes your phone really hot. When my phone gets too hot, it'll start to LAG! And lagging is a huge No-No for PUBG!

So I decided to get myself a phone cooler and then a longer adapter that would be more comfortable for my hand.

Previously, I've tried quite a few adapters, like the "Tablet/Medicine Adapter". However, they are quite obstructive when it comes to playing PUBG. Not only that, there is quite a lot of intermittent when I was pushing against it when I play game. (More rants on that in another post)

Lightning Adapter

Anyway, that's why I've decided to try this dual lightning adapter. It's slightly more expensive than my previous ones, this one cost about SG$11, without shipping fee.

Specifications:

2A Charging
Frequency Respond: 20Hz-20KHz
SNR: 95dB, THD+N: -80dB
Power Output: 2x35mW@32Ω
Function: Audio + Charge + Call 
Earphone Control: Supported 


So what is so different about this adapter?

Well, it's longer, hence you hand can rest comfortably on it, instead of needing to avoid."go around" it.

I've tried it on for a while and the charging is pretty quick, the adapter doesn't affect the music quality or at least not that I notice. I also like the blue LED indicator which looks quite cool, unless you're hiding in your blanket to play games at night. LOL

But well, it's not without its cons ... if you decided to go in with both audio (earphone) and charging, then one of them (the one at the top) will become slightly obstructive because well, the adapter is still not long enough for my iPhone 7 Plus. It might work well for not Plus size phones perhaps.

Cooling Gamepad and Power Bank 

Specifications:

This cooling gamepad could easily fit anything from iPhone to plus size iPhones without a problem. But I don't think it fits tablets in any directions.

It comes with an microUSB input and a USB output and an extension that could turn the gamepad into a phone stand. And it's pretty stable as a stand.

The switch on the back is also in a rather convenient position (at least for me) and I could turn it on without having to flip the gamepad over.

I've played PUBG and AOV on this gamepad and well, it's good for AOV but not so great for PUBG, especially if you try to use triggers. Your hand (or fingers) probably won't be long enough to reach easily if you're holding onto the handles. (Well, unless you've really long fingers or huge hands)

Also you'd want to be really careful when placing your phone in and taking it out. It can scratch your phone casing! Perhaps you want to add extra padding or just be really careful.

Another thing you might want to take note is that, the battery lasted only 2-3 hours for me after a full charge ... Not the 8 hours as advertised.

Triggers

I've gotten 2 kinds of triggers:

 The wheel triggers

Top triggers

That's how I'll name these triggers in the rest of the post.

Well, I was really excited for the triggers! I mean, they looked so cool on the website and they're really cheap!

But then once again, they were great disappointment! Like Epic flop!

Why?

Let me explain!

The Wheel Triggers

I called it the "wheel trigger" because of its design. It has this wheel thingy that you could screw according to the thickness of your phone. That sounds really nice, right? But then, well, it's hard plastic with no padding, so yeah, it can scratch your phone casing!

Is it difficult to screw? Well, it depends a little on how small are fingers are. So some may find it frustrating to screw!

But that's not its biggest flop! The biggest flop is the length of the contact point! it's so short, it just touches the top part of my iPhone 7... meaning ... It wasn't good for phone that is not full screen, without border!

 

Even though the buttons are really clicky and nice, I have stop using these triggers because well, it's just so hard to map with the button when they need to be so high up there!

Top Triggers

These triggers are slight better than the "wheel" ones, because they stretched further down and makes it easier to map the keys.

 

However, they can scratch your phone too! So try not to shift the triggers with the clippers on!

I played with this set of triggers more often, they're pretty clicky but they aren't as responsive as I want them to be ... sometimes, it just won't respond fast enough!

Overall, it was not a great package and I'm quite disappointed! I went on to try making my own "gamepad" but then ... haiz ~