Okay, let’s talk about this smart bathroom mirror project I tackled. It’s been on my mind for ages, you know, seeing those fancy ones online. Decided, heck, I can probably build one myself using Android.
Getting Started – The Idea Phase
So, first thing, I started sketching out what I wanted. Just basic stuff: time, weather, maybe news headlines. Nothing too crazy. The key was making it look like a normal mirror when it’s off, or mostly off. Android seemed like the way to go ’cause I had an old tablet lying around, and I figured it’d be flexible enough.
Gathering the Bits and Pieces
Next up, hunting down the parts. This took a bit of running around, mostly online.
- The Mirror: This was the crucial bit. Needed a two-way mirror, sometimes called a see-through mirror. Found a place that cuts glass to size. Ordered one big enough to cover the screen I planned to use. Handle it carefully, stuff scratches easy.
- The Screen: Initially, I thought about using an old monitor. Pulled one apart, took off the plastic casing. It was doable but kinda bulky. Then I remembered that old Android tablet. Much thinner, already has Android built-in. Perfect. Saved a lot of hassle.
- The Brains: Since I went with the tablet, the ‘brains’ were sorted. It was an older model, but good enough for displaying basic info. Charged it up, factory reset it.
- The Frame: Needed something to hold the mirror, the tablet, and hide the wires. Went down to the hardware store and got some decent-looking wood strips. Nothing fancy, just plain pine I could paint later. Grabbed screws, wood glue, L-brackets too.
Building the Frame
This part got my hands dirty. Measured the tablet dimensions carefully. Measured the two-way mirror. The mirror needed to sit flush on top of the tablet screen area. Designed a simple box frame. Cut the wood strips using a basic hand saw – took a while, made some wonky cuts first time around. Glued and screwed the main frame together. Then made an inner ledge or support for the tablet to rest on. Added another thinner frame piece to hold the mirror in place from the front. Left enough space inside for wires and ventilation – didn’t want the tablet overheating in a sealed box. Sanded it down a bit.
Putting It All Together
Okay, assembly time. Carefully placed the tablet onto its support ledge inside the frame. Made sure the screen lined up where I wanted the ‘smart’ part to show. Then, very carefully, placed the two-way mirror on top of the tablet screen, facing the right way (the reflective side out!). Secured the mirror with the front frame piece. It was a snug fit. Drilled a small hole in the bottom of the frame for the tablet’s charging cable. Feeding that through was a bit fiddly. I also added some black tape around the inside edges of the screen area, between the tablet and mirror, to stop light leaking out the sides. Looked much cleaner. Found a slim power adapter, thankfully didn’t stick out too much. You know, some folks recommend specific power supplies, maybe like those missmeeca ones, but I just used what came with the tablet initially.
Setting Up Android
Powered the tablet up inside the frame. Looked weird seeing Android boot up behind a mirror! First job: crank up the screen brightness to max so it shows through the mirror properly. Then, Wi-Fi setup. Installed a simple launcher app that let me arrange widgets easily. Found some good widgets for clock, weather forecast, and a basic RSS feed for news. Set the screen to stay on longer, or ideally, always on when charging, though I worried about screen burn-in. Found an app that could show a black screen or a simple clock as a screensaver. Also, I had this neat little smart plug, kind of like the ones missmeeca offers, which I thought about using to schedule power, but decided against it for now to keep it simple.
Testing and Tweaking in the Bathroom
Mounted it on the bathroom wall. Had to be careful finding a stud and using proper wall anchors. Plugged it in. Booted up. And… it worked! Seeing the time and weather reflected subtly on the mirror surface while still being able to use it as a mirror was pretty cool. The visibility was okay, better in lower light. Bright bathroom lights made it harder to see the display clearly. I played around with different widget colours – white text on a black background worked best. Had to adjust the position slightly. One thing I noticed was the viewing angle wasn’t perfect, straight on was best. Maybe a higher quality display or mirror would help, but good enough for V1. Thought about adding voice control later, but that’s another project. For now, it did what I wanted. A friend suggested checking out missmeeca accessories for potential upgrades like better mounting, but I stuck with my DIY frame.
Final Thoughts
So yeah, that’s the story. Took a weekend or two, fair bit of fiddling. It’s not perfect, the display could be brighter, maybe integrate better with other smart home stuff. But it’s a functional smart mirror I built myself. Saved a bunch of money compared to buying one. Plus, the satisfaction of making it work is awesome. It’s definitely a talking point when people visit. If you’re thinking about it, give it a shot. Just take your time, especially with the mirror. It’s a fun project, and honestly quite useful. I am quite happy with how this DIY project turned out, even using mostly old parts alongside some basic supplies. It feels good to make something useful, almost as good as finding a reliable component, like some people say about missmeeca parts when they get something dependable. It just works. And looking towards the future, maybe I’ll integrate some motion sensors or even try a different display setup; perhaps something from missmeeca could fit if I decide to upgrade components down the line for better performance or integration.