The Raspberry Pi Compute Module is Raspberry Pi’s new product specifically designed for makers who want to develop and build their own PCBs. It has most of the power of a Raspberry Pi B+ without some of the bells and whistles. This gives it a much smaller footprint (68mm x 30mm), allowing you to build off of your Pi without having to carry around your credit card sized computer.
The compute module has a BCM2835 chip with 512MB RAM and 4GB eMMC flash memory – which is the equivalent of a SD card in your Raspberry Pi. The board fits into a DDR2 SODIMM connect – which is used for your laptop’s memory. This doesn’t mean you can stick the compute module into your laptop but it does mean setting up the compute within a custom system should be relatively easy.
Stop breadboarding and soldering – start making immediately! Adafruit’s Circuit Playground is jam-packed with LEDs, sensors, buttons, alligator clip pads and more. Build projects with Circuit Playground in a few minutes with the drag-and-drop MakeCode programming site, learn computer science using the CS Discoveries class on code.org, jump into CircuitPython to learn Python and hardware together, TinyGO, or even use the Arduino IDE. Circuit Playground Express is the newest and best Circuit Playground board, with support for CircuitPython, MakeCode, and Arduino. It has a powerful processor, 10 NeoPixels, mini speaker, InfraRed receive and transmit, two buttons, a switch, 14 alligator clip pads, and lots of sensors: capacitive touch, IR proximity, temperature, light, motion and sound. A whole wide world of electronics and coding is waiting for you, and it fits in the palm of your hand.
Have an amazing project to share? The Electronics Show and Tell is every Wednesday at 7pm ET! To join, head over to YouTube and check out the show’s live chat – we’ll post the link there.
