What is the Raspberry Pi 3? Whether this is the first time you’ve heard of a Raspberry Pi and you’re wondering if other flavors are available, or you’re already familiar with the Pi 2 and you want to know about the biggest upgrades to the Pi 3, here’s a high level overview without diving into the specifics.
1. It’s a mini computer initially developed by the Raspberry Pi Foundation, a charitable organization in the UK, as a learning tool to promote a deeper understanding of computer science in schools and developing countries. Although the original goal was to get kids into coding with a cheap but powerful tiny computer; it has globally reawakened the joy of programming in creative, tech-excited adults. While it might not be as powerful as a desktop computer, there are a lot of things that don’t really need the muscle of a large expensive PC. For just $35 this credit-card sized Pi features an ARM processor, RAM, graphical capabilities, and all the standard hardware ports you would find on a computer.
2. You can do almost anything with the Raspberry Pi. With the unexpected global popularity of the Pi, a community of loyal followers that embraced it and all that it is capable of formed. The result is a growing list of thousands of free projects across numerous quality sites and blogs. You can find free detailed images, diagrams and code to help you get started playing classic DOS games on the Pi, creating your own Pi photo frame, monitoring your vivarium conditions, or even building your own always-on torrent machine.
3. Storage sold separately. Onboard storage does not come with the Raspberry Pi. The original Pi Models A and B used a full-size SD card but all newer models require a micro SD card. The quick start guide for the Pi recommends a microSD card with a sustained write speed of at least class 4. My personal preference is to always opt for the class 10 microSD card with at least 8 GB capacity. It depends on how much you plan to read/write but there has been a noticeable improvement and the cost difference is minimal. Though the microSD card capacity recommendation is 4 GB, this is typically related to image installations. When installing NOOBS be sure to use at least an 8 GB card. Here’s an example of a class 10, 8 GB microSD card from SanDisk.
4. Accessories needed! In addition to requiring your own microSD card, anything you plan to connect to the board is not included. The essential list for general use is:
• MicroSD card (mentioned in #3)
• Power supply: 5.1 V micro USB 2.5 Amp wall cell phone chargers are perfect for most projects.
• Display & Connectivity Cable: HDMI to HDMI / DVI lead to connect to your TV or monitor.
• Keyboard, Mouse, and Monitor/TV
• Pi Case – to protect your Pi there are numerous types of cases available as well as some pretty awesome 3D-printable options. Keep in mind you need to consider whether you need an opening to access the General Purpose Input/Output pins.
• Ethernet cable (Model B/B+ only) if for some reason you don’t plan to use the newly added on-board WiFi
5. Power-up! The Raspberry Pi 3 officially uses a 5.1 V micro USB power supply. In my experience you will probably be just fine with a standard 5 V rather than the 5.1 V. The true current (mA) required will be dependent on what you are doing. Typically any reputable 2.5 Amp power supply or the official Raspberry Pi power supply will be sufficient. Keep in mind the Pi 3 uses a bit more current than its predecessors probably because of the beefier CPU. So any add-on shields really require those 2.5A even if you got away with it in the past. Be aware that running heavy loads or plugging multiple USB items into the Raspberry Pi 3, without its own power source, can eat up amps and may cause the Pi to temporarily crash. Moral of the story, its worth investing in the 2.5A power supply even if you don’t think you’ll need it right away. Here’s an Adafruit 5V power supply with micro USB cable.
6. You don’t necessarily need to know Linux. When in doubt, the Raspberry Pi website has a great Help section complete with Getting Started videos. Unless you’re using the vanilla Raspbian OS, most of the pre-built OS variants have all the tools and libraries already included in the image. Typically the only information you’ll need to supply is the WiFi connection info! If you do feel like getting down and dirty with some command line action, Raspbian is exceptionally well supported. Being a Debian based OS, you’ll be able to find a port of just about any library out there. Alternatively, the NOOBS (New Out Of Box Software) package gives the newly acquainted Raspberry Pi user the choice of 5 different operating systems (including Window 10 IoT Core) to install without the hassle of any special configuration. What this all boils down to is, don’t be afraid of the Raspberry Pi’s Linux roots. Your options are nearly unlimited!
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7. Improved performance, connectivity, and power management! While the Raspberry Pi 3 and the Pi 2 Model B essentially look the same and cost the same, the Pi 3 is roughly 50% faster than the previous version. Both models have 1 GB RAM and both use a fourth-generation VideoCore GPU, but the quad-core 900 MHz CPU of the Pi 2 Model B was upgraded to a 1.2 GHz CPU on the Pi 3. Another exciting upgrade was the slight shifting of a few components on the board to allow for the long-awaited WiFi / Bluetooth SoC & Chip antenna. Gone are the days of using all of the precious USB ports on WiFi and Bluetooth dongles! See below for a chart comparing the main specifications of the Raspberry Pi 2 Model B and the Pi 3. Note the Raspberry Pi 3 is officially called “Pi 3 Model B” but there was never a “Pi 3 Model A”.
8. External hardware galore! GPIO plug-in expansion boards are available to provide additional or upgraded functionality such as sound/video cards, sensors, power relays, and more. You can also find other great peripherals like cameras, touch screens, GPS antennas, and even a retro USB NES controller.
9. Dedicated monitor unnecessary. Typically when you get setup you will plug your keyboard and mouse into the USB ports on the Pi and connect a monitor via HDMI. Normally this results in booting up with your selected operating system and corresponding graphical user interface (GUI). However, there are projects that don’t require the Raspberry Pi to use a normal GUI and allow you to operate in a “headless mode”. In that case, it is possible to connect to the Pi over the network via SSH (Secure Shell). In fact, it’s very likely that if you’re running a Linux variation on your Raspberry Pi, the SSH option is already available by default. If you’re on a Mac, you can use Terminal or Putty on Windows. Using this method, you simply log into the Pi from your main computer and all the magic can be done through remote command line access. No need to have a monitor, keyboard or mouse directly connected to the Pi! Check out our article here to learn more about setting up your Pi in headless mode.
10. Watch out for the Pin out! When calling pins from the command line, keep in mind that Pin 1 on your pin out header doesn’t equate to GPIO 1. In fact, there isn’t a GPIO 1! Use this handy diagram to track down which GPIO to call for each specific pin.
With extensive free projects, a super low cost, and a huge community of Raspberry Pi supporters, what are you waiting for? Get started with a Raspberry Pi 3 today!