does the dragonboard case by arrow fit on the hikey 960?
Consumer Edition (CE) boards all have the same form factor. It should work across all CE boards.
I am concerned about the clearance of the pcie slot
For a very simple solution, get some perspex cut, drill some holes in it (using appropriate drill bits), buy some M2.5 brass standoffs, and you’ll have a very simple case. Sizing is on p24 of the consumer board specs.
Here’s one I made earlier:
If you want to do this yourself, I recommend cast acrylic/perspex over extruded, which tends to crack. I ordered from Delvie’s Plastics who seem to provide a good range of high quality stock. Chrome vanadium drill bits with a sharp tip work for me (Fisch Chrome Vanadium brad point drill bits). Make sure that the screw part of your brass standoffs is thicker than the acrylic by a decent margin: 1/8"/3mm is right for most people. M2.5 stand-offs are common on Amazon, e.g. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N9K7HEI/.
I agree it does rather compromise the form factor… although I guess its better to have an M.2 connector than not have one!
Well, this connector doesn’t work.
It seems that I need to recompile the kernel with the right drivers. And I have no idea that Android will support it.
So, for now, it’s just a useless connector, with the worst position ever, sitting on the board.