I liked your review for the most part. What you failed to substantiate here is why and how the performance is affected by the 4GB RAM difference. While I have 25+ years of experience with hardware and software and know the why and how, most people don't. I guess the problem with failing to make a point is that many dislikes came from people who know how to keep their PCs under control. Once you know how to care for your hardware, it becomes second nature and you no longer see RAM limitation as too much of a problem because you're on top of it. I even do virtualization on my old 4GB-limited laptop, and my 2GB Pi4 successfully runs a Minetest server with plenty of RAM left. Also wrong was the assumption that the Raspberry Pi Foundation stuck with 4GB for wrong reasons. They always aim for affordable computing and any less than 4GB of RAM would've been a failure. But with the Raspberry Pi OS requiring merely 130MB of RAM for its GUI, there's a lot left for the users, and 8GB added more to the price tag, something that they weren't happy about because their main goal is enabling technology education. This leads to the third wrong thing here - comparing the Pi 400 with a Chromebook based on price. The Pis being meant mainly for education, they're far ahead of everyone for their price. The hardware and software are more open, better supported and tinkerer-friendly than anything else. The Pinebook Pro is also interesting but 3-4 times more expensive, with English-only keyboard layouts, not GPIO, etc. It's also comes with a cheap LCD which they even warn the users about that it might have dead pixels and if they can't accept that, they shouldn't order. Where you're right about is how this PC was advertised as a desktop PC, which clearly sets some expectations. And not only Linux is new to most people, but 4GB of RAM is also barely manageable for many because most people are not resource-conscious. So they end up misusing hardware simply because they're not aware of their limitations and then blame the manufacturer instead of trying to learn how to keep their technology under control. So your conclusion was based on just words, instead of demonstrating it, which would've been more useful.
Lol just noticed it wasn't only me, like hundreds of people are all bitching about how much they wanna touch the Pi4 in the secret area :D woww backlashhhhh :D HillPhantom dude I will add, now I have watched some of your other vids I am gonna subscribe. I mean you must be mad you didn't love the Pi4, but hey you're allowed to think stuff I like is shit!!! Hahah. Anyway happy holidas dude!
What most people forget is that Raspberry Pis are made for education or embedded use and not as a replacement for a PC. This means that most people have expectations that exceed what the hardware is intended for.
Not true they have the technology to have this thing emulate the ps2 but choose not to. I hope ppl vote with their wallet and hold off from buying this. This thing could have been a lot better. Because it’s not it deserves to fail.
@@Reactivate100 The Rasberry Pi is targeting a niche market. Mainly for education and low-cost DIY projects. Just because they can, does not mean that they should. Obviously, the Rasberry Pi is not trying to be the most powerful single board emulation computer out there. As that will increase the cost and alienate their target market.
I had pong, atari 2600, vic 20, c16, c64, c128, ti99, etc. but in the mid 1980s the Amiga 1000 design became my ideal desktop computing form factor until flat panels I could mount all over my walls came out... If you don't want wires running everywhere to drives and monitors and mice and such, however, I think the Psion Revo Plus is my favorite form factor, unfolding from pocket size to reveal keys just large enough for touch typing and a screen at just the right angle for data entry...
I'm also fom the C64 gen. While I still have fond memories of that machine, having a keyboard with a bunch of cables tying you to one spot iss just a no-go. I,m replying to you on a pi desktop, but I'm free to move about due to the mini wifi keyboard
Just a thought but maybe the idea behind this design is to attract hobbyists and deter the "daily driver" mainstream. When I saw the Pi 400, I saw a 21st century ZX-80 and the chance to be part of a coding revolution while it's happening instead of wondering what it was like 40 years ago. The bare board and whatever keyboard and mouse you have lying around didn't do it for me but a complete package with everything you need to get going is something I can get behind. I can't see anyone with no interest in computers beyond web browsing having much time for (or even awareness of) a product like this and I am eternally grateful to the Raspberry Pi Foundation for that.
I see it as a move to make it less intimidating, and I think with kids learning code in schools and not afraid of a command line again, a cheap daily driver will appeal to greater than just us geeks and nerds and in my bubble already have... But again just my take. I think pis are more and more being used in this way as compared to past.
I saw it and thought it'd be hard for my cat to fuck it up with how few cords it has. He's knocked my tower pc over like 5 times this year and somehow it isn't broken yet.
Yeah true, definitely needs a headphone jack and 8GB of RAM. And at $70-100 I’d definitely expect to see a 1 TB SSD hard drive, GeForce RTX 3080 and an i9 processor. Cheap skates.
Oh dear. I bought one. And it's absolutely fantastic. But then, I never really take any advice from any RUclips content. I happen to know 99.99% of RUclips is rubbish and fake and trash. Bang for buck, it is the best of it's class. What makes it the best is the support Raspberry gives for this product. Trust me, stock up on these because unopened boxed versions are going to sell for a fortune one day. Pick them up for £110 now, about 100 of them. In forty years you'll be selling them for £20,000 a unit. Many people are collecting Raspberry Pi computers. Rare colours and first editions. Going to be HUGE as an investment product. Pay particular attention at the breadboard colours. Usual colour is green but they produce limited runs of blue and red. Snap them up fast.
Well good thing I not a RUclipsr. If I was I would be getting paid, sponsored, free ish, but Im not, just sharing my thoughts. Not mad at anyone who feels differently or loves it, just not good for my needs and I still feel they shorted us a bit with it. But TY for watching mate and, cool take on it being a "collectable" ....
I highly recommend this product despite what this reviewer says. It must come down to a use case scenario. I bought one and absolutely love it. I can't imagine using more than 4gb on a raspberry pi. I also have no issues streaming videos on it. Not sure why he has issues. Maybe my internet is better. As far as a battery you can use any USB C battery bank if you want to run it on a battery. I just plug it in to a cell phone charger, so power is always available and not an issue. However, a battery bank works great if needed. It is $70 for just the keyboard and if you figure the cost of the keyboard and a Raspberry Pi 4gb model then it is a great value. Bottom line is just buy it. You won't regret it. It is a great product for what it is. If you want to hook up a camera or an official raspberry pi screen to it than buy a regular raspberry pi.
As someone who has used and owned many raspberry pis (since the pi b revision 2) I find it difficult to use more than 2 gigs of RAM, much less 4, or 8. Back in late March of this year my desktop computer died. I ended up temporarily using a 2 gig pi 4 for the rest of the school semester. Never did I even come close to using up all of the RAM; even with several chrome tabs, word documents, and microsoft teams all running over two monitors did I even use 1 gig of RAM or have any other problems whatsoever. I did however overclock the CPU to 2.1GHz as to keep acceptable levels of performance. Coming from using pis with only 512Mb or 1 gig of RAM to this; it is really hard for me to complain about not having 8 gigs on board. The likelihood of anyone using 4 gigs of RAM or more is slim on a machine like this (except in fringe cases). On the portability note I don't think that this machine was designed to be completely portable. I believe it was designed to clear up desk space for people who use these as learning tools or as desktop replacements. There really isn't a need for a battery on this machine. As for the camera connector, I don't really see a need for that on a machine like this. A simple USB camera should fit the needs of anyone using this. The touch display connector isn't really needed either as this does not seem to be designed as a portable. If you really need a touchscreen display there are many designed to interface with the pi over GPIO. As for the 3.5mm jack I have no idea as to why that isn't included. Most displays (at least the ones I use) don't have integrated speakers so audio over HDMI is not possible. As for the streaming issue brought up, RAM amount makes little to no difference in streaming quality. For best results when streaming don't use WIFI. Instead, use a wired connection through the ethernet port. Some other differences that could pop up in the different models can be from using a 32bit os on one pi and a 64bit os on the other. Sorry for the long post. I just figured I would give my 2 cents based on some of my experience with pi's.
The 4GB RAM has not been an issue for me. Likewise, video play back is OK for me too, I limit it to 720P and that is fine for my crappy TV monitor. I would like the audio jack, so I use the audio jack on my TV. Works well, again I don’t care that much about audio quality either. I am using my RP400 for 3D printer stuff like TinkerCad and Cura. Seems fine for this sort of thing. I may 3D print a bottom shell to use as a Dock with additional USB ports and maybe an enclosure for an USB SSD. I like this model.
@@michaelherron362 I just ordered one as well. I want it for simple browsing, using my 42" TV and for Office Online, big spreadsheets. When you said 720 is fine for your crappy TV monitor, I thought, 720 is fine for my crappy 57 year old eyes
To solve two problems: for audio: consider a USB adapter. For battery/power: consider an external battery bank - the problem will be a monitor in that case - it starts to get to be a bit too many "parts" to carry around. As for power - especially video - I need to do some use-case testing. My 400 arrives Monday :) (also - I gave your video a "like" - because, while I'm not on the same page as you, I do appreciate you taking the time and your sincerity.)
Ty and absolutely right, check out my newest video where I mod it wit 3.5, battery, and 5v monitor via gpio power ruclips.net/video/C_WL91L3ueY/видео.html
I have already ordered one of these and it will be the first raspberry pi I've owned. I am pretty sure I'll be happy with my purchase because I'm curious about it and want to learn. With that said, I'm happy to see your contrasting opinion because most other videos I've seen are overly positive and some of your issues with it seem valid.
The main aim of the Raspberry Pi foundation is education. I expect that the idea behind these is similar to the idea behind the BBC micro in the 1980s, it's a small simple self contained system that you just add power and a monitor and you're up and running. For home users it doesn't have much use but in education they're great.
Totally agree, though I think the movement is towards more RAM and processing power. The fact it even has an OS lends itself to, and just my opinion, the home, and towards replacing expensive desktops. Yes the ethos and origin of the PI is edu, but most I know who use them, are outside of the world now. Ty for watcha and comment, I think the move towards this form factor, increased power, we will see ALOT more home use.
@@davidbarrett6434 oh its awesome! Its a small bluetooth / wired mechanical keyboard I love. Its called the Keychron K2 Bluetooth Mechanical Keyboard...it ROCKS!
I have the pi 400, overclocked to 2.1ghz. It runs cool and plays netflix and amazon movies nicely. For my tasks, it's a better performer than my standard pi 4 4gb.
You can actually stream without buffering or freezing or lag at 1080p with 4GB RAM instead of 8? Its the RAM that stops me from buying this to replace my Asus Chromebook.
I'm playing netflix now and I have cpu cores between 25%-40% and 537mb of memory in use. To play, I added widevine support for chromium, and enabled hardware acceleration for video. This allows the pi GPU to work as it should. It's a great little device.
Since the base frequency is 1.8 GHz, you can overclock the 400 to 2.2 GHz without losing the warranty. And you can overclock the GPU to 750 MHz and all that passively cooled. For that to work on any Pi 4 you'd need an ice tower or a metal alloy case (like the Argo One) and you'd void the warranty! BTW: as long as you don't use a 64-bit OS, there is almost no benefit to having more than 4 GB RAM, 'cause at 32 bit no process can use more than 4GB anyway. So remind me again, how does RUclips streaming or a zoom meeting get any faster with 8GB RAM? If 4GB aren't enough for these tasks, I'd suggest you stick to less than 100 open Chrome Tabs 😜
I do not understand the massive number of downvotes. I suppose RasPi has fanboys just like Apple does. Your criticisms are fair, especially regarding the RAM. As RasPi becomes a more mainstream product with massively more powerful processors and graphics capabilities, the memory limit is a major problem (why can't they just put a SO-DIMM slot in there?!) and the lack of audio ports is a major pain. The battery thing seems less useful since there's no screen and it's clearly not meant to be a laptop at all; if you can power a monitor, you can power the 400.
TY! Meh I am learning I should have just keept to my own...lol...but heck, I guess my honestly is not wanted or needed by most. I really was not hating on it, just saying I expected more...ouch..how dare I...lol...TY so much for watching! And the great points above!
@@HillPhantom The truth is that it's the videos that spark controversial responses that will get you noticed, so don't be afraid to put some relatively strong opinions out there. Your perspective differs from theirs; that's just how it goes, and a lot of people automatically spam the downvote button for it. I think you're suffering from the same thing my Z Cam E1 review video did. Your "haters," if you will, are not downvoting and comment-slamming you because you're wrong; they're doing it because *they've probably already bought one and they're looking for videos that make them feel good about their investment.* I put a lot of effort into my Z Cam E1 review. I got the same sort of response you're getting, though rather than being hit with "you're a cheapskate" or "you just don't understand the target market" like you, I got idiots spamming me with "this is for pros, you're just not skilled enough to appreciate it." Some even just whined that the visual complaint about the power adapter part at the start was a sign of my ignorance! It took me months to realize what was really happening. I didn't understand why so many people were angry about my negative review, but the common thread across all of them seemed to be that the "haters" either outright stated that they had bought one or they wrote like they probably owned one or were already firmly of the opinion that they intended to buy one no matter what. People don't like to feel stupid. Your review mentions a lot of fundamental features that are missing, some of which are kind of important and were present even on the original Pi B, and I have no doubt that you mentioning e.g. "no headphone jack" upset some people who bought one and are eagerly waiting on its arrival as they watch your review, only to realize that you're right and that they didn't buy quite what they'd imagined in their head. Why not take it out on you, then? After all, they were ignorant before you pointed it out, so surely you're the bad person here, not the guy who didn't look at the spec sheet before handing over a bunch of cash!
@@HillPhantom By the way, your video is pretty dark and low-contrast. What did you shoot on? What picture profile did you use? Are you modifying the picture profile in any way? Did you do any color correction in post? Do you want any suggestions or help to improve it?
@@JodyBruchon I am a novice, I have a few cameras, try to color correct but I am failing lol. Ty for letting me know and I would value any and all help!
