Desktop

In an attempt to replace my gaming laptop, I made a portable desktop. It's not perfect but it is compact for an ATX PC and gets the job done. That being said, it's still a work in progress with a lot things to fix, but it is functional.

Timeline:

Before I had a case

I sold my gaming laptop and bought the desktop components with the idea of creating a portable desktop case, and a general plan in mind.

Rough Prototyping

I created cardboard replicas of the main componets to test different orientations.

V1 - First Test

After I picked a layout and modeled everything, I constructed my first prototype, although I forgot the mainboard mounting holes were placeholders and not accurate. I ended up needing to drill some extra holes to get the mainboard in.

V1.5 (New Monitor and GPU)

The monitor and GPU at the time were ones I had on hand, and the new monitor wasn't compatible with the case. As such, I had to run the desktop half deconstructed.

V2 - Reinforced Frame

Due to a lot of flex in the V1 and lack of GPU support. The V2 design functioned more like a skeleton and held things in place far better although I could only get thin wood. For this reason, the prototype provided a good proof of concept but but did not meet expectations.

V3 - Current Version

The V3 is the latest completed version. It addresses a lot of the clearance issues of the V2 while also being made out of a stronger material, however due to the wood being changed last minute, some of the components are a tight fit.

V4 - In Progress

The V4 is still a work in progress attempting to fix a lot of the issues of the V3 such as cooling, better monitor support, weight, durability, and portability.