Magic Mirror

“Mirror, mirror, on the wall / tell me who is the smartest of them all?”

“You”

Yes, a Magic Mirror that could answer, inform and tell lies, if you insist. This ”Magic Mirror” is a really cool build-it-yourself idea that is based on Raspberry Pi.

Besides RPi, you would need a display monitor, some wood and paint and a one-way mirror. The regular mirror in this case is not helpful since the screen needs to be unsightable. So the mirror should behave like a one-way mirror – which means when the screen behind it is black or unlit, it acts as one-way while it acts like a regular glass window when information is displayed on the screen. As for the monitor, the maker got a 24” screen. It was cheap and had 1080P resolution which is suitable for the project.

Choosing the screen wasn’t easy. Most products were dismissed outright because the power and video connectors were needed to be mounted on the sides, while they were fixed on the backside or the front side.

After choosing the screen and calculating its dimensions, the maker built a stable and sturdy wooden casing from pine wood. Monitors dissipate heat so air ventilation holes were created for the purpose and a nice and firm mounting point was added on the back of the casing.

While the physical aspects of the Magic Mirror are covered, time now for its brain. The Raspberry needs Wifi connectivity, 90 degrees screen rotation to match the portrait screen orientation, a local webserver to host the interface and a web browser running full screen to display the interface – all this because the project wouldn’t be cool if it does not have useful display features.