@@HillPhantom OK, here's the short version. Lock everything on the camera using manual/M mode. Shutter speed, aperture/iris, and ISO/gain control your exposure. Also, lock your white balance to a setting that seems to look okay, possibly using the custom white balance feature if the stock options don't work well. Don't leave any of these unlocked unless you absolutely require the camera to automatically change exposure without your input, because you'll have a very hard time "correcting" anything in post if the camera is changing stuff all the time. Lock your focus if the subject won't be moving closer or farther away in the frame; only leave auto-focus on if you need it, otherwise you will suffer from "focus winks" and even some focus misses that can't be fixed in post and will force a re-shoot. Don't shoot "flat." Use your camera's Standard, Neutral, or Faithful picture profile (different makers have different names, just use whatever is "standard") and don't tweak the contrast/brightness/saturation in the profile; set them to whatever the default is (usually just 0) BUT if you have a Panasonic camera and the picture profile has a noise reduction option, TURN THAT ALL THE WAY DOWN (-5 on my Panasonic G7, -2 on my Panasonic LX7). I have multiple videos on my channel about not shooting flat and about why image noise is a good thing because noise = fine detail. Expose to the right. If your camera has the ability to show you a histogram, turn it on. The left is black/underexposed, the right is white/overexposed, and the height of the lines shows you how much of the image falls into that particular level of luminance. "Expose to the right" is a technique where you lock your camera's settings (shutter speed, aperture/iris, ISO/gain) and then tweak the image exposure until the histogram is touching the right-hand side but NOT causing a big spike over there. If the image is too dark (e.g. you have a bright light source in the background, as you do with those windows), you'll need to just let those blow out (overexpose) and spike on the right side of the histogram, but don't expose so far that the dark areas start pulling too far away from the left side either. If the darkest areas are unimportant, let them get crushed to solid black. In any case, you want the image to look close to your desired final product on the camera's screen; the histogram just tells you how badly you're crushing things in high-contrast scenes and helps you balance that for later correction. It's a learning curve, but it's worth it. If you use Premiere, use the Lumetri Color effect. Everything you need is under the basic corrections. If the image looks washed out (as yours does in this entire video) then turn up contrast. If it's underexposed (as yours seems to be) then use the exposure control to turn up overall image exposure. Try tweaking the shadows and highlights controls to see if they help. Sometimes you'll need to change the blacks and whites (which is like shadows and highlights but much stronger/harsher) to balance things out. You can use the color dropper above the temperature and tint to pick a supposed-to-be-white spot and have Lumetri automatically fix the white balance for you, then you can tweak those controls to fine-tune the color you're going for. It takes about 15 minutes of playing with Lumetri Color's basic corrections to get a rough idea of what you can do. Other editors (FCPX, DaVinci Resolve, Hitfilm Pro, Sony Vegas, etc.) all have something comparable to Lumetri Color.
nothing against you dude but these raspberry pi's are for one purpose, Education and learning to code. You coming at this for all the wrong reasons my guy.
I use Pis for many things, IOT, to survallance, servers, Docker, sensors, Pandora headless streamer, list goes on to include Desktop Replacement with pi4 8gb. I posted another video where I made mods to the 400 to achieve that goal, I hope u will watch that one.
My biggest complaint on it is definitely with them sticking to the mini HDMI ports. They said they needed it for the pi 4 boards to get dual outputs out without changing the size, which is fine whatever, but with the pi 400 they literally made a brand new board layout to put in the keyboard shell. So why did they not swap back to dual HDMI if the size constraint they dealt with in the regular format no longer applied here? It's a lot easier to get HDMI cords than it is to get mini HDMI on 1 side, or deal with a dongle if the goal with this is being accessible. I love the idea of the Pi 400 and might get one eventually if they ever come back in stock but that part of its specs irked me abit.
It is easy to forget the initial target and mission goal is classroom education. I plan on getting one for my niece so she has something of her own in addition to whatever her school loans out, and I also want to grab one to tinker with and have as a backup device. However I walk in knowing full well that some concessions need to be made and expectations trimmed especially when it comes to web use. For me this isn't an issue as I would be walking in eyes open. For someone going on at how cheap it is as a computer? Disappointment and anger would set in. I feel schools would benefit because it is a sealed unit. Have a few sd cards at the front desk in case a student boris their install. Take the keyboards up at the end of the day to lock away. For that purpose it is good. For normal people use or geeks hyping themselves up? It will be a letdown, and I don't want people to see this as a thing that can't do the thing. Instead look at it from the perspective of working within the limits it imposes.
Aa a former HS tech ed teacher I know the mission well. I think the issue comes on with people popping around terms like desktop replacement, of which I stand firm, and no where near angry, that the 400 is NOT that, though confusing bc the form factor suggests it. Is the Pi 8gb a desktop replacement even w.o. over clocking, heck yes, would the 400 be with 8GB, heck yes, but it's not. You HAVE to overclock it....and just letting folks know may void warranty as a heads up I'd you force turbo. If I gave this to any of my kids, the very first thing would be an attempt to stream and the following, where is my Chromebook. I get it, mission of old, like it or not, is creeping, and should, into daily driver territory. Saying Pi is regulated to only edu and to expect it to stay there, is to say AmZ is just an online shop. I'm not angry, just informing folks that while it looks like it could replace a desktop it can't, but I suspect will in version 2. My only mission was to be honest and let those who may not know, know before they buy. Sorry not sorry, most hate, and that's certainly fine by me.
@@HillPhantom Hey man I absolutely get you. Personally I am completely I'm agreement that bumping the ram up to right gig and overclocking if not actually getting a nativly higher base clock would fix the shortcomings. Wonder how long before we see octocore on a pi variant, given I remember reading that the pi 4 line would be the last to use this chip family. I am hyped. I like this thing. However I am also glad there is someone pointing out it could still be a lot better especially when marketing to people who want a minimal hasle setup. I do love the fact the full kit comes with a rather nice looking manual.
@@singletona082 ty man! I like it too esp overclocked with minimal heat. I will learn from this I need to point out that I do like it and I like you am excited to see gen 2. Ty for your honesty as well!!!!
They were aiming for a set price point I guess, and maybe trying to see what the take up would be to assess if further models would be worth producing. It obviously wasn't designed primarily as a portable device, so why would they need the connection to the official Pi screen when it has HDMI output or a battery when you can hook up a power bank via USB-C? Maybe a camera connection would make sense for web conferencing usage. Also, could it be that research found the 3.5mm jack wasn't used enough, so if something had to go, that was on the list? If the Pi 400 had come in over £70, that would undoubtedly have been another gripe. It works for the market it's aimed at, and for the tinkerers there's the standard 8Gb board only option. Can't decide if it's worth me buying one yet, as I'd probably like an 8Gb version too, just so it's the top end spec equivalent of the current edition.
@@stephenvalente3296 do not disagree, nor do I disagree with waiting for version 2 that will have, I suspect, some of the things I am asking for.....If I had a choice, it would be a Pi4 8 GB, but again, I do use Pi's as desktop replacements amoungst other things....for me, most of my embedded projects are done on smaller devices, low power. Most of my apps are in docker or cloud, most of my computing is passed upward, and not even local, I just like Pi;s as small, quite, desktops personally :). TY for watching cheers!
Not sure why this has so many downvotes. Honest opinions are why we seek online reviews. I saw in some other reviews a significant improvement of read/write speed when upgrading to a better SD card or an SSD via USB 3.0. I really wanted to get this to use as an emulation/media station machine, but now not so sure. Have you tried using it with better storage? Any noticeable difference in performance?
They you very much Artur, I really am not trying to bash anything and I too think it ok to share honest reviews, so TY very much. I will try my SSD when I get home for sure and let you know if I see any improvements. Thank you again!
I'm using a Pi3 and Pi4 now. Having used both systems, I can't see what could be worse about this particular system than earlier generations. The general consensus is that this machine is a capable little toy and a throwback to the 1980's computer/keyboard pair. It's more than adequate for video and programming, and I'll admit web-browsing with it can be a little painful, but that's the fault of the most bloated, incomprehensible pile of crap software ever made - the web-browser. So, without really knowing, I suspect that most people believe this guy gave this a thumbs down, just to generate some hits on the video rather than coming to an honest conclusion because his opinion is an outlier and I would guess this is why the reviewer is getting down-votes. For me, this is an interesting little machine, but the honest truth is - I have no desire to own one. It's a novelty, but I have a beast of a computer, and I have x2go setup on my pis. It's a neat little machine, but it's really a waste for me to have one when, essentially, I already have one, just not in this form factor.
It's an option, its not meant to be an all in 1 and replacement for other pi's, its just a neat small ready to go option and it manages that quite well with slightly less clutter than building up your own with your own parts. the lack of 8gb barely seems an issue, not much even uses that much. I have so far managed to turn 1 into a nice easy OBS music streaming box for youtube, it manages this well and i can leave it sitting around on a table somewhere out of the way and i can check up on it now and then, all i want now is a more convenient GPIO display, the ones on offer plug direct to the other pi boards and look nice and tidy, would need an angled connection to look more tidy on the PI400, but i could diy that if desperate.
Concerning the 3.5 issue, most flat screen TVs have that port. So you can just plug your headphones into that, plus you might get more volume than the usual 3.5 phono jack on laptops, or use a pair of headphones that connect to a USB port which would also allow you to use a mic, unless this isn't supported on the Raspberry Pi 400.
Picked one up recently, as a retro gaming rig, and im super happy with it. I love to tinker and not having to connect a keyboard every time i go to the console is super sweet. If your looking for a Desktop replacement the low amount of RAM really is a dealbreaker, but for the purpose of turning it into an Amiga or RetroPie this is as good as it gets. ...as long as you dont mind having a mini-keyboard on your living room table that is. It runs the CPU at 2.2GHz and GPU at 750MHz without the need to void your warranty while staying well below 60°C, which was always problematic with the "regular" pi4. All in all, i too wish they would offer a 8 gig model, but for my usecase 4 gigs are plenty. As your "does it all retro computer" this thing is perfect.
Don't understand why there's so many dislikes in this video. Niche target group knows what it is, but for others these are good "warnings". I know what it is, I might even get one for myself, but I still liked this video as it's good information for many.
Spot on. There is absolutely zero reason for the pi 400 to not launch with the option of 8gb. They did it on the 4B just when people had already bought the 4GB model, it should have been there on the 400 from day 1, no excuse. As for the people that talk about education and programming, a chromebook will cost a slight more and work much better for educational purposes like you said. It will also have a battery, a decent screen AND a camera and will support optimized software. Even a refurbished mini desktop will do everything the pi 400 does 100x better for a slightly higher price, will have better thermals, will be able to run most OS and support hardware acceleration for media consumption (which is btw a source of learning, especially with the lockdowns) and will be less restricted to software options. Everything up to the 4B was a success because it offered variance and this is what the Pi's strong point has always been. You could do robotics (no way with the 400), you could build projects (extremely limited options with the 400's form factor), experiment with IoT and mobile hacking concepts and of course do everything else the Pi 400 can do. Maybe Windows on ARM change that but still 4GB of RAM is a no no if they aim for a Desktop experience.
Omg I can not believe with all the hate there is at least one person not afraid to challenge. Could not agree more and thank you, honesty seems to be a bad word in the Pi Fanboy world. Ty so much for watching and commenting!
@@HillPhantom Hey man, I appreciate it. I really don't get the hate and dislikes. The thing many people should understand is that this type of honesty comes from a community that don't just love the Pi but want this to become even bigger that it already is, not bash on it. It is ok that this model exists but it is unclear who it is ment for and should be pointed out so that the next generations move to the proper direction. E.g. it would be cool if this had built in speakers even at a slightly higher cost to minimize the required peripherals. Or an option for 8GB if someone is willing to pay the extra. I get the people that feel nostalgic but this is where the line is drawn for me (and pretty sure most enthousiasts or power users). This review is exactly how I felt when comparing the 400 to the 4B or even the Pi Zero. If it wants to be a Desktop then it should be reviewed as a Desktop.
@@johnmemos695 well said. I just worry the are appleing us. I am sure you know those stories. They had engineers build the iphone. Jobs said good now take away x,y,z so we can sell them 10 versions. That's my worry and even more so that the fan boys eat it up without question. I love Pi, I love the foundation but I'm not one to blindly be ok just because it's my beloved pi.
@@HillPhantom Hope this is not the case and it was more of a power efficiency issue. However I don't see why they couldn't offer an 8gb version when it was already implemented on the 4B. Time will tell. This could prove to be a good device but still needs adjustments to recommend (nostalgia aside). Still waiting for hardware acceleration on browsers and maybe an on-screen keyboard that appears/disappears automaticly on touch screen configurations.
Where I think it fits in is that the retro community has been wanting something of the feel of the 8-bit days. This Pi fits that mold. That's why I am wanting to purchase it soon. Thanks for the excellent and honest review.
With this Pi, you always have to be within the length of the cable from your monitor/tv . You could hook up a bluetooth keyboard, but that would defeat the purpose of the pi 400. So for people who will use the pi as a media streamer, or just simply use a TV for the pi, having that keyboard doesn't offer any advantage since you will still be required to plug in a bluetooth keyboard. Also I don't understand why they couldn't fit 2 full size hdmi ports since they already redesigned the board. For now, I think the Pi 4 is the better buy since the pi 400 offers no significant advantage.
I think it is really about intended use. The 400 is for a use that involves sitting at a desk with a monitor. If you want to make a TV box, then the pi 4 makes more sense since you can just install it and connect up a remote.
I've daily drove a Pi 400 for 2 years on Chromium OS, and it's been perfect, but today I'm finally upgrading to a Windows desktop. I'm still using the Pi, even with a new desktop, for general non-gaming tasks, and it can stream everything smoothly up to 1080p, even RUclips, with no overclock. I chose to buy this and a 1080p monitor over buying a Chromebook, and I have zero regrets. Most of what you said in the video is true tho.
Ultimately these guys deserve my money way more than microsoft, apple, sony and nintendo ever do. The Raspi foundation do good shit and dont treat their consumers like cattle.
Do not disagree, I love Pi and foundation...I just think it was a bit of a dig not to give us 8gb...but my respect and love is strong for the foundation...but that does not blind me to ignore shortfalls on a launch.
If I'm watching media, I'm not doing it on a computer. It's really not intended to be a desktop replacement... and it's only $100. The whole point is to more easily introduce people to coding and automation without having to build a machine. If I wanted something portable to "replicate" my desktop experience, I'd use a tablet or a laptop. You can always use RetroPie with it, also.
Most people dont use these devices as desktop replacements. They are used for automation and light coding etc. I use mine for Home Assistant and its perfect as I can leave it on my desk and update or trouble shoot as needed.
Agree, I use mine in the same way, I have one for automation, one for fileshare/NAS, and one with PLEX, I love Pi's, but do to that love, I also use it alot as a slim desktop replacement. Thansk for the watch.
Thanks for the review, It's good to point out to some that expect this to compete with a desktop PC that it won't meet their expectations. I ordered this to learn to use the pi, not to use as a media system or a desktop replacement. It's an educational tool.
Great use case, and if you do get the gumption to try it as a desktop replacement just overclock it and you should be happy. But yes I still use it in many, many other ways, this is just one way, and after some mods and an an overclock it ROCKS.
When the Pi 4 came out, I saw some videos saying that the Pi foundation has left its roots as a learning platform and has turned into a platform geared more to having features a business be attracted to. What you see as shortcomings could actually be considered as a step in returning to its roots.
I am getting the feeling that you may not be the target audience for this machine. I've had mine a few weeks now and it is performing very well. Word processing, spreadsheets, email, videos, programming, everything. Like so many people who have bought this, they may too be upgrading from their ageing ZX81 ('Timex Sinclair 1000' in the USA)... and at the same price point we paid nearly 40 years ago! And as for any criticism on RAM, an upgrade from just 1k to 4Gb should be plenty for anyone!! Plus, with that much memory, we no longer need a wobbly RAM pack on the back user port;-) A headphone port would be nice, but audio comes out the HDMI. The actual keyboard is a pleasure to type on too, no membranes here. This product is aimed at teaching young (and old) computing at grass roots level and does that very well, but also performs pretty we all a desktop machine. OK, not as fast as my MacBook Pro, but I don't expect that for £70/$70, nor did I expect it to replace it..
