Raspberry Pi
Computing for everyone
The Raspberry Pi brought affordable single-board computing to education and hobbyists, becoming the platform of choice for retro gaming projects.
Overview
The Raspberry Pi Foundation created an affordable single-board computer to promote computing education. The credit-card-sized boards cost as little as $35 and ran full Linux. Hobbyists adopted it for countless projects, including retro gaming: RetroPie and similar distributions turned Raspberry Pis into multi-system emulation machines.
Fast facts
- Organisation: Raspberry Pi Foundation.
- Price: from $35 (varies by model).
- OS: Raspberry Pi OS (Linux-based).
- Models: Pi 1, 2, 3, 4, 5; Zero series; Pico.
- Retro gaming: RetroPie, Recalbox, Lakka.
- Sales: tens of millions of units.
Retro gaming use
Why Raspberry Pi dominates hobbyist emulation:
- Price: affordable complete systems.
- Performance: handles up to PS1/N64 era (model dependent).
- Community: extensive guides and support.
- Form factor: fits in arcade cabinets, portable builds.
Educational mission
The original purpose:
- Programming: accessible Python, Scratch.
- Electronics: GPIO pins for hardware projects.
- Computing literacy: understanding how computers work.
- Schools: deployed in educational settings worldwide.