>The Pi has not actually been all that cheap lately compared to the competition.
I'm not a big fan of the RPi Foundation & it's relationship with BroadCOMM, but which competition are you referring to? I tried searching for RPi-like boards a while back but only came up with HardKernel & the bananaPi, and I don't think either is a proper competitor.
1. https://olimex.wordpress.com/2015/06/05/how-to-get-in-the-ne...
Oh, and that Olimex article smells of FUD. As they themselves point out, the price they were quoted for the SoC in the C.H.I.P. wouldn't be competitive - it's the same as a modern quad core SoC for a outdated single core. It's not a new die either, just another (possibly repackaged) version of the old and cheap Allwinner A13, so there's little in the way of R&D costs to recoup.
(Although it lacks WiFi AC that the new chromecast has, and probably way weaker graphics, but a cheap WiFi adapter or ethernet and having most stuff streamed should be workable.)
This irks me a bit with the new "$5" RPi. Yes, it's $5… For a device without a power cord, without networking, and where you need adapters (and/or solder on a UART) to plug anything into it.
And soon you're paying four times as much for the accessories than for the RasPi.
Who uses ethernet anymore?
The ELM 327 data sheet (this is the chip in most OBD devices you'll find on amazon): http://elmelectronics.com/DSheets/ELM327DS.pdf
Wikipedia's article on OBD PIDs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OBD-II_PIDs
"A complete guide to hacking your vehicle bus on the cheap & easy": https://theksmith.com/software/hack-vehicle-bus-cheap-easy-p...
There's a PyOBD python module out there (my carputer is built in python), but it's a fairly simple process so I just rolled by own using pyserial.
My issue is with the Pi's use of micro USB for power, I'd rather it use a barrel connector, it's not like it doesn't have the space. Yes, I know the choice is based on the presumption that everyone already has a micro USB power adapter from a cell phone. The use of micro USB for power on this Pi Zero makes a lot more sense given the form factor.
Yes. Phone chargers provide plenty of power for the Pi itself, but once you add several USB devices like wifi/ethernet you'll need beefy ones.
But even that is normally not much of a problem, because (especially on the B+) each device has their own port. If you plug several into a hub, however, you'll quickly exceed the hub port's power rating. Hence the need for an active hub.
I seriously doubt about your first point. Adding the cost of accessories (mouse, keyboard, screen) and a shipping cost, Raspberry Pi costs the same as a decent, used laptop that can be used to install a full Linux distro. Even getting Raspberry Pi Zero with essential kit (cabels + the smallest SD card) to my country rises its costs to 20£, add the cost of accessories, and you can get another working used laptop (and as a bonus Ethernet/WiFi connection which RPi Zero lacks). Don't get me wrong, Raspberry Pi is great for tinkering and home projects, I have much respect for what they are doing, but getting "computer to every home" is not it's strongest point.
When I (only ~5 years ago) took GCSE (last compulsory qualification) 'IT' - even though it was the slightly different course for 'more able' pupils - we were learning how to make Flash animations, use MS Office, Windows Movie Maker, and sorry things like that.
Forget "fifth point" - I think it's impact on schools is #1.
Curious about that.
(really, no needs to downvote me. I would love to see this thruth, just sceptical)
Not saying it proves or disproves anything. I'm also interested in this aspect of cheap-o-computing
The way it's designed now, it's kind of unusable for anything useful without making it a 3X larger package. Add a Wi-Fi dongle and the converter from regular to micro-USB is about the size of the board itself. And since it only has 1 USB port, you'll need a full-blown hub to connect any other stuff like sensors, keyboards, or whatnot.
From the differences amongst the Arduino, I see the hdmi as a necessary evil. Otherwise it'd be too cumbersome to debug.
That's where the Pi excels since it has a micro-SD slot (and a much faster CPU of course). But then, no Wi-Fi ...
Done then abandoned. Doesn't work with their currently shipping hardware/OS.
The cost makes it a great choice for students with less resources.
This is easily my pocket pc now.
While the Raspberry Pi is not the perfect hacker-friendly computer, it has done a lot of good. Some reasons off the top of my head:
1. Providing a low cost computer has given many people access to computers. Giving more people access to the web, email, an office suit, a programming environment AND giving people the ability of safely tinker without the fear of bricking an expensive device.
2. Introduced many different types of people to the FOSS landscape of powerful tools (e.g. distros such as Debian, tools such as Python).
3. The Raspberry Pi foundation has paid developers to write/optimise FOSS (e.g. paid Collabora to optimise WebkitGTK+ -- I think some Wayland work was also done).
4. Built on top of existing FOSS tools (e.g. building Raspbian on top of Debian), instead of doing everything on their own in a proprietary fashion. This has no doubt also helped to introduce new people into these communities.
This is a really good counter-point to all the "locked down" (hacker unfriendly) devices like smart phones and tablets.