I have over 12 pies in my house going various things, one of which replaced a desktop. Heck my entire home automation is run off pies...lol. But yea I know I'm breaking FanBoy protocol using it a hated DT replacement..how dare I.
This is going to sound stupid, but couldn’t an RPi dissipate more heat by lightly wadding up a little (solid or loose?) marble sized piece of aluminum foil and set it on top of the cpu heat sink in open-air? Or a cone or antenna like little light foil beanie? Or a Pringles can? Those might be near perfect if done well.
Could, but it would have to be a thick piece or like you said wadded up, or better yet folder to make layers. I do not see why with mass it would not work.
If found Kodi to handle video much better as well the Raspian. Have seen this since the zero even. I suspect it's a lower draw overall ..Kodi...on system.
I just wonder if the reviewer ever even used a raspberry pi 2 or 3. It's odd to me how offended he is that there isn't 8 gigs of ram. The hardware is already so advanced compared to the Pi 3. I personally like the 4gb ram so the price stays low. Otherwise I wouldn't buy it. The Pi is not a gaming, video editing workhorse. The strengths of the Pi are it's ability to exist everywhere as a computer. It can be embedded, used as a development platform, a teaching tool etc. I do embedded work every day and I still use a Pi 3 and I love it. Looking forward to picking one of these up.
Yup every model since launch in multiple projects, one for a commercial application. I'm just calling out the form factor as underpowered for a desktop. My 8gb will remain the DT replacement..version two of this I hope has least 8gb and a 3.5 for good sound.
Would it be ok for an Octoprint setup? that is all I'm interested in unless it won't work with a webcam and therefore will not be able to do time-lapse captures.
Appreciate the review man. Interesting observations. I have mine coming and am an owner of almost every other model. I have used a standard 4gb for a while and great for my needs. I imagine there will be a 8gb 400 sometime, they tend to release the extended memory version later. The only thing I would say is that the core mission of RPI is to tech kids programming, this is really a very good unit for that purpose and to have a less cluttered unit than the single boards in a classroom. I use mine for python dev, but have to swap to my ryzen machine if things are too intensive. So again I think it's easy for people like us to forget the machines original target audience. My biggest gripe is the simple ommision of an audio jack... Thanks for your review . Cheers
Ty for watching! Totally agree, I love Pi, the Foundation, and mission. I by no means want to come off like a hater, this was just odd choices to me. Trust me I am very appreciative to Pi I should have made sure I stated such. Ty again!
Don't believe the hype. I (only) recently upgraded the internal memory in my PC from 4 GB to 8 GB. I do not notice any difference. When I run a system monitor then I can see why: the extra memory is almost unused. This is because I use Linux, Windows is very RAM hungry. The Pi runs on Linux too so don't bother installing more than 4 GB of RAM on it. :) Want a faster Linux PC? Buy one w/ a fast processor. Believe it or not: Chrome and RUclips are the biggest CPU hogs nowadays. Games can be a CPU hog too. But games on Linux? Ha ha! There are none.
@@meneerjansen00 I disagree, when you get a chance look at benchmarks between a Raspberry Pi4 4 gb vs 8gb, especially when it comes to video performance. Stream on a 4gb vs 8gb pi and you will exactly what I am talking about.
@@HillPhantom Stream? You mean like playing a RUclips video? Or streaming in your house via your network a video from the hard disk of your PC to a Raspberry Pi 1B that's running Kodi? I do both every day. Every Pi can hardware decode AVC (aka h.264) and, if you pay a licence fee, MPeg2 (i.e. DVD's). As far as I know decoding video is a big burden on a CPU, not on the GPU or RAM. Unfortunately the Pi that I have won't decode h.265 (i.e HEVC) video. Maybe the newer Pi's do. However, I don't think that a 2 MHz processor (overclocked from 1.5 MHz) will benefit much form 8 GB of internal memory. But if you say that you can clearly see the difference between an 8 and a 4 GB Pi concerning video then I believe you. :)
@@meneerjansen00 stream video, RUclips, it drops frames pretty badly when NOT overclocked. I have all the flavors of Pi4 1 GB (no good for video) 4 GB (ok for video but not 1080 unless overclocked) and I have the 8GB that has zero frame drop on RUclips at 1080p using Chrome Media edition. Overall I love them all, even this gem, just need to over clock it. I look forward to the next version of the 400~ Thank for watching mate! Cheers!
The RUclips stutter is a software issue, not hardware. RUclips has disabled hardware acceleration on the Pi family. The GPU in the Pi 4 is capable of running TWO 4k videos simultaneously at 30fps or one 4k @ 60fps PLUS a 1080p source. It can run N64 & Playstation 1 games without stuttering and some Playstation 2 games with the limit beign the emulator software, not the GPU.
Loving my 400. I don’t stream video on it, (I have a phone for that) great for coding. I now have a second 400 which boots straight into Amiga Workbench, basically operating as a very high end Amiga with a huge (for it’s time) hard drive.
I think the form factor is brilliant, but yes they should have put the top specs into the form factor and allowed some expansions. you can always use a c-usb Battery pack to power it ?
I was just to click the "buy" button on Amazon. This is the ONLY video I've seen against buying the Pi 400...all you said makes sense to me. I will wait for the Pi 500. Thanks.
I agree about the fact it has half of the ram compared to the regular model, but a battery?!? You are still tethered to an external screen. Does that come with a battery?
Perhaps they should make an updated version of the 400, either adding an audio port, or integrating speakers in the keyboard, as well as having an 8GB option.
Sadly I think that is the point, Apple versioning us to death. Build a 4GB model so we can then sell a 8GB model later. The 400 was just a test market and cheaply made IMO, but still usefull just to me, a worriesome move by the foundation to take things they already have in PI4 away.....
I don't think the Pi is necessarily aimed at a desktop replacement for a 'media computer'. I don't know anyone that'd use a single pi (and i mean one pi by itself not 'never use ANY pi') to do any video work. Definitely a pi farm, but not a single pi. I think the real issue is having 2 4k outputs on the machine unnecessarily taxes the system and frankly for a machine like this isn't desirable. I don't know who would get an underpowered computer and then run two 4k monitors with it. It's like if I got a VW Beetle then decided I'm going to race in Nascar with it's stock engine. We already know how that's going to turn out. That said, the target audience I think for this 400 is the general programmer and not someone who is going to be net surfing all day. The main kit comes with the project book on programming and such, so clearly that's who they're targeting. 4GB Ram is more than enough for this kind of use.
Lets be fair, I have about 5 desktops in my house, only 1 can handle my video editing so to say video editing is a litmus of desktop computing, I would have to respectfully disagree. Heck even saying gaming is, we all know we need to build custom rigs to do video/gaming jobs. Now for everyday computing for an average user, I would argue a Pi4 8GB does the job very well (with chrome media edition) in order to suite most users desktop needs. I know the space of the Pi well, I have done 100's of projects with it, low energy, embeded, physical jobs, headless servers, kills it, but lets not deny this has an operating system, and the version prior to this Pi4 8GB is very capable of being a cheap desktop replacement for the masses. Maybe not its "goal" but then again, ONE of the Pi Foundations goal is to get affordable, or free computers, into the hands of cultures and peoples less fortunate them me/us, and unpopular as it may seem, I think they know that means we need a GUI, and OS, and we need it to eventually compete with desktops and phones. I support a movement towards a quite, low energy, cheap desktop replacement, and I do think they have achieved this, talk to folks who use them in places like Africa....
A 4gb Pi 4 B is $60 with no real heat sink. A 400 is $70 with quite good heat dissipation and a quite good built in KB. Overclocking is trivial. You add 2 or 3 lines to a txt file. Overclocking is stable and definitely improves performance without undue heating. A Pi4 8gb is buck short of $90. By the time you get it tricked out with KB and heat sink it's easily 1.5 -2x the cost of the 400. I use mine every day for general desktop computing and find no issues. It's easy to set up, can run off a usb drive, and you can run several flavors of linux. There are plenty of things to do with this computer.
Considering its for educational and basic coding. It looks perfect. I already have a phone, laptop, desktop and fire TV stick for streaming music and videos. I'm getting a Pi 400 for it's intended use, coding, simple games and DIY projects. Feels unfair to knock it for not handling Netflix since that's the last thing the designers meant it for. And a battery? It's not a laptop! So again, knocking out for something it's not meant to do. The PI 400 does everything it's designed to do very well. I can't wait to start using mine and also for my kids to be old enough to start learning coding using one.
I'll update this comment now, as PI OS now supports Netflix and Disney+ natively. So another tick there. I'm even playing GTA3 and Vice City on mine now natively. Both run well (but obviously not as fast as a PC).
Raspberry Pi 400 is a really good deal because first its a keyboard and like if you buy it and you don't have a keyboard well the computer is a keyboard and its pretty amazing, its like a laptop 's keyboard and for me its amazing because i can type way more faster, the keys are really soft, and you can type easier for me and its just amazing i really think that this is convenient like if you want to travel and take it some where with you, you can easily take it with you, but you cannot take normal and simple computer tower on the air plain and the ship to travel so its good 1. 2:21 - 2. 2:37 - 3. 1st if you go to google and search (y2mate.com) or (y1mate.com) you can download music and if you add on the computer the VLC player you can open your music from your files press the right button on the mouse and then if you try to open the music it will saying you open with VLC player 2. if you want to add a camera you have to find a camera with a cable as raspberry pi 400 because i have a camera and she is having a cable like raspberry's one and she work's correctly i wan't to say more think''s but then the comment is gonna be huge so that i have to say is that Raspberry Pi 400 is a really good computer an you can do a lot of think's and i know that you can do almost everything you just need to think about what you want and how you want to do. If you agree with me you can reply or like my comment. bye bye.
I think its s brilliant piece of kit for the money. Mine came secondhand from someone like our reviewer (he didnt like it) and I've already put Ubuntu MATE 64 on it. I ran it for an entire day on a single charge of a medium size USB C type battery pack. No problem at all.
@@HillPhantom My observation is that its a cost/marketing exercise.. The Pi 4 comes in 2, 4 and 8 Gb variants and the price ramps up from the 2 Gb to the 8 Gb whilst everything else on the SBC is identical..RAM is expensive. If they had pitched it as an 8Gb machine the price could have been prohibitive in its target market.
@@paulluce2557 I agree somewhat but instead of offering a kit and a stand alone it could have been a 4 and 8gb option. I think at bulk you may be supprised what the foundation can get RAM for....of course in humble opinion as that is waaaay above my pay grade lol. I don't disagree just more wonder, what if, and why not? My thought is so they can apple it, version 1,2, 3....I just felt they gave us 8 in 4 and not here was deliberate, but understand that may have been cost, but also get could also be a version slow roll too.
@@HillPhantom I think you are right in your observation that the standalone version could be binned and make the kit available in 4 and 8 Gb versions. I think we may see a development in that direction in the future. What I would really like to see, is the Foundation marketing a Pi laptop based on the 400. I have a Pi-Top (one of those bright green things) with a 3B+ in it. In concept it is quite good but the execution is not great in my humble opinion. I think that Pi 400 could be basis for a laptop based project development platform and it would be a good seller . In addition the support from the Pi Foundation would be infinitely better than the Pi-Top people are with their products.
@@HillPhantom Thank you Lucky today I had bought the hdmi-hdmi adapter so I could add 2 hdmi cables together to make any length I needed . Being that I am using a 55 inch 4k tv I really need a long one so I was able to make it about 4 meters long and it works good
Not good enough? Well now it’s your problem but in a good way! Make modifications to it, poke around in Linux, if it’s too slow you could always make your own OS😀, Install Pikiss for some fun and adding zRAM maybe that will work to make it faster? What about Twister OS? It’s got the modified Chromium for better video playback. Playing around with RISC OS at lightning speed and emulating an Amiga or Dreamcast with Retropie? Want audio? 0.99 for USB DAC. Build a robot. There’s so much fun to be had with it!
Oh yes I mention just overclocking helps greatly. Was just being honest as kids and those inexperienced looking at this may not be comfortable doing it. I also just wanted to be honest I prefer to stay on my 8gb ... But not unhappy, as I mention, if you have 20 pis like me this is great, if it's your first go with the 8 gb. Just trying to help folks but no good deed goes unpunished lol.
I think the reviewer missed the point of the device. It’s not meant to be a desktop PC replacement. It’s a tinkering device in a more approachable form factor. Perfect for educational use or beginning hobbyists of all ages. Highly recommended. Oh, and it plays RUclips in HD just fine, in case you need to watch some tutorials.
You can't connect a Camera? Does it not have USB? "It doesn't have a 3.5mm audio port" ..*looks at headset* usb.. *looks at the side of the monitor* 3.5mm audio out port.. "It doesn't have a battery and you can't connect a pi-screen"...soo... it's not a laptop? isn't there another product for that? Also, I have an old win7 laptop with 4gb ram, and it does everything well except for heavy multitasking and newer games. ..which you probably wouldn't want to do on a raspberry pi anyway? I'm confused.. What are the negatives again?
Sure, but not via a dedicated port, so you can NOT used the official raspberry pi cameras, which many of us prefer over a bulky USB camera. No monitor, no 3.5, but you could use, which I did a usb adaptor, bc as we know audio with PI through BT is no ideal. Also, correct does not support Official Pi screen. What's that product, as its not from Raspi Foundation. You don;t get it modern OS, and Windows vs Pi, not on same ballpark. I bet you dollars to donuts it has a dedicated graphic car on that lap top no? Negatives are above :).
4gb RAM is normally enough for daily usage, 8gb is good but with which price? I guess the foundation targets to making "cheap" and good product so only saving maybe decresing to ram size to optimum size. Edit: Maybe in the future there should be another edition something like raspberry pi 400 plus or extreme edition that including extra ram, battery even case for touch screen things. It might be so cool and practical.
Just a heads up, there has been an update to Raspberry Pi OS that enables hardware acceleration when using the browser. Literally just happened like yesterday. If you update your OS and reboot, your youtube playback will be 100% better.
I was about to order it. In fact I actually did but had glitch in running my CC. So when that happened I asked them to cancel my order instead of fixing the issue. The reason I canceled was because of the 3.5mm jack. If the sound is over hdmi and I have only a vga monitor, I would need an VGA to HDMI adapter that has an audio port. So I think I'll just get the 8g pi with a good case and cooler instead.
Ty for the watch, yes if I did not have the 8GB yet I would certainly be buying it over this machine. I looooooove my 8GB model I think you will be very happy.
