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Slimming down the Pi3

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2018 11:38 am
by Fredl
Hi, I need to slim down a RPi3, while still being able to use 2 USB ports and Wifi.
  1. Can I simply (and carefully) cut away the upper half of the double USB ports? Will this deform the lower half too much? Will this mess with the lower ports electronics?
  2. Can I desolder them and solder on a single USB-port each?
  3. Can I remove the LAN-port without interfering with the WLAN functionality?

Re: Slimming down the Pi3

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2018 6:18 pm
by JamesW
I don't believe you can cut off the top two USB ports although it might be possible. Personally, I'd go with #2 and remove the dual ports and solder on single ones or just skip plugs altogether and solder USB cables directly to the pi. You can remove the Ethernet jack without losing wifi, just be sure that there are no solder blobs left behind to short out traces to each other. You'll need a solder sucker or braided wick to make desoldering easier.

Re: Slimming down the Pi3

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2018 8:44 pm
by BladDon
check dryja (something numbers) he does a pi3 desoldering service

Re: Slimming down the Pi3

Posted: Wed Feb 28, 2018 2:49 am
by moooarcuuuus
Fredl wrote:
Tue Feb 27, 2018 11:38 am
Hi, I need to slim down a RPi3, while still being able to use 2 USB ports and Wifi.
  1. Can I simply (and carefully) cut away the upper half of the double USB ports? Will this deform the lower half too much? Will this mess with the lower ports electronics?
  2. Can I desolder them and solder on a single USB-port each?
  3. Can I remove the LAN-port without interfering with the WLAN functionality?
Yes you can do all 3 things, if you can do it. Number 2 is the best solution for usb.

Re: Slimming down the Pi3

Posted: Fri Apr 27, 2018 8:51 pm
by Villemus
Has any had the same problem I'm having. I desoldered the usb ports and the Ethernet jack. However, the USB ports are no longer getting power from the vacant usb port pins. When I tried bypassing by using one of the 5v GPIO pins but I'm not having luck. Any suggestions?