Old Nokia Cell Phones Make the Best Conference Badges

A recent study has shown that there is at least a 90% chance that your first cell phone was a Nokia “Brick” — likely the 3310. Sure, that study was conducted just now by me, and is based entirely on my nostalgia, but it’s probably still true. Because that Nokia Brick nostalgia is so strong for so many makers, it’s hard to think of a better choice for a hacker conference badge.

This Nokia 3310 conference badge was created by Mastro Gippo for the 2018 Italian Hacker Camp, which kicks off in a little over a week. The goal was to create a badge that, from all outward appearances, is just a regular old Nokia 3310. But, of course, there is a lot more going on inside of that blue Brick case. All of the original electronics have been replaced with a custom PCB that is populated with a number of modern goodies.

On that PCB is a maker-favorite ESP32 PICO MCU, which has a 240MHz dual core processor, WiFi, and Bluetooth. There is also an STM32F103 microcontroller for interfacing with the other hardware and for USB-to-serial functions. That other hardware includes a 16-key keyboard, an 84x48 pixel monochrome LCD, a vibration motor, a ringtone speaker, backlight, battery, and charger. That gives Gippo everything a hacker could want, all packed into everyone’s favorite indestructible cell phone.