I would say that you should not buy if you have the desire to use it for projects, whereas the small board of PI4 can be fir inside a vehicle, robot etc. When you should buy this? When you have a kid that you want to introduce to the world of programming. When you want to consume media without the need to power up the I7 Laptop. When you have a school that can be equipped easily with cheap computers like this. When you want all other uses of a raspberry (e.g. file server, VPN server etc) in a compact form, a box that contains both cpu and keyboard and avoid cluttering your desk.
Not intended to replace desktop at all, This is $70 working what can you compare it to? even at $99 with PSU and mouse it's still outstanding. It can , and will run off a power bank all it needs is 5 volts
It sounds like you may not understand why the raspberry pi was created and exists. It’s an educational tool, not a desktop replacement to take on the road.
No I fully get the box you all want to keep it in, just not a conformist to the fan boy party. Pis can be used for anything you want including in my case two desktop replacements. I know you all hate it but meh, it's the culture holding u all back
@@HillPhantom it’s not the box I want to keep it in, it’s what it was designed for. That’s like making a review of a toy space telescope and complaining it’s not suitable for NASA scientists. Maybe those toy makers just need to think outside the box. 😝
Idk I think the pi is for exploring, making, and using how ever you like...I think relagating it to only edu or to code would hurt the feelings of a pi..lol..cheers bud ty for watch, all good, to each their own :)
The keyboard would be sub quality for my taste too, but agree the biggest downers is no 8GB and now analog audio port. The one interesting thing I see is the way they accomplished their heat sink cooling and avoided a fan; when an 8GB model comes out the existing 400 owners are going to be very annoyed - those first gen 400s are going to end up collecting dust
Aha no, you'll be paying an extra 40 dollars for the upgraded specification that you won't even use 95% of the time to do anything meaningful other than trying to do the job of an x64 machine. It's the same retarded mentality that's resulted in the clusterfuck going on with GPU's and by extension the resource crisis, that has been plaguing development for the past two decades.
@@egg5474 to the extent that people try to use any model of Raspberry Pi as a desktop computer, they'll need all the memory that can be had. 8GB is at the bare minimum of usability per the desktop these days. Primary reason is the browser - which all of them have voracious appetite for devouring up memory. And that is by far the principal app that most people are running most of the time. Even a lot of "desktop" apps come packaged essentially as web apps per things like Electron. I don't like it, but it is what it is, as they say. The web and its protocols have made a hot mess of computing
And running raspberry pi os bullseye x64 is no problem with the 4gb ram provided, given you overclock correctly turn off compositing and for RUclips h264ify limit video to 30fps... Brilliant. Even runs plasma DE like a dream.
I have only issue is the 3.5mm jack but its okay as you can use ur monitor 3.5 mm which works fine... It is perfekt for me... I never expect huge performance from a single board computer.... They are made for education purposes....
Yea agree, though I have been using mi Pi4 8gb as a replacement since the launched. The fact it has an OS, the plug and play like features that seem to be coming out recently, I just don't want the fan boys to be in too much shock, when they start seeing them used as a replacement. Do not think the foundation does not want this, even if a happy bi product of its first mission . Ty for watching!
Great, honest review. We don't see enough reviews that are real. Every review I've seen if the reviewer doesn't like it They share the pros and cons. Say it's up to us to decide. You're the first reviewer I've seen who said don't buy it. I was about to buy it but I need to run Windows 10 on Pi400. I've seen tutorials on how to run 10 professional on ARM on Pi4. Requires Windows desktop pc which I don't have. Of course biggest issue for me is 4GB RAM. I don't think streaming in HD can be done without problems.
For anyone gonna commit hate crime, please dont. On second note majority of the points that this guy said is very valid. 1) why release a 4 GB model as a desktop variant when they do have a 8 GB in production, unless R Pi foundation wants to double dip on the consumer base. 2) cant they make a slot like those old laptop expansion cards, for adding battery (they can leave it to the 3rd party partners to develop battery packs as a expansion slot or some thing along those lines 3) Removing the DSI display port was within reason so there is no complain on that. 4) So is the 3.5 mm jack (HDMI do carry audio so that a pass) From my point of view the R Pi 400 is a solid product, but as this man says, you should probably hold your wallet on this... wait till they release a refresh variant of this, with 8 GB Memory
The memory limits lack of camera / LCD fit the lightweight task model for this unit. The Pi 400 is passively cooled. This limits the ability to push the processor without it throttling down hard. They chose to have audio handled outboard. It will be output by your monitor / TV or by a USB device. Everything is very basic. SD card booting means a better A1 class SD card will improve performance. Passive cooling means overclocking not advised. It is a viral device, like Barbie Doll or LEGO set for kids and adults. It does what it does, and opens the Pi universe to the user. It creates a beach head. Either additions are made to it, or larger traditional Pi systems replace it. In fact both things may happen. A Pi baed server could attach to Pi 400s on every desk or TV. Samba and Libeoffice makes it operate with Windows systems as a peer. Genius!
It can and will get better. I will say over clocking to me is a must and at 2.2 I'm getting less heat then my Pi 4s not even overclocked. Agree great start I guarantee in version 2 we see it move towards a desktop replacement, or at least that ability with no overclock needed.
Obviously this Pi is a not for you. Fine. What it is, it's designed to be a school computer for kids being home schooled during the COVID-19 pandemic! 100 EUR / $100 / £100 for the kit is a great deal! The 3.5 mm audio port on practically all iterations of the Pi was rubbish! A lot of noise! HDMI and Bluetooth are the ways to go.
I think they left out the touchscreen and camera ports because there was no way to connect to them without opening the case and voiding the warranty. The 3.5mm port was probably left out because people expect a headset connector and not a stereo-audio/composite-video connector on a computer nowadays. You can get a USB to headset connector or connect an A/V port to the GPIO port. I also miss the 8GB RAM instead of 4GB and didn't buy it, but if I need another 4GB Pi I will buy it.
You can get an official raspberry pi touchscreen monitor. You can choose from any number of power cells, you know, those things you charge your phones with? Doesn't everyone have a few of those around? You can get the hat or bonnet, that might solve the camera problem. I saw another video where someone said they used it to zoom, I didn't actually see them zoom but I find it hard to believe you can't attach a little camera.
I agree bro, the 3.5 going obsolete is so friggin' upsetting. I actually had a patent for a mobile phone privacy screen that locked in via the 3.5. It was epic and about halfway through my first production, Apple announced they removed the 3.5. lol. It's just money and time. No big! God is good.
I feel like an old man wanting it, I just reviewed the Wyze headphone, not to plug that, but it was refreshing to see they added in a 3.5 on their new wireless headphones. But then again, I kinda like the sound of records over square digitals..lol..
1. 3.5 jacks are available as a usb adapter. 2. Touch screens can be connected via GPIO. 3. If you need all that extra performance you can always pay 10 to 20 times as much.
Hmmm, well - I bought two of them fairly recently and it’s a year later from the date of this video - Um…..lol - they can’t keep these in stock!!! Speaking for US based perspective. In fact, can’t even get a zero 2 right now - I do have ALL the pi models some with batteries and screens, cameras etc. all of Mine runs excellent for what I need them for and the raspberry pi OS desktop on the pi400 does really well - not sure what your view point would be now -a year later. I absolutely love mine but there again, my needs may not match yours or my expectations may not the same as your expectations, or anyone else who is reading this post. Depends on what you intend to use it for. Mining for digital stuff may not be the ideal unit and if you want to play triple a games off steam then probably won’t do well either. These are specifically made for learning and tinkering. For me, it’s fine. I just wanted to learn python and simple Linux based programming. I’m Interested in creating simple games and programs like I did when macromedia flash was still around. Yeah, I’m that old. I like that it’s light weight and I can take it with me to any room of my house and there always a plug or portable battery that I can hook up to and my monitor is thin and lightweight as well - very easy setup - so, to me…it’s Worth the 100 usd. If you can find one now. As of may 20th 2022, They are Currently being scalped on eBay and Amazon and selling 150+ for the kit, price will continue to go up- same with all pi units including the dreaded pi 3 A+ which in my opinion is the worst of the rest of them. Lastly, I’ve dabbled with other SBC’s including the banana BMI zero M2 and it’s just a par below what the 2017 pi zero w can handle - even though it’s specs are way higher than the zero w. Lack of OS and development is to blame there. I still yet to try odroid UX4 or the le potato and a few others but like the pi’s themselves SBC’s in general are getting harder to find now. And if expectations are for simple learning and browsing, tinkering or for playing retro games then it’s not such a bad product after all, IMO.
I use a Rapsberry PI 4 with 4 gb RAM on a satellite internet connection (not supper fast and goes out any time it rains) as my main home computer and have a couple of years now with no complaints. I watch RUclips on it all the time and occasionally Amazon Prime. Sometimes I have problems with Prime. Trying to do video editing is pretty bad. Well, the editing part isn't bad but to actually create the final video takes a couple of hours for what takes a few minutes on a modern PC. I played through the Doom 3 demo and that was surprisingly decent. The reason I wouldn't by a Pi 400 is...you're kind of stuck with it. At least that's the way it seems. I could take my Pi4 motherboard and one day stick it in a robot or a 3D printed retro handheld gaming console or do a myriad of other things with it. But I don't see any easy was to do that with a Pi 400. Or maybe I'm missing something. There are a lot of other Pi "laptop" or "set top box" projects that fit the original pi form factor. If somebody didn't think 4 GB was enough on one of those projects, they could just buy and 8gb motherboard and keep moving.
No offence but you are asking for battery packs built in, more ram, more ports, but then you are paying a higher price. For its price point, I'd say it's about right. As for battery/portability i seen a video where a guy is running the pi400 and a portable touch screen on an external battery pack
None taken. I think a small lipo would not be much, bet we see it in v2. Take a look at my mod video, hooked up some peripherals and recent OS upgrade has me liking it.
@@HillPhantom Cool. Will check out your other vids. I guess with some tinkering can squeeze some good performance out of it. For me it's basically just an off-grid portable computer. As i will have access to solar power soon and can't be using high powered PCs just need something that works, has a small energy footprint, and size and i think the pi400 is perfect for those kinds of requirements.
@@RyanX1899 yea I am thinking I have to review my stance, while I still would have liked to see more out of this version on the hardware side, I believe it deserves another video as the foundation have made some upgrades that make the video experience much better.
The more I use mine the more I am falling in love with it. Next on my agenda is a Mayflash Dolphin bar and a Wiimote with a plastic gun adapter. Mame and Playstation gun games here I come.
R-Pi4 8GB kit cost $265 ATM! I just grabbed a Pi400 for $135 and I think its pretty awesome (coming from R-Pi3 1GB RAM). From where I come from 4GB is a lot of RAM for this sort of SOC.
I disagree here.This is not meant to be a high end Desktop Computer, it's not meant to be for doing heavy duty work. You won't be doing high end video or graphical editing or rendering with it as it's not mean to be for that. It's a lightweight computer that a low cost solution for doing simple things with such as document creation, light internet work such as searches and looking at email and you can watch video's in lower quality too, you can program with it as it comes with several different programming programs, it's great for emulation of older machines and consoles. So going in expecting it to replace or be an equivalent to you existing desktop computer is the wrong way to look at it as that's not what it is. Also, you keep talking about it "not having a battery", well, it's not meant to be a laptop, it doesn't have a screen either so that's even more so. Having said that it is still very portable as it's very neat and tide and it's packaged into a nice little box and a lot of places you could take it would have a TV with a HDMI connection so you could use it or you could get a monitor with a HDMI input cheaply. Not as convenient as a laptop, but then again it's not meant to be one. The Raspberry Pi 400 is meant to be in the spirit of computers such as the Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum, where you use use exiting equipment with it that you already have in the home so it can reduce the cost for the consumer. The ZX Spectrum didn't even come with a means of loading data into memory, what you got was the computer and a set of leads for you to connect it to you stereo and you used that for loading, and it was that philosophy that the creators at the Raspberry Pi Foundation were going for with the Raspberry Pi 400. I enjoy mine very much, and when you know the capabilities, and limitations, of it you do have a decent machine and I like it for programming, document creation, playing games, programming, light internet work and I can watch video's on it, so giving the price and what it is I'm happy. Wired like it too www.wired.co.uk/article/raspberry-pi-400-review
Not a bad video but IMHO you chose an incomplete title : should read do not buy if you use it as desktop. As for retrogaming performance having 4 gig is more than enough, if you are loosing FPS it is due to the CPU... You have a point about the Jack 3,5 mm missing.
It is refreshing to get an honest opinion and some interesting ideas, but why draw the conclusion to not recommend this device because it does not have the 8 GB a “power user” might want, or for it making compromises regarding the interfaces, or for it not having a battery? (All of this at what price?). Ok, I would have bought mine with 8GB if I could have, but even just offering two SKUs adds to the total cost in the supply chain.
I should have been more clear as I am referring to those who may want to desktop replacement as so many of us have found on the pi4 8gb. Overclock it and it there thankfully. Thank for watch cheers
10:00 "what breaks my heart"?? Lol! I disagree. This is not going to be a replacement for the old models. The raspberry 5 will come in the old format. This is just a cool option for people who want to integrate CPU and keyboard, to keep having great capabilities for developing code & prototyping electronics while making it more portable and faster to plug. All computer brands have different formats so this is a great new option for raspberry pi. Good video though!
you can use I2C or SPI ports to attach any kind of device you want. which is the whole point of having them on a Pi in the first place. you can use something like stemma to daisy-chain I2C devices. just attach an I2C codec for your audio and an OLED screen. this is the main concept behind SBCs not an all-in-one computer, there's mac and pc computers for that.
I get the complaint about the RAM size. I don't understand why you'd want a battery in there given that it is meant to be hooked up to a monitor that won't run on batteries either. I don't get the price complaint given that a pi 4 4gb + heat sink + case + pi keyboard would set you back about the same or probably more than the pi 400. The full kit costs more of course. And while the mouse is probably useless, I really appreciate that they included an actual physical book with it. I learned programming as a kid because Commodore included a BASIC programming book with the C=64. Maybe this pi is targeted more towards future software developers than hardware engineers.
Fair points, I will post video of my mods, I want to take it mobile so needed a tight package, but not to worry, I put my maker cap on and hacked away!
4GB for email? I think the man protests too much. When I saw this, I immediately bought one, maybe it was my 8bit days coming back. Using it so far, it is very zippy. What I end up using it for is going to be part of the fun.
Not trying to protest, just bringing to light the 8gb, out of box, without overclock can replace an everyday driver desktop for those like me who stream. What you have there, it's not gonna hold up to streaming without and overclock. I have no doubt the value for hobbyist maker projects, I have some myself with it. I stand by my "protest" they did not give us 8GB.
