this post was submitted on 29 Aug 2025
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Hi! First time posting here on Self-Hosted. Let me know if I got any norms wrong.

I've been seeking to upgrade my digital environment for years now to be more sustainable. Recently, I've adopted repairable electronics like Framework's 13 laptop and Fairphone's earbuds (although I realize now that wired headphones are 100% the more sustainable option now). I've slowly been deGoogling and deMicrosofting my life, from using FOSS apps on my Galaxy S23+ like CoMaps, NotallyX, and AntennaPod, and FOSS programs on my Framework like LibreOffice or just Linux in general.

One area I'm focusing on upgrading at the moment is my Work From Home (WFH) setup, and specifically the electronics/hardware I use to conduct work functions. I have some ideas to upgrade the keyboard using products like ZSA's Ergodox keyboard and Ploopy's mouse, but I haven't found many options for Open Source Hardware (OSH) cameras.

Does the self-hosted community on Lemmy have any ideas for OSH cameras that at the minimum stream 1080p 30fps video for applications like Zoom and Microsoft Teams?

More generally, does the community support a maintained list similar to Wikipedia that tracks OSS/OSH projects that can give recommendations to novices like myself?

So far, the only OSH cameras I've been able to find, whether capable of streaming video or merely taking photos, are the CinePi / v2, Sitina 1, and even ones like the Elphel 393 series.

The Elphel 393s are 100% out of budget for what I want to do. I was actually astonished when I saw their prices. The Sitina 1 has promise, but it looks like it's not well maintained as it once was. This leaves the CinePi, which seems promising in terms of both budget, support (based on Raspberry Pi), and implementation.

It seems to me that closed source software and hardware only has the ability to exacerbate the issues with the electronics industry, whether contributing to e-waste via forced obsolescence or eroding personal privacy and liberties. Hopefully, one day governments, likely starting with the EU and ending at the US, will embrace open source on a societal scale. In the meantime, us technologically savvy people have to support these initial projects with our voices, wallets, and ballets.

Thanks for reading!

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[–] roofuskit@lemmy.world 7 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Everyone knows there's nothing more sustainable than replacing working hardware.

[–] Resonosity@lemmy.dbzer0.com -1 points 3 weeks ago

I know right. And we all know who the corporate culprits are -_-

[–] AbidanYre@lemmy.world 3 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

The pinecube is the closest I know of. Not sure it meets your requirements.

[–] Resonosity@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 3 weeks ago

I've seen Pine64 mentioned online with reference to their Pinephone and Pinephone Pro. Thought I saw somewhere that they're planning on discontinuing the Pro for one reason or another. Wonder what that means for their business.

The PineCube you mentioned has been tested as a webcam. It looks like the max resolution the cam supports is 1080p, but the frame rate is horrendous at 3-5 fps.

Luckily, Pine64 seem to be developing a successor to the PineCube, the PineCam, as of November of last year. Their documentation of the device seems lacking compared to the PineCube. Not sure if the device is still in development or what. I'll have to check their socials to see what's up.

If they roll out that PineCam though, that looks sick! Thanks for the tip!

[–] Resonosity@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Quick update about the PineCube. Pine64 has stopped making it due to low demand. This is confirmed via their Global Store and their Discord.

CinePi / v2 appear to now be the only devices on the market that support the idea of OSH. Pine64's alternatives to the Raspberry Pi might be able to substitute the CinePi, but it seems that no one has tried this as of August 2025.

[–] AbidanYre@lemmy.world 2 points 3 weeks ago

Yeah, I was kind of worried that might be the case when they didn't have much in the way of purchasing info.