The Cambridge team behind Britain’s best-selling personal computer, the tiny Raspberry Pi, has launched a new keyboard-based PC inspired by 1980s home computers.
The Raspberry Pi 400 features a single chip computer inside a keyboard, reminiscent of classic computer designs such as the Commodore and the BBC Micro.
These older computers were made up of a single keyboard with the computer chip built in. These have since been superseded by tower PCs and laptops.
However, Raspberry Pi is hoping they could make a return, launching a $70 (£54) keyboard that features a computer chip inside. The Raspberry Pi 400 can be hooked up to a mouse, screen and other add-ons. Users can also buy £95 kit that comes with a mouse and cables.
The launch aims to build on the success of the original Raspberry Pi, a single board computer launched in 2012.
The keyboard can be hooked up to a screen or mouse to act as a PC
Credit: Raspberry Pi
These credit card sized computers were launched by the Raspberry Pi Foundation, a UK charity that promotes the study of basic computing in schools.
It launched the cheap micro computers as a way of getting more PCs into schools and homes to encourage young people to code.
The simple gadget, which is manufactured in Wales as well as in Japan and China, became an unlikely hit, selling more than 30 million modules and becoming Britain’s best selling computer of all time.
Last year, Raspberry Pi opened its first shop in Cambridge to sell its computers and associated gadgets.
The Raspberry Pi 400 runs on an Arm processor and has 3 USB slots and a MicroSD slot. The computers run on Raspberry Pi OS, based on Linux. There is no current version of Microsoft Windows for Raspberry Pi.
Eben Upton, chief executive of Raspberry Pi, said the new computer was inspired by the “classic PCs” of the 1980s.
He said: “Classic home computers – BBC Micros, ZX Spectrums, Commodore Amigas, and the rest – integrated the motherboard directly into the keyboard. We’ve never been shy about borrowing a good idea.”
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