Novena whips up an open source laptop from scratch

The current iteration of the Novena uses a Freescale iMX6 CPU, an ARM Cortex A9 processor whose datasheet and programming manual require no NDA. For the display, Huang and Cross used a 13-inch, 2,560-by-1,700 (239 ppi) LED-backlit panel, along with 3D printing to help manufacture certain pieces of the chassis. Since one of the demands for the device was that no closed source binaries are used, that limited their choices of network card or graphics, but Huang claims they were able to give a talk at the 30C3 conference with only their Novenas.