I do agree that I would prefer 8 gb version. One thing I do like is how much better it is for cooling than any of the other raspberry pi. I overclocked it to 2100 mhz. It never gets hotter than 55 degrees. Every old style rasp pi (3, 3+, 4) I have has over heated and I've had to attach a case and a fan. Over clocked I have no problem running youtube / twitch etc... I plan on 3d printing a custom laptop case where I will put in a battery pack and screen. Fun future project :) I personally love it and use it as a desktop system at the moment.
Doesn't the Pi 400 come in a kit with some assembly required? The Pi 4 board should be able to fit other boxes, and to be clustered. Two units together have 8gb of RAM as well as 8 cores at 1.8ghz (or 2.4ghz overclocked). Other boxes may have connectivity for more devices.
HillPhantom, I think you missed the point. You can enjoy plenty of media with just a 2gb pi4, heck even a pi3 with its measly 1gb of ram works fine for media consumption, when you actively choose to use it as such. These are small embedded computers, they are meant to perform tasks, and they do so admirably. Want to use the pi to consume media? Set it up as a Kodi box, youtube? You can access youtube via kodi, and consume content from your favorite creators just fine. Narrowing in on the Pi400 itself, USB cameras work just fine on it, so the official camera board is not really a necessity, and for the formfactor it makes more sense to jsut use a usb camera as it's not a naked board being implemented into a project, its a little AIO keyboard computer. As for portability, did you forget that USB battery banks exist? USB powered portable monitors also exist, if you really want to make it portable, go for it. I think 4gb is perfectly fine when it comes to the Pi400, and getting an 8GB model in the future would be cool, but not entirely necessary. 4GB is the happy medium in the pi4b line, if you need more than that, your crunching large datasets, or logging to ram extensively. I of course do see an 8GB model potentially happening in the future if there's enough demand for it, but I don't think it's all that important as in general use it's not necessary. Change some settings allot a little more ram to the GPU, overclock if you want to, stop expecting to get buttery smooth youtube playback in resolutions higher than 720p in a web browser. Headphone jack missing? Eh... not really needed. It would be nice to have, but only if it stays being a combo jack with an analog video output, if only to expand the ability to use it on older TVs/monitors, like my commodore monitor that still looks so good. Most modern small tv's / monitors have audio out on them you can plugin headphones to them. Both my 24inch monitor, and my 24 inch tv have audio out ports that I can plugin headphones to if I really want to. 1st party accessories and addons, not likely. Aside from alternate grey/black color scheme for itself and the mouse, don't expect much here. MAYBE an official 45 degree hat board to bring the GPIO port out and up for compatibility with the wide assortments of already available hats including the official sense hat, will be made, but even that's not likely to be from the Pi foundation themselves, Though Adafruit is/has released one, so that's nice. In the end these are maker boards. The pi400 is too. These are made so makers young and old can make what they want to make. To that end they are fairly bare bones and only have the most basic of official accessories and addons, because the point is to make it yourself. Going back to that battery/screen you want so bad, GPIO is there, the whole thing can be powered from the 5v rail, and pi computers have had gpio driven displays for a long time, would take a little engineering, but it would not be too difficult for someone who knows what they are doing to design an addon that would plug into the GPIO header, provide battery, screen, and even an on/off switch. What I hear is you want a Cyberdeck already made for you from the pi400. And yea, at $100 USD, the pi400 does come pretty close to the price of a cheap chromebook. But you can't plug a cheap chromebook into a breadboard and prototype a dotmatrix display that scrolls your twitter feed, then build it on some protoboard and slap it to a pi0w and set it on your desk to do its thing. Anyway this got long, I think in the end, an intel NUC might suit your needs better. It's more expensive, a little bigger, but your not going to have problems watching videos in your browser, and you can cram all the ram you want into it.
TL;DW: it only ships with 4GB memory, which according to the video makes it unfit as a desktop computer (weak for youtube playback or video processing), while okay for retro gaming.
Can not please them all!! I love mine, and with the inability to get any PI's, you can gut it and use it for other things. It also works good for Kali and Programing, as well as most Lenux destro's.
I have an 8 gb raspberry pi 4 overclocked to 2.147 ghz and its using about 900 mb watching this video on youtube and its buttery smooth, I have never seen my pi go more than 1.5 gb with normal stuff, I dont get why 4gb is not enough for email on your opinion, my raspberry pi 4 gb behaves the same as the 8 gb , its safe to say that I myself have not tapped the 4 gb potentieal much less the 8, I agree on everything else the audio jack not being there is a big miss.
@@toddknudsen9192 little gun shy after all the down votes, but I think I will, what the heck! I am waiting on one last part then I will certainly post, I hope you will watch!
My thoughts on it were "well it has 2 hdmi outs, and it's a fraction of the cost of a GPU card with the same functionality". Oh and it cam talk to electronics .. I'm not aware of much other platforms that can do that
Maybe I was wrong....ruclips.net/video/nrdpKRwerSM/видео.html
No, you weren't! :-)
I liked your review for the most part. What you failed to substantiate here is why and how the performance is affected by the 4GB RAM difference. While I have 25+ years of experience with hardware and software and know the why and how, most people don't. I guess the problem with failing to make a point is that many dislikes came from people who know how to keep their PCs under control. Once you know how to care for your hardware, it becomes second nature and you no longer see RAM limitation as too much of a problem because you're on top of it. I even do virtualization on my old 4GB-limited laptop, and my 2GB Pi4 successfully runs a Minetest server with plenty of RAM left.
Also wrong was the assumption that the Raspberry Pi Foundation stuck with 4GB for wrong reasons. They always aim for affordable computing and any less than 4GB of RAM would've been a failure. But with the Raspberry Pi OS requiring merely 130MB of RAM for its GUI, there's a lot left for the users, and 8GB added more to the price tag, something that they weren't happy about because their main goal is enabling technology education.
This leads to the third wrong thing here - comparing the Pi 400 with a Chromebook based on price. The Pis being meant mainly for education, they're far ahead of everyone for their price. The hardware and software are more open, better supported and tinkerer-friendly than anything else. The Pinebook Pro is also interesting but 3-4 times more expensive, with English-only keyboard layouts, not GPIO, etc. It's also comes with a cheap LCD which they even warn the users about that it might have dead pixels and if they can't accept that, they shouldn't order.
Where you're right about is how this PC was advertised as a desktop PC, which clearly sets some expectations. And not only Linux is new to most people, but 4GB of RAM is also barely manageable for many because most people are not resource-conscious. So they end up misusing hardware simply because they're not aware of their limitations and then blame the manufacturer instead of trying to learn how to keep their technology under control. So your conclusion was based on just words, instead of demonstrating it, which would've been more useful.
Lol just noticed it wasn't only me, like hundreds of people are all bitching about how much they wanna touch the Pi4 in the secret area :D
woww backlashhhhh :D HillPhantom dude I will add, now I have watched some of your other vids I am gonna subscribe.
I mean you must be mad you didn't love the Pi4, but hey you're allowed to think stuff I like is shit!!! Hahah. Anyway happy holidas dude!
YES you are wrong!
@@BurkenProductions depends what side of fence you are on...seems 50 50 on this one mate
What most people forget is that Raspberry Pis are made for education or embedded use and not as a replacement for a PC. This means that most people have expectations that exceed what the hardware is intended for.
Agreed
This is totaly true.
Not true they have the technology to have this thing emulate the ps2 but choose not to. I hope ppl vote with their wallet and hold off from buying this. This thing could have been a lot better. Because it’s not it deserves to fail.
@@Reactivate100 Can you please enlighten us with something that cannot "have been a lot better"?
@@Reactivate100 The Rasberry Pi is targeting a niche market. Mainly for education and low-cost DIY projects. Just because they can, does not mean that they should. Obviously, the Rasberry Pi is not trying to be the most powerful single board emulation computer out there. As that will increase the cost and alienate their target market.
I belong to the generation that grew up with VIC-20 and C64. Having a computer in a keyboard with "user-port" gives me a warm nostalgic feeling 😊
Totally ... Like I said great start just missed the mark a bit in gen 1 I sincerely hope we see a gen 2! Cheers!
Commodo 64, atari, Tandy, 8086 cpu....
I had pong, atari 2600, vic 20, c16, c64, c128, ti99, etc. but in the mid 1980s the Amiga 1000 design became my ideal desktop computing form factor until flat panels I could mount all over my walls came out...
If you don't want wires running everywhere to drives and monitors and mice and such, however, I think the Psion Revo Plus is my favorite form factor, unfolding from pocket size to reveal keys just large enough for touch typing and a screen at just the right angle for data entry...
I'm also fom the C64 gen. While I still have fond memories of that machine, having a keyboard with a bunch of cables tying you to one spot iss just a no-go. I,m replying to you on a pi desktop, but I'm free to move about due to the mini wifi keyboard
Still miss all those graphic symbols on the keys though
Just a thought but maybe the idea behind this design is to attract hobbyists and deter the "daily driver" mainstream.
When I saw the Pi 400, I saw a 21st century ZX-80 and the chance to be part of a coding revolution while it's happening instead of wondering what it was like 40 years ago. The bare board and whatever keyboard and mouse you have lying around didn't do it for me but a complete package with everything you need to get going is something I can get behind.
I can't see anyone with no interest in computers beyond web browsing having much time for (or even awareness of) a product like this and I am eternally grateful to the Raspberry Pi Foundation for that.
I see it as a move to make it less intimidating, and I think with kids learning code in schools and not afraid of a command line again, a cheap daily driver will appeal to greater than just us geeks and nerds and in my bubble already have... But again just my take. I think pis are more and more being used in this way as compared to past.
I saw it and thought it'd be hard for my cat to fuck it up with how few cords it has. He's knocked my tower pc over like 5 times this year and somehow it isn't broken yet.
Just ordered the 8gb ram version I'm excited to mess around with it and learn more
Yeah true, definitely needs a headphone jack and 8GB of RAM. And at $70-100 I’d definitely expect to see a 1 TB SSD hard drive, GeForce RTX 3080 and an i9 processor. Cheap skates.
😂😂
LOL RTX3080? your a bit cheap mate, how about dual 3090s in hardware SLI?
Hahaha
😂🤣😂
I would buy it with 8gb ram and headphone jack.
Oh dear. I bought one. And it's absolutely fantastic. But then, I never really take any advice from any RUclips content. I happen to know 99.99% of RUclips is rubbish and fake and trash. Bang for buck, it is the best of it's class. What makes it the best is the support Raspberry gives for this product. Trust me, stock up on these because unopened boxed versions are going to sell for a fortune one day. Pick them up for £110 now, about 100 of them. In forty years you'll be selling them for £20,000 a unit. Many people are collecting Raspberry Pi computers. Rare colours and first editions. Going to be HUGE as an investment product. Pay particular attention at the breadboard colours. Usual colour is green but they produce limited runs of blue and red. Snap them up fast.
Well good thing I not a RUclipsr. If I was I would be getting paid, sponsored, free ish, but Im not, just sharing my thoughts. Not mad at anyone who feels differently or loves it, just not good for my needs and I still feel they shorted us a bit with it. But TY for watching mate and, cool take on it being a "collectable" ....
I highly recommend this product despite what this reviewer says. It must come down to a use case scenario. I bought one and absolutely love it. I can't imagine using more than 4gb on a raspberry pi. I also have no issues streaming videos on it. Not sure why he has issues. Maybe my internet is better. As far as a battery you can use any USB C battery bank if you want to run it on a battery. I just plug it in to a cell phone charger, so power is always available and not an issue. However, a battery bank works great if needed. It is $70 for just the keyboard and if you figure the cost of the keyboard and a Raspberry Pi 4gb model then it is a great value. Bottom line is just buy it. You won't regret it. It is a great product for what it is. If you want to hook up a camera or an official raspberry pi screen to it than buy a regular raspberry pi.
You said it from jump comes down to use case, us bruvs are coming for a desktop.
@@HillPhantom Bruvs? Mine works fine for playing around, this is NOT a Desktop replacement, its a testing / project based tool.
As someone who has used and owned many raspberry pis (since the pi b revision 2) I find it difficult to use more than 2 gigs of RAM, much less 4, or 8. Back in late March of this year my desktop computer died. I ended up temporarily using a 2 gig pi 4 for the rest of the school semester. Never did I even come close to using up all of the RAM; even with several chrome tabs, word documents, and microsoft teams all running over two monitors did I even use 1 gig of RAM or have any other problems whatsoever. I did however overclock the CPU to 2.1GHz as to keep acceptable levels of performance. Coming from using pis with only 512Mb or 1 gig of RAM to this; it is really hard for me to complain about not having 8 gigs on board. The likelihood of anyone using 4 gigs of RAM or more is slim on a machine like this (except in fringe cases). On the portability note I don't think that this machine was designed to be completely portable. I believe it was designed to clear up desk space for people who use these as learning tools or as desktop replacements. There really isn't a need for a battery on this machine. As for the camera connector, I don't really see a need for that on a machine like this. A simple USB camera should fit the needs of anyone using this. The touch display connector isn't really needed either as this does not seem to be designed as a portable. If you really need a touchscreen display there are many designed to interface with the pi over GPIO. As for the 3.5mm jack I have no idea as to why that isn't included. Most displays (at least the ones I use) don't have integrated speakers so audio over HDMI is not possible. As for the streaming issue brought up, RAM amount makes little to no difference in streaming quality. For best results when streaming don't use WIFI. Instead, use a wired connection through the ethernet port. Some other differences that could pop up in the different models can be from using a 32bit os on one pi and a 64bit os on the other. Sorry for the long post. I just figured I would give my 2 cents based on some of my experience with pi's.
The 4GB RAM has not been an issue for me. Likewise, video play back is OK for me too, I limit it to 720P and that is fine for my crappy TV monitor. I would like the audio jack, so I use the audio jack on my TV. Works well, again I don’t care that much about audio quality either. I am using my RP400 for 3D printer stuff like TinkerCad and Cura. Seems fine for this sort of thing. I may 3D print a bottom shell to use as a Dock with additional USB ports and maybe an enclosure for an USB SSD. I like this model.
@@michaelherron362 I just ordered one as well. I want it for simple browsing, using my 42" TV and for Office Online, big spreadsheets. When you said 720 is fine for your crappy TV monitor, I thought, 720 is fine for my crappy 57 year old eyes
To solve two problems: for audio: consider a USB adapter. For battery/power: consider an external battery bank - the problem will be a monitor in that case - it starts to get to be a bit too many "parts" to carry around.
As for power - especially video - I need to do some use-case testing. My 400 arrives Monday :)
(also - I gave your video a "like" - because, while I'm not on the same page as you, I do appreciate you taking the time and your sincerity.)
Ty and absolutely right, check out my newest video where I mod it wit 3.5, battery, and 5v monitor via gpio power ruclips.net/video/C_WL91L3ueY/видео.html
I have already ordered one of these and it will be the first raspberry pi I've owned. I am pretty sure I'll be happy with my purchase because I'm curious about it and want to learn.
