Whether you’re furnishing a hyper-realistic dollhouse or you just like marveling at miniaturized tech, the TinyTV 2 may be just what you’re looking for. And if it’s still too big for your liking, you might want to check out its even smaller sibling, the TinyTV Mini.
Currently the subject of a Kickstarter campaign, the TinyTV 2 was created by Ohio-based “serial tinkerer” Ken Burns. It’s being manufactured by his electronics company, TinyCircuits. The device builds upon one of his previous Kickstarters, the thumb-sized TinyScreen color display.
As its name suggests, the TinyTV 2 does indeed have a predecessor, simply called the TinyTV. However, while the latter was an assemble-it-yourself kit, the TinyTV 2 comes all put together and ready to go.
Users can watch either preloaded videos or their own uploaded videos (with sound), utilizing two rotary knobs to adjust the volume and “change channels” between the different videos. An optional minuscule infrared remote also allows those functions to be performed remotely.
The TinyTV 2 itself sports a Raspberry Pi RP2040 microprocessor, and measures just 47.6 x 36.6 x 25.9 mm (1.9 x 1.4 x 1.0 in). Its 26-mm (1.0-in) IPS-boosted TFT color display has a resolution of 216 x 135 pixels, and sits above a 16 x 9-mm (0.6 x 0.4-in) front-facing speaker. Power is provided by a 3.7V/150-mAh lithium-polymer battery, which should be good for about two hours of video playback per charge.
Videos are stored on an integrated 8GB microSD card, which can hold over 10 hours of footage. Burns tells us that the preloaded videos include public domain content such as old TV shows, NASA videos, animation, and a roaring fireplace. As mentioned, users can also upload their own videos – or stream them from their computer – via a USB-C cable. It should be noted that user-supplied videos do have to be converted to a TinyTV-friendly format, via free software.
For people who want to go even smaller, the TinyTV Mini measures 26.3 x 23.8 x 21.9 mm (1.0 x 0.94 x 0.86 in), and has a 64 x 64-pixel 15.2-mm (0.6-in) color OLED screen. It’s reportedly good for one hour of playback per charge, but can store up to 40 hours of video on its 8GB card.
Pledges start at US$49, for either the TinyTV 2 or the TinyTV Mini with a “classic” gray body – assuming everything goes according to plan, they should retail for $59. Clear-bodied versions are also being offered, for a $59 pledge ($65 retail).
Fully functional TinyTV 2 takes “smaller is better” to a crazy extreme [New Atlas]