Inside a Zebra hand held barcode scanner (Patreon)

Inside a Zebra MC18 self-scan terminal

I think it was Frost Giant who sent me an eBay link to these units. They are retired stock being sold off online. I'd guess they've been replaced by faster, more modern units. Here's the UK link this one came from:- https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/325236405013 Some basic testing has shown that they appear to be locked down to avoid people interfering with them. There is a test/programming port on the back, but I'm not sure what sort of interface it's used with. The battery with mine had locked out on low voltage and it is VERY destructive to open them, so I recommend not doing so. In the video I mention a way to nudge the cell voltage back up to a level where the unit might recognise the battery pack again, unless it has lock-out memory. Nudging the cell back into life is strictly experimental. Lithium cells don't like being overdischarged, so some capacity or safety of operation may be lost. The cell is an 18650. The internals were quite minimalist. The ribbon cables have two types of lock. The large display cable has a fold up latch which swings up from the cable entrance side, and the others have a captive wedge that has to be pulled outwards gently in the direction of the cable to unlock it. I totally wrecked the one for the touch panel by popping it out a bit too hard. The speaker connector is best removed by gripping either side with a small pair of side-cutters to pull it out. The unit went back together easily, but I'll need to improvise a shim for the touch interface cable to wedge it in properly. These units will be a novel toy for an Android geek. Like a puzzle to get into the system to load a barebones Android install. If you enjoy these videos you can help support the channel with a dollar for coffee, cookies and random gadgets for disassembly at:- https://www.bigclive.com/coffee.htm This also keeps the channel independent of YouTube's algorithm quirks, allowing it to be a bit more dangerous and naughty. #ElectronicsCreators