Hello fellow geeks,
Welcome to the community website of a group of open hardware (and open software) enthusiasts who hack on the Ben NanoNote, from Qi Hardware. This is meant to be a kind of incubator for good ideas that maximize the usefulness and appeal of the Ben. No boundaries are set on the type of creativity or ideas people want to bring to the table — we need engineers, industrial designers, software architects, software GUI people, distro packagers, and probably ten other kinds of experts I can’t even think of right now. The Ya (the next version of the NanoNote) can be prettier, more powerful, more usable than the Ben, and we intend to help make that happen. Qi Hardware, their suppliers, and the folks at Sharism have been interesting enough, and daring enough, to open their processes wide to the world, and given us the chance to contribute. In exchange, we shall extract payment in knowledge: we shall learn plenty about the intricacies of creating this kind of device — the special considerations, and the attention to detail required to properly design a mobile device for near-constant use. The opportunity for us, for our new partners at Sharism/Qi, and for an entire industry waiting for better engagement with consumers, are unprecedented.
We at NanoHacks believe that the Ben represents the genesis of a new, more viable species in the open hardware ecosystem. Despite the limitations of the current iteration of hardware, the pace of our growth is strong, sustainable, and measured. While the Ben has weaknesses, the Ya will be compelling because of consumer input. We blur the lines, in this endeavour, and help shoulder the burden of great design.