Pocketee
A pocket-sized computer made from a Raspberry Pi Pico, a 1.3-inch screen and a secure chip. Most people use it to sign crypto transactions. You can also put games on it.
Arrow keys move. Enter is the green button, Esc is red, H goes back to the menu.
What's inside
Three parts, all from regular electronics shops, and no soldering. The chip doesn't have a socket, so it sits tucked in the gap between the two boards and its wires push into the same header pins the Pico uses. That's where the name comes from: it's tucked in, like a tee.
| Part | What it does | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Raspberry Pi Pico or Pico 2 | Runs MicroPython and the Pocketee firmware | about $5 |
| Waveshare Pico-LCD-1.3 | 240×240 screen, joystick and four buttons | about $12 |
| ATECC608 or Infineon OPTIGA Trust M | Creates the private key and keeps it | about $8 |
Putting it together
- Push the Pico into the header on the back of the screen board.
- Connect the chip's four wires to GND, 3V3, SDA and SCL. Go by the order on the plug. Wire colors are different from cable to cable.
- Slide the chip into the gap and close the case.
- Plug it into your computer, open this site in Chrome or Edge and install an app.
It took us about ten minutes the first time.
Security
Whatever you plug it into is treated as untrusted. That includes your laptop, your phone and this website.
- Nothing gets signed until you press the green button on the device. A website or a USB message can't press it for you.
- The private key is generated inside the secure chip and never leaves it.
- The amount and address on the screen are worked out by the device, so a hacked computer can't swap them.
- Firmware and the apps in our list are signed. The device checks the signature before installing anything.
Two things to know. If you install an app by hand from some GitHub repo, nobody has reviewed it and it can use the chip. And if you lose your Pocketee, assume the key is gone and remove it as an owner of your Safe.
Colors
Eight case colors. In the designer you also choose which app it opens to and what the little tag on top says.
Price
Built
Assembled and tested. Plug it in and pick an app.
Kit
All the parts and the printed case. You put it together.
Shipping is included in the US. Anywhere else it's $18. Three per order max.
Order