Raspberry Pi has revolutionised the world of DIY electronics and computing. Its affordability and versatility make it an ideal tool for a wide range of projects, from home automation to educational tools.
100% agree - and IMO they've earned it. My first Pi was a 1st gen Pi that connected over RCA (IIRC). TBH, it was mainly used to get my daughter interested in computers... we did a few blinky lights projects and she liked the retro consoles the best, but that model had no horsepower for anything beyond SNES, but thru the years these boards have become literal computers - the Pi 5, IMO, has enough horsepower to do real computing things... real home network things. The Pi Zero 2 is such a killer [small] form factor and packs punch for its size...
What are some of the most interesting projects you've built or seen using Raspberry Pi?
I use Pi's for so many things that I couldn't even rattle them all off - and most of you here know about my 'favorite' projects that I've done;
Antique television random video machine
Home Assistant
PiMiga every year
Emulating consoles (Pi-Boy DMG, the NES Pi Case w/ SSD NES cartridges) Pwnagotchi
But a new one that I've been enjoying getting into is the Pi Pico - its only $6
and packs a little more punch than an Arduino board... suitable for a keyboard controller, a [very] retro FPGA machine, and I'm currently playing around w/ creating my own Meshtastic node. (Pico, GPS, LoRa chip)
How do you think Raspberry Pi can be used to inspire the next generation of tech enthusiasts?
I think its history already has - and I think it will continue to doso. The biggest thing the Pi has going for it, which I know we all can appreciate, is the community. There are faster SBCs, there are more impressive options on other SBC models - but they all lack the rock solid community, software, projects and support that the Pi Foundation has created... not saying other brands don't have a place, but you will be tinkering, coding and working to get
the software you need to use working on them. The Pi has the projects and the support...
Another thing that, while it stung us hobbyists during Covid, I love about the Pi Foundation is that they support corporations - a lot of people DON'T know that Pi's live inside many many products that you can purchase from smart showers to drum machines to console emulators and more; they also supply industry with the SBCs they need to running their infrastructure - in use in factories, corporations and companies across the w0rld. Again, while I wished they could have supported the hobbyist more during the chip shortage, I can respect that they made sure their corporate partners didn't feel the shortage in their pockets - it's important and I try not to hold it against the Pi Foundation... I think they were trying their best to get the SBCs to everyone who needed them - thank gosh we can now order a Pi 4, or Pi Zero 2W TODAY... whew!!
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