With that said, I'm happy to see your contrasting opinion because most other videos I've seen are overly positive and some of your issues with it seem valid.
Totally, if it's your first one have fun, I think you will enjoy it.
The main aim of the Raspberry Pi foundation is education. I expect that the idea behind these is similar to the idea behind the BBC micro in the 1980s, it's a small simple self contained system that you just add power and a monitor and you're up and running.
For home users it doesn't have much use but in education they're great.
Totally agree, though I think the movement is towards more RAM and processing power. The fact it even has an OS lends itself to, and just my opinion, the home, and towards replacing expensive desktops. Yes the ethos and origin of the PI is edu, but most I know who use them, are outside of the world now. Ty for watcha and comment, I think the move towards this form factor, increased power, we will see ALOT more home use.
@@HillPhantom Completely unrelated... What's that keyboard behind you and is it wireless?
@@davidbarrett6434 oh its awesome! Its a small bluetooth / wired mechanical keyboard I love. Its called the Keychron K2 Bluetooth Mechanical Keyboard...it ROCKS!
@@HillPhantom excellent, I've been looking for a small mechanical keyboard but want a wireless one - I'll have a look at these now :)
@@HillPhantom LOL so your Keyboard you use for your Raspberry Pi costs more than your Pi. :-D
I have the pi 400, overclocked to 2.1ghz. It runs cool and plays netflix and amazon movies nicely. For my tasks, it's a better performer than my standard pi 4 4gb.
You can actually stream without buffering or freezing or lag at 1080p with 4GB RAM instead of 8?
Its the RAM that stops me from buying this to replace my Asus Chromebook.
@@StevenDelRizzo if you want to stream you would have to over clock. I would not suggest it as a replacement for any Chromebook tbh.
That's good news
I'm playing netflix now and I have cpu cores between 25%-40% and 537mb of memory in use.
To play, I added widevine support for chromium, and enabled hardware acceleration for video. This allows the pi GPU to work as it should.
It's a great little device.
Since the base frequency is 1.8 GHz, you can overclock the 400 to 2.2 GHz without losing the warranty. And you can overclock the GPU to 750 MHz and all that passively cooled. For that to work on any Pi 4 you'd need an ice tower or a metal alloy case (like the Argo One) and you'd void the warranty!
BTW: as long as you don't use a 64-bit OS, there is almost no benefit to having more than 4 GB RAM, 'cause at 32 bit no process can use more than 4GB anyway.
So remind me again, how does RUclips streaming or a zoom meeting get any faster with 8GB RAM?
If 4GB aren't enough for these tasks, I'd suggest you stick to less than 100 open Chrome Tabs 😜
I do not understand the massive number of downvotes. I suppose RasPi has fanboys just like Apple does. Your criticisms are fair, especially regarding the RAM. As RasPi becomes a more mainstream product with massively more powerful processors and graphics capabilities, the memory limit is a major problem (why can't they just put a SO-DIMM slot in there?!) and the lack of audio ports is a major pain. The battery thing seems less useful since there's no screen and it's clearly not meant to be a laptop at all; if you can power a monitor, you can power the 400.
TY! Meh I am learning I should have just keept to my own...lol...but heck, I guess my honestly is not wanted or needed by most. I really was not hating on it, just saying I expected more...ouch..how dare I...lol...TY so much for watching! And the great points above!
@@HillPhantom The truth is that it's the videos that spark controversial responses that will get you noticed, so don't be afraid to put some relatively strong opinions out there. Your perspective differs from theirs; that's just how it goes, and a lot of people automatically spam the downvote button for it. I think you're suffering from the same thing my Z Cam E1 review video did. Your "haters," if you will, are not downvoting and comment-slamming you because you're wrong; they're doing it because *they've probably already bought one and they're looking for videos that make them feel good about their investment.* I put a lot of effort into my Z Cam E1 review. I got the same sort of response you're getting, though rather than being hit with "you're a cheapskate" or "you just don't understand the target market" like you, I got idiots spamming me with "this is for pros, you're just not skilled enough to appreciate it." Some even just whined that the visual complaint about the power adapter part at the start was a sign of my ignorance!
It took me months to realize what was really happening. I didn't understand why so many people were angry about my negative review, but the common thread across all of them seemed to be that the "haters" either outright stated that they had bought one or they wrote like they probably owned one or were already firmly of the opinion that they intended to buy one no matter what. People don't like to feel stupid. Your review mentions a lot of fundamental features that are missing, some of which are kind of important and were present even on the original Pi B, and I have no doubt that you mentioning e.g. "no headphone jack" upset some people who bought one and are eagerly waiting on its arrival as they watch your review, only to realize that you're right and that they didn't buy quite what they'd imagined in their head. Why not take it out on you, then? After all, they were ignorant before you pointed it out, so surely you're the bad person here, not the guy who didn't look at the spec sheet before handing over a bunch of cash!
@@HillPhantom By the way, your video is pretty dark and low-contrast. What did you shoot on? What picture profile did you use? Are you modifying the picture profile in any way? Did you do any color correction in post? Do you want any suggestions or help to improve it?
@@JodyBruchon I am a novice, I have a few cameras, try to color correct but I am failing lol. Ty for letting me know and I would value any and all help!
@@HillPhantom OK, here's the short version.
Lock everything on the camera using manual/M mode. Shutter speed, aperture/iris, and ISO/gain control your exposure. Also, lock your white balance to a setting that seems to look okay, possibly using the custom white balance feature if the stock options don't work well. Don't leave any of these unlocked unless you absolutely require the camera to automatically change exposure without your input, because you'll have a very hard time "correcting" anything in post if the camera is changing stuff all the time.
Lock your focus if the subject won't be moving closer or farther away in the frame; only leave auto-focus on if you need it, otherwise you will suffer from "focus winks" and even some focus misses that can't be fixed in post and will force a re-shoot.
Don't shoot "flat." Use your camera's Standard, Neutral, or Faithful picture profile (different makers have different names, just use whatever is "standard") and don't tweak the contrast/brightness/saturation in the profile; set them to whatever the default is (usually just 0) BUT if you have a Panasonic camera and the picture profile has a noise reduction option, TURN THAT ALL THE WAY DOWN (-5 on my Panasonic G7, -2 on my Panasonic LX7). I have multiple videos on my channel about not shooting flat and about why image noise is a good thing because noise = fine detail.
Expose to the right. If your camera has the ability to show you a histogram, turn it on. The left is black/underexposed, the right is white/overexposed, and the height of the lines shows you how much of the image falls into that particular level of luminance. "Expose to the right" is a technique where you lock your camera's settings (shutter speed, aperture/iris, ISO/gain) and then tweak the image exposure until the histogram is touching the right-hand side but NOT causing a big spike over there. If the image is too dark (e.g. you have a bright light source in the background, as you do with those windows), you'll need to just let those blow out (overexpose) and spike on the right side of the histogram, but don't expose so far that the dark areas start pulling too far away from the left side either. If the darkest areas are unimportant, let them get crushed to solid black. In any case, you want the image to look close to your desired final product on the camera's screen; the histogram just tells you how badly you're crushing things in high-contrast scenes and helps you balance that for later correction. It's a learning curve, but it's worth it.
If you use Premiere, use the Lumetri Color effect. Everything you need is under the basic corrections. If the image looks washed out (as yours does in this entire video) then turn up contrast. If it's underexposed (as yours seems to be) then use the exposure control to turn up overall image exposure. Try tweaking the shadows and highlights controls to see if they help. Sometimes you'll need to change the blacks and whites (which is like shadows and highlights but much stronger/harsher) to balance things out. You can use the color dropper above the temperature and tint to pick a supposed-to-be-white spot and have Lumetri automatically fix the white balance for you, then you can tweak those controls to fine-tune the color you're going for. It takes about 15 minutes of playing with Lumetri Color's basic corrections to get a rough idea of what you can do. Other editors (FCPX, DaVinci Resolve, Hitfilm Pro, Sony Vegas, etc.) all have something comparable to Lumetri Color.
nothing against you dude but these raspberry pi's are for one purpose, Education and learning to code. You coming at this for all the wrong reasons my guy.
No offense taken ty for watching!
I use Pis for many things, IOT, to survallance, servers, Docker, sensors, Pandora headless streamer, list goes on to include Desktop Replacement with pi4 8gb. I posted another video where I made mods to the 400 to achieve that goal, I hope u will watch that one.
My guy..... lol
Lol. Yet on the website it clearly says it's a desktop replacement... So ?
Yes any other use is forbidden by gawd. 🤣
My biggest complaint on it is definitely with them sticking to the mini HDMI ports. They said they needed it for the pi 4 boards to get dual outputs out without changing the size, which is fine whatever, but with the pi 400 they literally made a brand new board layout to put in the keyboard shell. So why did they not swap back to dual HDMI if the size constraint they dealt with in the regular format no longer applied here? It's a lot easier to get HDMI cords than it is to get mini HDMI on 1 side, or deal with a dongle if the goal with this is being accessible. I love the idea of the Pi 400 and might get one eventually if they ever come back in stock but that part of its specs irked me abit.
Exactly. For the love of all things, you have a massive space to put whatever ports you want, why not have full size HDMI?
It is easy to forget the initial target and mission goal is classroom education. I plan on getting one for my niece so she has something of her own in addition to whatever her school loans out, and I also want to grab one to tinker with and have as a backup device.
However I walk in knowing full well that some concessions need to be made and expectations trimmed especially when it comes to web use. For me this isn't an issue as I would be walking in eyes open. For someone going on at how cheap it is as a computer? Disappointment and anger would set in.
I feel schools would benefit because it is a sealed unit. Have a few sd cards at the front desk in case a student boris their install. Take the keyboards up at the end of the day to lock away. For that purpose it is good.
For normal people use or geeks hyping themselves up? It will be a letdown, and I don't want people to see this as a thing that can't do the thing. Instead look at it from the perspective of working within the limits it imposes.
Aa a former HS tech ed teacher I know the mission well. I think the issue comes on with people popping around terms like desktop replacement, of which I stand firm, and no where near angry, that the 400 is NOT that, though confusing bc the form factor suggests it. Is the Pi 8gb a desktop replacement even w.o. over clocking, heck yes, would the 400 be with 8GB, heck yes, but it's not. You HAVE to overclock it....and just letting folks know may void warranty as a heads up I'd you force turbo.
If I gave this to any of my kids, the very first thing would be an attempt to stream and the following, where is my Chromebook. I get it, mission of old, like it or not, is creeping, and should, into daily driver territory. Saying Pi is regulated to only edu and to expect it to stay there, is to say AmZ is just an online shop. I'm not angry, just informing folks that while it looks like it could replace a desktop it can't, but I suspect will in version 2. My only mission was to be honest and let those who may not know, know before they buy. Sorry not sorry, most hate, and that's certainly fine by me.
@@HillPhantom Hey man I absolutely get you. Personally I am completely I'm agreement that bumping the ram up to right gig and overclocking if not actually getting a nativly higher base clock would fix the shortcomings.
Wonder how long before we see octocore on a pi variant, given I remember reading that the pi 4 line would be the last to use this chip family.
I am hyped. I like this thing. However I am also glad there is someone pointing out it could still be a lot better especially when marketing to people who want a minimal hasle setup.
I do love the fact the full kit comes with a rather nice looking manual.
@@singletona082 ty man! I like it too esp overclocked with minimal heat. I will learn from this I need to point out that I do like it and I like you am excited to see gen 2. Ty for your honesty as well!!!!
They were aiming for a set price point I guess, and maybe trying to see what the take up would be to assess if further models would be worth producing. It obviously wasn't designed primarily as a portable device, so why would they need the connection to the official Pi screen when it has HDMI output or a battery when you can hook up a power bank via USB-C?
Maybe a camera connection would make sense for web conferencing usage. Also, could it be that research found the 3.5mm jack wasn't used enough, so if something had to go, that was on the list?
If the Pi 400 had come in over £70, that would undoubtedly have been another gripe. It works for the market it's aimed at, and for the tinkerers there's the standard 8Gb board only option. Can't decide if it's worth me buying one yet, as I'd probably like an 8Gb version too, just so it's the top end spec equivalent of the current edition.
@@stephenvalente3296 do not disagree, nor do I disagree with waiting for version 2 that will have, I suspect, some of the things I am asking for.....If I had a choice, it would be a Pi4 8 GB, but again, I do use Pi's as desktop replacements amoungst other things....for me, most of my embedded projects are done on smaller devices, low power. Most of my apps are in docker or cloud, most of my computing is passed upward, and not even local, I just like Pi;s as small, quite, desktops personally :). TY for watching cheers!
Not sure why this has so many downvotes. Honest opinions are why we seek online reviews.
I saw in some other reviews a significant improvement of read/write speed when upgrading to a better SD card or an SSD via USB 3.0. I really wanted to get this to use as an emulation/media station machine, but now not so sure. Have you tried using it with better storage? Any noticeable difference in performance?
They you very much Artur, I really am not trying to bash anything and I too think it ok to share honest reviews, so TY very much. I will try my SSD when I get home for sure and let you know if I see any improvements. Thank you again!
I'm using a Pi3 and Pi4 now. Having used both systems, I can't see what could be worse about this particular system than earlier generations.
The general consensus is that this machine is a capable little toy and a throwback to the 1980's computer/keyboard pair. It's more than adequate for video and programming, and I'll admit web-browsing with it can be a little painful, but that's the fault of the most bloated, incomprehensible pile of crap software ever made - the web-browser.
So, without really knowing, I suspect that most people believe this guy gave this a thumbs down, just to generate some hits on the video rather than coming to an honest conclusion because his opinion is an outlier and I would guess this is why the reviewer is getting down-votes.
For me, this is an interesting little machine, but the honest truth is - I have no desire to own one. It's a novelty, but I have a beast of a computer, and I have x2go setup on my pis. It's a neat little machine, but it's really a waste for me to have one when, essentially, I already have one, just not in this form factor.
It's an option, its not meant to be an all in 1 and replacement for other pi's, its just a neat small ready to go option and it manages that quite well with slightly less clutter than building up your own with your own parts. the lack of 8gb barely seems an issue, not much even uses that much. I have so far managed to turn 1 into a nice easy OBS music streaming box for youtube, it manages this well and i can leave it sitting around on a table somewhere out of the way and i can check up on it now and then, all i want now is a more convenient GPIO display, the ones on offer plug direct to the other pi boards and look nice and tidy, would need an angled connection to look more tidy on the PI400, but i could diy that if desperate.
ty
Concerning the 3.5 issue, most flat screen TVs have that port. So you can just plug your headphones into that, plus you might get more volume than the usual 3.5 phono jack on laptops, or use a pair of headphones that connect to a USB port which would also allow you to use a mic, unless this isn't supported on the Raspberry Pi 400.
