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The Cabin >> Raspberry and Other Pies >> R Pi:0 w/Camera - Review II.
http://www.hondosackett.com/yabb/YaBB.pl?num=1466530263

Message started by Fernando on Jun 21^st, 2016, 1:31pm

Title: R Pi:0 w/Camera - Review II.
Post by Fernando on Jun 21^st, 2016, 1:31pm

As stated in the previous R Pi:0 review, its a mostly positive review for the R Pi:0. The thing was, many people complained that it did not have the Camera Port that the other R Pi models have. But was it possible to keep the R Pi at the $5 price with an added Camera Port?

The answer is yes. The Camera Port was already in the the SoC (System on Chip) CPU of the R Pi:0 System. It just that the wires were not pulled out and put into a port. Though the Raspberry Pi Foundation claims that they are still making the older R Pi:0 without the camera port, they will eventually stop making them when they run out of original R Pi:0 Boards.

The Premise of the R Pi:0 is that when you buy one, you are paying for 2 at that low price of $5, the second one is going to a school in some poor community or under develop nation. But so many people are buying them at the $5 and then putting them on Ebay for 4X - 10X the price! This second unit I bought, I got from ebay for $15, which considering, it not a bad price. But it is still only the system board. A case for it will go for about $5 and then you need the micro cable adapters for it and that is another $15 (you can get them at tinkersphere.com for less however).

Furthermore, the price of the R-Pi Model A's are going through the roof as far as price is concerned. I found one for about $13 for the older Model A, but they want $10 shipping for it! The R Pi Model A+ goes for around $30, but I have seen them at $45 and $75 on ebay! Damn! The R Pi:0 is a stripped down version of the R Pi Model A+ as it is missing various ports (composite video, audio, LCD and the Camera ports on the older units), and the GPIO is there without the header so you need to solder in one of your own. Like the GPIO, the ports are there, you need to solder them in yourself. The HDMI does have audio out on it. But that Camera Port looks flimsy and delicate.

Another thing I noticed is that they are using that push-in friction SD Card Port and not the spring loaded one. They are using this friction one on the R Pi:3 and newer versions of the R Pi:2; but the older R Pi:2, Model B+ and Model A+ use the spring loaded one. The Friction SD Card port is like the ones used on the older Model A & B, with the same problem - the SD Card can come out if something snags onto it and pulls on it. It is a major negative for robotics if you do not cover it.

My only Beef on the R Pi:0 w/Camera Port is that the Camera Port is flimsy. It is the same type of port I find on some laptop keyboard connectors that break when you pop it to remove the cable to work on the machine. It is not like the Other units which have a stronger port. Otherwise it is the same as the any other R Pi:0.

$15 R Pi:0 on ebay (looks like the last one): http://www.ebay.com/itm/Raspberry-Pi-Zero-Camera-Version-/222158875043

$17 R Pi:0 on ebay (buy 5, get one free): http://www.ebay.com/itm/Raspberry-Pi-Zero-Camera-Version-/222140399472

$13 R Pi Model A on ebay ($10 shipping though!): http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-Raspberry-Pi-Model-A-/331878533147

Title: Re: R Pi:0 w/Camera - Review II.
Post by Hondo I. Sackett on Jun 21^st, 2016, 8:16pm

Nice. That does add some functionality to it. Be interested to hear how it rates after it's on the market for a few months

Title: Re: R Pi:0 w/Camera - Review II.
Post by Fernando on Jun 21^st, 2016, 10:23pm

Like the older unit, it is sold out in many areas.