Notes from the workbench

The latest

Shared when there’s something worth sharing.

November 2026

Software, PCB, and chassis

  • Continued work on document storage and save recovery.
  • Refined the 5-inch prototype PCB, including battery placement, connector positions, and hinge clearance.
  • Designed a matching chassis, keyboard support, battery bay, and display lid. Physical fit and hinge testing are still ahead.
  • Compared 5-inch and 7-inch displays for portability, battery life, and cost; the screen size is not final.
  • Sent a survey to approximately 600 waitlist subscribers to gather feedback on the device.

October 2026

Firmware and hardware prototyping

  • Revived the half-finished LVGL port of the app.
  • Paired a Bluetooth keyboard and verified typing, Backspace, and arrow-key navigation in the editor.
  • Ordered hardware for prototyping and began designing Leaf’s PCB.
  • Mapped out the main board, including the display, keyboard, battery charging, and USB-C connections.
  • Built a display stress test and investigated flickering during flash writes.
  • Improved display stability in testing using buffering; further hardware validation is still needed.

September 2026

Revisiting manufacturing

  • After several months waiting for demand to grow organically, the project remained constrained by a 2,000-unit minimum order.
  • Restarted work after another manufacturer raised the possibility of a 500-unit production run.
  • Reviewed the proposal, but the quote was too high to make the economics of the device work.
  • Took a more hands-on approach, building on the existing firmware by designing the PCB and enclosure toward a complete, functional prototype.
  • The goal is to bring manufacturers a more complete design, potentially enabling smaller production runs, better pricing, and more flexibility.

Follow along.

We are currently refining the first functional prototypes of the JustType Leaf. We believe in building in public and listening to writers. By joining the waitlist, you get a front-row seat to the development process and priority access to our first small-batch production run.

— The JustType Hardware Team

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