Picked one up recently, as a retro gaming rig, and im super happy with it. I love to tinker and not having to connect a keyboard every time i go to the console is super sweet.
If your looking for a Desktop replacement the low amount of RAM really is a dealbreaker, but for the purpose of turning it into an Amiga or RetroPie this is as good as it gets.
...as long as you dont mind having a mini-keyboard on your living room table that is.
It runs the CPU at 2.2GHz and GPU at 750MHz without the need to void your warranty while staying well below 60°C, which was always problematic with the "regular" pi4.
All in all, i too wish they would offer a 8 gig model, but for my usecase 4 gigs are plenty. As your "does it all retro computer" this thing is perfect.
Totally awesome for that use case for sure!
Don't understand why there's so many dislikes in this video. Niche target group knows what it is, but for others these are good "warnings". I know what it is, I might even get one for myself, but I still liked this video as it's good information for many.
TY! Trust me, FANBOYS just do not like it being used in a mainstream way...they get salty..lol...TY for watching mate!!!!
Spot on. There is absolutely zero reason for the pi 400 to not launch with the option of 8gb. They did it on the 4B just when people had already bought the 4GB model, it should have been there on the 400 from day 1, no excuse. As for the people that talk about education and programming, a chromebook will cost a slight more and work much better for educational purposes like you said. It will also have a battery, a decent screen AND a camera and will support optimized software. Even a refurbished mini desktop will do everything the pi 400 does 100x better for a slightly higher price, will have better thermals, will be able to run most OS and support hardware acceleration for media consumption (which is btw a source of learning, especially with the lockdowns) and will be less restricted to software options. Everything up to the 4B was a success because it offered variance and this is what the Pi's strong point has always been. You could do robotics (no way with the 400), you could build projects (extremely limited options with the 400's form factor), experiment with IoT and mobile hacking concepts and of course do everything else the Pi 400 can do. Maybe Windows on ARM change that but still 4GB of RAM is a no no if they aim for a Desktop experience.
Omg I can not believe with all the hate there is at least one person not afraid to challenge. Could not agree more and thank you, honesty seems to be a bad word in the Pi Fanboy world. Ty so much for watching and commenting!
@@HillPhantom Hey man, I appreciate it. I really don't get the hate and dislikes. The thing many people should understand is that this type of honesty comes from a community that don't just love the Pi but want this to become even bigger that it already is, not bash on it. It is ok that this model exists but it is unclear who it is ment for and should be pointed out so that the next generations move to the proper direction. E.g. it would be cool if this had built in speakers even at a slightly higher cost to minimize the required peripherals. Or an option for 8GB if someone is willing to pay the extra. I get the people that feel nostalgic but this is where the line is drawn for me (and pretty sure most enthousiasts or power users). This review is exactly how I felt when comparing the 400 to the 4B or even the Pi Zero. If it wants to be a Desktop then it should be reviewed as a Desktop.
@@johnmemos695 well said. I just worry the are appleing us. I am sure you know those stories. They had engineers build the iphone. Jobs said good now take away x,y,z so we can sell them 10 versions. That's my worry and even more so that the fan boys eat it up without question. I love Pi, I love the foundation but I'm not one to blindly be ok just because it's my beloved pi.
@@HillPhantom Hope this is not the case and it was more of a power efficiency issue. However I don't see why they couldn't offer an 8gb version when it was already implemented on the 4B. Time will tell. This could prove to be a good device but still needs adjustments to recommend (nostalgia aside). Still waiting for hardware acceleration on browsers and maybe an on-screen keyboard that appears/disappears automaticly on touch screen configurations.
Where I think it fits in is that the retro community has been wanting something of the feel of the 8-bit days. This Pi fits that mold. That's why I am wanting to purchase it soon.
Thanks for the excellent and honest review.
Think that's a great use for sure.
With this Pi, you always have to be within the length of the cable from your monitor/tv . You could hook up a bluetooth keyboard, but that would defeat the purpose of the pi 400. So for people who will use the pi as a media streamer, or just simply use a TV for the pi, having that keyboard doesn't offer any advantage since you will still be required to plug in a bluetooth keyboard. Also I don't understand why they couldn't fit 2 full size hdmi ports since they already redesigned the board. For now, I think the Pi 4 is the better buy since the pi 400 offers no significant advantage.
@@fortwoods referring to the usb dongle found on most wireless keyboards.
Pi 400 looks niche in my opinion
I think it is really about intended use. The 400 is for a use that involves sitting at a desk with a monitor. If you want to make a TV box, then the pi 4 makes more sense since you can just install it and connect up a remote.
I've daily drove a Pi 400 for 2 years on Chromium OS, and it's been perfect, but today I'm finally upgrading to a Windows desktop. I'm still using the Pi, even with a new desktop, for general non-gaming tasks, and it can stream everything smoothly up to 1080p, even RUclips, with no overclock. I chose to buy this and a 1080p monitor over buying a Chromebook, and I have zero regrets. Most of what you said in the video is true tho.
Sweet! Seeing folks put Android on them these days too
Ultimately these guys deserve my money way more than microsoft, apple, sony and nintendo ever do. The Raspi foundation do good shit and dont treat their consumers like cattle.
Do not disagree, I love Pi and foundation...I just think it was a bit of a dig not to give us 8gb...but my respect and love is strong for the foundation...but that does not blind me to ignore shortfalls on a launch.
If I'm watching media, I'm not doing it on a computer. It's really not intended to be a desktop replacement... and it's only $100. The whole point is to more easily introduce people to coding and automation without having to build a machine. If I wanted something portable to "replicate" my desktop experience, I'd use a tablet or a laptop.
You can always use RetroPie with it, also.
Cool. I watch media on all devices personally. Thanks for watching!
Most people dont use these devices as desktop replacements. They are used for automation and light coding etc. I use mine for Home Assistant and its perfect as I can leave it on my desk and update or trouble shoot as needed.
Agree, I use mine in the same way, I have one for automation, one for fileshare/NAS, and one with PLEX, I love Pi's, but do to that love, I also use it alot as a slim desktop replacement. Thansk for the watch.
Thanks for the review, It's good to point out to some that expect this to compete with a desktop PC that it won't meet their expectations. I ordered this to learn to use the pi, not to use as a media system or a desktop replacement. It's an educational tool.
Great use case, and if you do get the gumption to try it as a desktop replacement just overclock it and you should be happy. But yes I still use it in many, many other ways, this is just one way, and after some mods and an an overclock it ROCKS.
I have a saying, if it looks like a toy, it is a toy
That's awesome 😂
When the Pi 4 came out, I saw some videos saying that the Pi foundation has left its roots as a learning platform and has turned into a platform geared more to having features a business be attracted to. What you see as shortcomings could actually be considered as a step in returning to its roots.
Totally, and a version game that reminds me of Apple.
I am getting the feeling that you may not be the target audience for this machine. I've had mine a few weeks now and it is performing very well. Word processing, spreadsheets, email, videos, programming, everything. Like so many people who have bought this, they may too be upgrading from their ageing ZX81 ('Timex Sinclair 1000' in the USA)... and at the same price point we paid nearly 40 years ago! And as for any criticism on RAM, an upgrade from just 1k to 4Gb should be plenty for anyone!! Plus, with that much memory, we no longer need a wobbly RAM pack on the back user port;-) A headphone port would be nice, but audio comes out the HDMI. The actual keyboard is a pleasure to type on too, no membranes here. This product is aimed at teaching young (and old) computing at grass roots level and does that very well, but also performs pretty we all a desktop machine. OK, not as fast as my MacBook Pro, but I don't expect that for £70/$70, nor did I expect it to replace it..
I have over 12 pies in my house going various things, one of which replaced a desktop. Heck my entire home automation is run off pies...lol. But yea I know I'm breaking FanBoy protocol using it a hated DT replacement..how dare I.
This is going to sound stupid, but couldn’t an RPi dissipate more heat by lightly wadding up a little (solid or loose?) marble sized piece of aluminum foil and set it on top of the cpu heat sink in open-air? Or a cone or antenna like little light foil beanie? Or a Pringles can? Those might be near perfect if done well.
Could, but it would have to be a thick piece or like you said wadded up, or better yet folder to make layers. I do not see why with mass it would not work.
Gosh, so how come I be able to stream Neflix with Kodi just fine, over WIFI, with this lovely keyboard raspberry PI 400 computer?
If found Kodi to handle video much better as well the Raspian. Have seen this since the zero even. I suspect it's a lower draw overall ..Kodi...on system.
Indeed. I got a pi 400 and it is not the same.... Besides what you said, the SD card is only 16 GB, so I had to buy another one.
I agree on 8gb and audio Jacks. For battery Power use a Powerbank.
I just wonder if the reviewer ever even used a raspberry pi 2 or 3. It's odd to me how offended he is that there isn't 8 gigs of ram. The hardware is already so advanced compared to the Pi 3. I personally like the 4gb ram so the price stays low. Otherwise I wouldn't buy it. The Pi is not a gaming, video editing workhorse. The strengths of the Pi are it's ability to exist everywhere as a computer. It can be embedded, used as a development platform, a teaching tool etc. I do embedded work every day and I still use a Pi 3 and I love it. Looking forward to picking one of these up.
Yup every model since launch in multiple projects, one for a commercial application. I'm just calling out the form factor as underpowered for a desktop. My 8gb will remain the DT replacement..version two of this I hope has least 8gb and a 3.5 for good sound.
Would it be ok for an Octoprint setup? that is all I'm interested in unless it won't work with a webcam and therefore will not be able to do time-lapse captures.
I do not see why not, should work just fine!
Appreciate the review man. Interesting observations. I have mine coming and am an owner of almost every other model. I have used a standard 4gb for a while and great for my needs. I imagine there will be a 8gb 400 sometime, they tend to release the extended memory version later. The only thing I would say is that the core mission of RPI is to tech kids programming, this is really a very good unit for that purpose and to have a less cluttered unit than the single boards in a classroom. I use mine for python dev, but have to swap to my ryzen machine if things are too intensive. So again I think it's easy for people like us to forget the machines original target audience.
My biggest gripe is the simple ommision of an audio jack...
Thanks for your review . Cheers
Ty for watching! Totally agree, I love Pi, the Foundation, and mission. I by no means want to come off like a hater, this was just odd choices to me. Trust me I am very appreciative to Pi I should have made sure I stated such. Ty again!
Don't believe the hype. I (only) recently upgraded the internal memory in my PC from 4 GB to 8 GB. I do not notice any difference. When I run a system monitor then I can see why: the extra memory is almost unused. This is because I use Linux, Windows is very RAM hungry. The Pi runs on Linux too so don't bother installing more than 4 GB of RAM on it. :)
Want a faster Linux PC? Buy one w/ a fast processor. Believe it or not: Chrome and RUclips are the biggest CPU hogs nowadays. Games can be a CPU hog too. But games on Linux? Ha ha! There are none.
@@meneerjansen00 I disagree, when you get a chance look at benchmarks between a Raspberry Pi4 4 gb vs 8gb, especially when it comes to video performance. Stream on a 4gb vs 8gb pi and you will exactly what I am talking about.
@@HillPhantom Stream? You mean like playing a RUclips video? Or streaming in your house via your network a video from the hard disk of your PC to a Raspberry Pi 1B that's running Kodi? I do both every day. Every Pi can hardware decode AVC (aka h.264) and, if you pay a licence fee, MPeg2 (i.e. DVD's). As far as I know decoding video is a big burden on a CPU, not on the GPU or RAM. Unfortunately the Pi that I have won't decode h.265 (i.e HEVC) video. Maybe the newer Pi's do. However, I don't think that a 2 MHz processor (overclocked from 1.5 MHz) will benefit much form 8 GB of internal memory.
But if you say that you can clearly see the difference between an 8 and a 4 GB Pi concerning video then I believe you. :)
@@meneerjansen00 stream video, RUclips, it drops frames pretty badly when NOT overclocked. I have all the flavors of Pi4 1 GB (no good for video) 4 GB (ok for video but not 1080 unless overclocked) and I have the 8GB that has zero frame drop on RUclips at 1080p using Chrome Media edition. Overall I love them all, even this gem, just need to over clock it. I look forward to the next version of the 400~ Thank for watching mate! Cheers!
Off topic, whats the keyboard do you use with your Pi 4?
I typically use my keychron keyboard
The RUclips stutter is a software issue, not hardware. RUclips has disabled hardware acceleration on the Pi family. The GPU in the Pi 4 is capable of running TWO 4k videos simultaneously at 30fps or one 4k @ 60fps PLUS a 1080p source. It can run N64 & Playstation 1 games without stuttering and some Playstation 2 games with the limit beign the emulator software, not the GPU.
I don't disagree, I just know my 8GB doesn't stutter at all, and overclocked the 400 doesn't either.
Loving my 400. I don’t stream video on it, (I have a phone for that) great for coding.
I now have a second 400 which boots straight into Amiga Workbench, basically operating as a very high end Amiga with a huge (for it’s time) hard drive.
Love it, perfect use case!!!! Ty for the watch and comment
I think the form factor is brilliant, but yes they should have put the top specs into the form factor and allowed some expansions. you can always use a c-usb Battery pack to power it ?
I was just to click the "buy" button on Amazon. This is the ONLY video I've seen against buying the Pi 400...all you said makes sense to me. I will wait for the Pi 500. Thanks.
Thank you mate!
I agree about the fact it has half of the ram compared to the regular model, but a battery?!? You are still tethered to an external screen. Does that come with a battery?
Perhaps they should make an updated version of the 400, either adding an audio port, or integrating speakers in the keyboard, as well as having an 8GB option.
Sadly I think that is the point, Apple versioning us to death. Build a 4GB model so we can then sell a 8GB model later. The 400 was just a test market and cheaply made IMO, but still usefull just to me, a worriesome move by the foundation to take things they already have in PI4 away.....
I don't think the Pi is necessarily aimed at a desktop replacement for a 'media computer'. I don't know anyone that'd use a single pi (and i mean one pi by itself not 'never use ANY pi') to do any video work. Definitely a pi farm, but not a single pi. I think the real issue is having 2 4k outputs on the machine unnecessarily taxes the system and frankly for a machine like this isn't desirable. I don't know who would get an underpowered computer and then run two 4k monitors with it. It's like if I got a VW Beetle then decided I'm going to race in Nascar with it's stock engine. We already know how that's going to turn out.
That said, the target audience I think for this 400 is the general programmer and not someone who is going to be net surfing all day. The main kit comes with the project book on programming and such, so clearly that's who they're targeting. 4GB Ram is more than enough for this kind of use.
