The engineers and programmers at pi-top want people to make things using Raspberry Pi 4. After years of offering the pi-top [3] as a modular laptop the group has developed a new platform to celebrate the release of the Pi 4. pi-top [4] is a handheld computer built to enable makers to program and build, and the group is running a Kickstarter campaign for funding.
pi-top [4] comes with an embedded OLED mini screen and two 4k HDMI ports for additional screen outputs. The main unit has four programmable buttons to give a user manual control. Connecting this base to the Foundation Plate lets the user add LEDs, sensors and potentiometers for projects. Users can also take advantage of the Raspberry Pi 4’s GPIO pins. The 19.24 Watt hour lithium polymer battery has an estimated life of five hours and a centrifugal fan built into the unit helps to keep the Raspberry Pi 4 below its throttle temperature. Several expansion kits are available as well, including a build plate with more options, a vehicle kit, and keyboard kits. LEDs, potentiometers, light sensor, buzzers, buttons, sound sensors, ultrasonic sensor, and LEGO connectors all come with the main kit as well.
Further is the group’s social media engine for makers. Further is envisioned to be a place where makers can be inspired by the projects of others or get feedback or advice on their own inventions. pi-topOS SIRIUS is the dedicated operating system but NOOBS, Ubuntu MATE and Windows 10 IoT Core are also supported, along with anything Raspberry Pi 4 compatible operating system.
The pi-top [4] system is a nice bump up from simply buying a Raspberry Pi unit and trying to make projects. It does take the initial buy-in from around $35 to $200, but the pi-top team has a track record of supporting their products and building community. Several projects are on the company website product page, including drones, robots, a portable photo booth, weather balloon, and hydroponics farming. The crowdfunding campaign has passed its $100,000 funding goal and ends on August 8, 2019.