diff --git a/context/open-questions.md b/context/open-questions.md
index 7d8ee17..e3cbad5 100644
--- a/context/open-questions.md
+++ b/context/open-questions.md
@@ -29,6 +29,32 @@ authentic path scoped.
   Remaining: bind the side/down look views to keys (only 'V' look-back is bound); pod look-button
   mappings for Phase 8.
 
+## Pod-hardware readiness gaps (Phase 8 assessment, 2026-07-17) [[pod-hardware]]
+Everything below EXISTS in the tree but has NEVER run against real pod hardware.  Mechanism
+status vs the pod's 7-display / RGB-splitter / dual-sound-card rig:
+- **CARRIED + plausibly functional (untested on hardware):**
+  - RIO serial controls: real Win32 COM (`L4SERIAL` CreateFileA/SetCommState), the full chain
+    RIO AnalogReply → Ranger → ControlsManager → streamed `.CTL` mappings → mapper traced [T1];
+    keyboard bridge disable = `BT_KEY_BRIDGE=0`.  Pod look/config buttons are `.CTL` data-driven.
+  - RGB-splitter channel packing: `L4GraphicsPort::ChannelEnableID` (Red/Green/Blue/All +
+    transparent-zero variants) — each gauge draws into ONE color channel of the shared
+    640x480x16 surface, feeding one monochrome CRT per channel through the splitter.  The gauge
+    CONTENT is complete (same `L4GaugeRenderer` verified daily in the `BT_DEV_GAUGES` window).
+  - Multi-output selection: `SVGA16::BuildWindows` (a fullscreen D3D9 device per gauge/MFD
+    surface), adapter env `PRIMGAUGE`/`SECGAUGE`/`MFDGAUGE`/`MFDGAUGE2`/`SPANDISABLE`, MFD span
+    = width x2 across two displays; `content/SETENV.BAT` = the authentic pod env preset.
+  - The `L4PLASMA.cpp` serial plasma-display driver (`L4PLASMA=com2`).
+- **EXPECTED TO NEED REAL WORK on modern hardware:**
+  1. **Multi-head display management**: the original used TWO video cards; simultaneous
+     exclusive-fullscreen D3D9 devices on multiple heads of one modern GPU is fragile — likely
+     needs a borderless-window-per-head modernization of `BuildWindows`.
+  2. **The REAR sound card is folded away**: the pod ran `AWE_FRONT`/`AWE_REAR` as two physical
+     cards for the 4-speaker front/rear split; our OpenAL opens ONE device (front/rear collapses
+     to stereo).  Feasible fix: OpenAL Soft quad output (surround config) or a second device.
+  3. Serial protocol timing/handshake vs a real RIO board (and the intercom path) — unverified.
+  4. `-platform pod` deliberately does NOT auto-enable `L4GAUGE` (each surface needs its own
+     device); the pod bring-up procedure itself is undocumented → the Nick items above.
+
 ## BINARY-COVERAGE AUDIT discoveries (2026-07-13, 6-agent decomp census) [T1 verified-uncited]
 New unaccounted functionality no prior list knew (addresses verified absent from game/+context/+docs):
 - **✅ `BTL4VideoRenderer::StartEntityEffectImplementation` @004d097c — DONE (2026-07-13) [T2].**