Rasperry Pi: The smallest computer in production?
Ryan Martin / 14 years ago
A computer the size of two twenty pence coins; that is what the team at the RaspberryPi foundation have created. The computer has all the necessary components integrated into it to function like a normal computer. It also has a HDMI output for connecting to a monitor and a USB slot for connecting the mouse and keyboard to.
The USB computer is expected to cost around £15/$25 to produce. The specifications of the computer are impressive given its size:
- 700MHz ARM11
- 128MB of SDRAM
- OpenGL ES 2.0
- 1080p30 H.264 high-profile decode
- Composite and HDMI video output
- USB 2.0
- SD/MMC/SDIO memory card slot
- General-purpose I/O
- Open software (Ubuntu, Iceweasel, KOffice, Python)
David Braben is the promoter of this scheme and he says that the aim of this is to provide widespread access to a computer in its simplest form and help reverse a trend where the number of UK students taking computer science has declined by nearly 50%.
It is hoped that it will re-stimulate interest in programming, coding and other advanced ICT skills school qualifications just currently cannot deliver.
