STMicroelectronics LIS3LV02Dx and LIS331DLH motion sensors
Small STMicroelectronics 3-axis accelerometers attached over I2C or SPI that detect motion, tilt, and sudden drops. They were famously used in mid-2000s ThinkPads and other laptops for hard-drive shock protection (HDAPS), and similar parts still ship in embedded gear today.
recommendation
Worth keeping but its niche should be documented. The chips are still sold new by ST in 2025, and the code is being actively maintained upstream (a March 2026 fix and a 2025 conversion to the faux_device API both landed), so it is not abandoned. However, real-world Linux use today is mostly legacy laptops like older ThinkPads with HDAPS, so a note about its legacy and embedded niche would help future maintainers judge its importance.</recommendation_summary> </invoke>
repository signals
sources
- lore.kernel.org
The driver received a recent upstream maintenance fix in March 2026, showing it is still live code rather than abandoned.
- lore.kernel.org
The driver was updated in 2025 for core infrastructure changes (conversion to faux_device), indicating continuing adaptation to current kernel internals.
- st.com
ST lists LIS331DLH as an active product in volume production; this is one of the sensor variants handled by the driver family.
- estore.st.com
ST's store showed LIS331DLHTR as active and in stock, supporting that at least part of the supported hardware family was still sold new in 2025/2026.
- thinkwiki.org
A documented real-world Linux deployment niche for this class of accelerometer support is older ThinkPad HDAPS-era laptops, pointing to legacy rather than mainstream new deployments.
codex reasoning notes (technical)
Local source inspection via exec_command shows a real SPI/I2C accelerometer driver supporting legacy LIS3 variants including LIS331DLH. lore_file_timeline and lore_activity show steady recent upkeep through 2025-2026 and no visible removal-oriented subjects in recent traffic, so removal/deprecate is not justified. Web search plus open/find on ST pages shows LIS331DLH still marketed as active and sold new; ThinkWiki was obtained via web search and supports the legacy-laptop deployment story. Net: hardware family is not fully obsolete, but Linux deployments today look niche/low and mostly legacy or embedded, so keep the driver but annotate its legacy/niche status.