Lets be fair, I have about 5 desktops in my house, only 1 can handle my video editing so to say video editing is a litmus of desktop computing, I would have to respectfully disagree. Heck even saying gaming is, we all know we need to build custom rigs to do video/gaming jobs. Now for everyday computing for an average user, I would argue a Pi4 8GB does the job very well (with chrome media edition) in order to suite most users desktop needs. I know the space of the Pi well, I have done 100's of projects with it, low energy, embeded, physical jobs, headless servers, kills it, but lets not deny this has an operating system, and the version prior to this Pi4 8GB is very capable of being a cheap desktop replacement for the masses. Maybe not its "goal" but then again, ONE of the Pi Foundations goal is to get affordable, or free computers, into the hands of cultures and peoples less fortunate them me/us, and unpopular as it may seem, I think they know that means we need a GUI, and OS, and we need it to eventually compete with desktops and phones. I support a movement towards a quite, low energy, cheap desktop replacement, and I do think they have achieved this, talk to folks who use them in places like Africa....
A 4gb Pi 4 B is $60 with no real heat sink. A 400 is $70 with quite good heat dissipation and a quite good built in KB. Overclocking is trivial. You add 2 or 3 lines to a txt file. Overclocking is stable and definitely improves performance without undue heating. A Pi4 8gb is buck short of $90. By the time you get it tricked out with KB and heat sink it's easily 1.5 -2x the cost of the 400. I use mine every day for general desktop computing and find no issues. It's easy to set up, can run off a usb drive, and you can run several flavors of linux. There are plenty of things to do with this computer.
Don't disagree , but I still want my 3.5 the BT lag is real.
Considering its for educational and basic coding. It looks perfect. I already have a phone, laptop, desktop and fire TV stick for streaming music and videos. I'm getting a Pi 400 for it's intended use, coding, simple games and DIY projects. Feels unfair to knock it for not handling Netflix since that's the last thing the designers meant it for. And a battery? It's not a laptop! So again, knocking out for something it's not meant to do. The PI 400 does everything it's designed to do very well. I can't wait to start using mine and also for my kids to be old enough to start learning coding using one.
Perfect for that use case!
I'll update this comment now, as PI OS now supports Netflix and Disney+ natively. So another tick there. I'm even playing GTA3 and Vice City on mine now natively. Both run well (but obviously not as fast as a PC).
Nice!!!
Raspberry Pi 400 is a really good deal because first its a keyboard and like if you buy it and you don't have a keyboard well the computer is a keyboard and its pretty amazing, its like a laptop 's keyboard and for me its amazing because i can type way more faster, the keys are really soft, and you can type easier for me and its just amazing i really think that this is convenient like if you want to travel and take it some where with you, you can easily take it with you, but you cannot take normal and simple computer tower on the air plain and the ship to travel so its good
1. 2:21 - 2. 2:37 - 3.
1st if you go to google and search (y2mate.com) or (y1mate.com) you can download music and if you add on the computer the VLC player you can open your music from your files press the right button on the mouse and then if you try to open the music it will saying you open with VLC player
2. if you want to add a camera you have to find a camera with a cable as raspberry pi 400 because i have a camera and she is having a cable like raspberry's one and she work's correctly
i wan't to say more think''s but then the comment is gonna be huge so that i have to say is that Raspberry Pi 400 is a really good computer an you can do a lot of think's and i know that you can do almost everything you just need to think about what you want and how you want to do.
If you agree with me you can reply or like my comment. bye bye.
I think its s brilliant piece of kit for the money. Mine came secondhand from someone like our reviewer (he didnt like it) and I've already put Ubuntu MATE 64 on it. I ran it for an entire day on a single charge of a medium size USB C type battery pack. No problem at all.
Don't disagree just would have like 8gb :)
@@HillPhantom My observation is that its a cost/marketing exercise.. The Pi 4 comes in 2, 4 and 8 Gb variants and the price ramps up from the 2 Gb to the 8 Gb whilst everything else on the SBC is identical..RAM is expensive. If they had pitched it as an 8Gb machine the price could have been prohibitive in its target market.
@@paulluce2557 I agree somewhat but instead of offering a kit and a stand alone it could have been a 4 and 8gb option. I think at bulk you may be supprised what the foundation can get RAM for....of course in humble opinion as that is waaaay above my pay grade lol. I don't disagree just more wonder, what if, and why not? My thought is so they can apple it, version 1,2, 3....I just felt they gave us 8 in 4 and not here was deliberate, but understand that may have been cost, but also get could also be a version slow roll too.
@@HillPhantom I think you are right in your observation that the standalone version could be binned and make the kit available in 4 and 8 Gb versions. I think we may see a development in that direction in the future. What I would really like to see, is the Foundation marketing a Pi laptop based on the 400. I have a Pi-Top (one of those bright green things) with a 3B+ in it. In concept it is quite good but the execution is not great in my humble opinion. I think that Pi 400 could be basis for a laptop based project development platform and it would be a good seller . In addition the support from the Pi Foundation would be infinitely better than the Pi-Top people are with their products.
For me, only lack 8GB of RAM and mic and audio connectors, and it would be perfect.
Awaiting further model.
This ones is decent if you overclock but I agree, kinda a slap in the face to take away both! TY so much for watching and commenting!!!
Could you please tell me how long the HDMI cable that comes with the PI 400 kit because I can find NOWHERE does it tell you the length of the cable.
Sorry I'm on the road for next week when I get home I'll let you know. Ty
Found it, it's 3 feet or 1 meter
@@HillPhantom Thank you Lucky today I had bought the hdmi-hdmi adapter so I could add 2 hdmi cables together to make any length I needed .
Being that I am using a 55 inch 4k tv I really need a long one so I was able to make it about 4 meters long and it works good
Not good enough? Well now it’s your problem but in a good way! Make modifications to it, poke around in Linux, if it’s too slow you could always make your own OS😀, Install Pikiss for some fun and adding zRAM maybe that will work to make it faster? What about Twister OS? It’s got the modified Chromium for better video playback. Playing around with RISC OS at lightning speed and emulating an Amiga or Dreamcast with Retropie? Want audio? 0.99 for USB DAC. Build a robot. There’s so much fun to be had with it!
Oh yes I mention just overclocking helps greatly. Was just being honest as kids and those inexperienced looking at this may not be comfortable doing it. I also just wanted to be honest I prefer to stay on my 8gb ... But not unhappy, as I mention, if you have 20 pis like me this is great, if it's your first go with the 8 gb. Just trying to help folks but no good deed goes unpunished lol.
I think the reviewer missed the point of the device. It’s not meant to be a desktop PC replacement. It’s a tinkering device in a more approachable form factor. Perfect for educational use or beginning hobbyists of all ages. Highly recommended. Oh, and it plays RUclips in HD just fine, in case you need to watch some tutorials.
Funny been using it as a DT replacement for over a year :). To each his own
You can't connect a Camera? Does it not have USB? "It doesn't have a 3.5mm audio port" ..*looks at headset* usb.. *looks at the side of the monitor* 3.5mm audio out port.. "It doesn't have a battery and you can't connect a pi-screen"...soo... it's not a laptop? isn't there another product for that? Also, I have an old win7 laptop with 4gb ram, and it does everything well except for heavy multitasking and newer games. ..which you probably wouldn't want to do on a raspberry pi anyway? I'm confused.. What are the negatives again?
Sure, but not via a dedicated port, so you can NOT used the official raspberry pi cameras, which many of us prefer over a bulky USB camera. No monitor, no 3.5, but you could use, which I did a usb adaptor, bc as we know audio with PI through BT is no ideal. Also, correct does not support Official Pi screen. What's that product, as its not from Raspi Foundation. You don;t get it modern OS, and Windows vs Pi, not on same ballpark. I bet you dollars to donuts it has a dedicated graphic car on that lap top no? Negatives are above :).
4gb RAM is normally enough for daily usage, 8gb is good but with which price? I guess the foundation targets to making "cheap" and good product so only saving maybe decresing to ram size to optimum size.
Edit: Maybe in the future there should be another edition something like raspberry pi 400 plus or extreme edition that including extra ram, battery even case for touch screen things. It might be so cool and practical.
Agree
Just a heads up, there has been an update to Raspberry Pi OS that enables hardware acceleration when using the browser. Literally just happened like yesterday. If you update your OS and reboot, your youtube playback will be 100% better.
Oh ty! I saw the update log!!! Looks like I great push to address theses things! Ty for posting that! Cheers!
I was about to order it. In fact I actually did but had glitch in running my CC. So when that happened I asked them to cancel my order instead of fixing the issue. The reason I canceled was because of the 3.5mm jack. If the sound is over hdmi and I have only a vga monitor, I would need an VGA to HDMI adapter that has an audio port. So I think I'll just get the 8g pi with a good case and cooler instead.
Ty for the watch, yes if I did not have the 8GB yet I would certainly be buying it over this machine. I looooooove my 8GB model I think you will be very happy.
Bluetooth.
I would say that you should not buy if you have the desire to use it for projects, whereas the small board of PI4 can be fir inside a vehicle, robot etc.
When you should buy this? When you have a kid that you want to introduce to the world of programming. When you want to consume media without the need to power up the I7 Laptop. When you have a school that can be equipped easily with cheap computers like this. When you want all other uses of a raspberry (e.g. file server, VPN server etc) in a compact form, a box that contains both cpu and keyboard and avoid cluttering your desk.
Not intended to replace desktop at all, This is $70 working what can you compare it to? even at $99 with PSU and mouse it's still outstanding. It can , and will run off a power bank all it needs is 5 volts
Really, thats odd I have it replacing desktops, actually since Pi 4 8GB it replaced two already...must just be odd ball...lol
It sounds like you may not understand why the raspberry pi was created and exists. It’s an educational tool, not a desktop replacement to take on the road.
No I fully get the box you all want to keep it in, just not a conformist to the fan boy party. Pis can be used for anything you want including in my case two desktop replacements. I know you all hate it but meh, it's the culture holding u all back
@@HillPhantom it’s not the box I want to keep it in, it’s what it was designed for. That’s like making a review of a toy space telescope and complaining it’s not suitable for NASA scientists. Maybe those toy makers just need to think outside the box. 😝
Idk I think the pi is for exploring, making, and using how ever you like...I think relagating it to only edu or to code would hurt the feelings of a pi..lol..cheers bud ty for watch, all good, to each their own :)
The keyboard would be sub quality for my taste too, but agree the biggest downers is no 8GB and now analog audio port. The one interesting thing I see is the way they accomplished their heat sink cooling and avoided a fan; when an 8GB model comes out the existing 400 owners are going to be very annoyed - those first gen 400s are going to end up collecting dust
Aha no, you'll be paying an extra 40 dollars for the upgraded specification that you won't even use 95% of the time to do anything meaningful other than trying to do the job of an x64 machine.
It's the same retarded mentality that's resulted in the clusterfuck going on with GPU's and by extension the resource crisis, that has been plaguing development for the past two decades.
@@egg5474 to the extent that people try to use any model of Raspberry Pi as a desktop computer, they'll need all the memory that can be had. 8GB is at the bare minimum of usability per the desktop these days. Primary reason is the browser - which all of them have voracious appetite for devouring up memory. And that is by far the principal app that most people are running most of the time. Even a lot of "desktop" apps come packaged essentially as web apps per things like Electron. I don't like it, but it is what it is, as they say. The web and its protocols have made a hot mess of computing
Just use a wireless keyboard/mouse.
And running raspberry pi os bullseye x64 is no problem with the 4gb ram provided, given you overclock correctly turn off compositing and for RUclips h264ify limit video to 30fps... Brilliant. Even runs plasma DE like a dream.
I have only issue is the 3.5mm jack but its okay as you can use ur monitor 3.5 mm which works fine... It is perfekt for me... I never expect huge performance from a single board computer.... They are made for education purposes....
Yea agree, though I have been using mi Pi4 8gb as a replacement since the launched. The fact it has an OS, the plug and play like features that seem to be coming out recently, I just don't want the fan boys to be in too much shock, when they start seeing them used as a replacement. Do not think the foundation does not want this, even if a happy bi product of its first mission . Ty for watching!
Great, honest review. We don't see enough reviews that are real.
Every review I've seen if the reviewer doesn't like it
They share the pros and cons.
Say it's up to us to decide.
You're the first reviewer I've seen who said don't buy it.
I was about to buy it but I need to run Windows 10 on Pi400.
I've seen tutorials on how to run 10 professional on ARM on Pi4.
Requires Windows desktop pc which I don't have.
Of course biggest issue for me is 4GB RAM.
I don't think streaming in HD can be done without problems.
TY very much! I appreciate it greatly! Cheers!
Raspberry pi's are definitely not made to run windows 10.
Only thing I don't like is the lack of a single-wire solution, power+display+usb over TypeC. I'm ok with it though, cause price would suffer.
That would be cool though! I really hope we see many more versions of this, it has SOOOOO much potential.
For anyone gonna commit hate crime, please dont.
On second note majority of the points that this guy said is very valid.
1) why release a 4 GB model as a desktop variant when they do have a 8 GB in production, unless R Pi foundation wants to double dip on the consumer base.
2) cant they make a slot like those old laptop expansion cards, for adding battery (they can leave it to the 3rd party partners to develop battery packs as a expansion slot or some thing along those lines
3) Removing the DSI display port was within reason so there is no complain on that.
4) So is the 3.5 mm jack (HDMI do carry audio so that a pass)
From my point of view the R Pi 400 is a solid product, but as this man says, you should probably hold your wallet on this...
wait till they release a refresh variant of this, with 8 GB Memory
lol
The memory limits lack of camera / LCD fit the lightweight task model for this unit. The Pi 400 is passively cooled. This limits the ability to push the processor without it throttling down hard. They chose to have audio handled outboard. It will be output by your monitor / TV or by a USB device. Everything is very basic. SD card booting means a better A1 class SD card will improve performance. Passive cooling means overclocking not advised. It is a viral device, like Barbie Doll or LEGO set for kids and adults. It does what it does, and opens the Pi universe to the user. It creates a beach head. Either additions are made to it, or larger traditional Pi systems replace it. In fact both things may happen. A Pi baed server could attach to Pi 400s on every desk or TV. Samba and Libeoffice makes it operate with Windows systems as a peer. Genius!
It can and will get better. I will say over clocking to me is a must and at 2.2 I'm getting less heat then my Pi 4s not even overclocked. Agree great start I guarantee in version 2 we see it move towards a desktop replacement, or at least that ability with no overclock needed.
Obviously this Pi is a not for you. Fine. What it is, it's designed to be a school computer for kids being home schooled during the COVID-19 pandemic! 100 EUR / $100 / £100 for the kit is a great deal!
The 3.5 mm audio port on practically all iterations of the Pi was rubbish! A lot of noise! HDMI and Bluetooth are the ways to go.
Oh it's for me, been since raspi launch..you missed the criticisms...it should have 8gb...
I think they left out the touchscreen and camera ports because there was no way to connect to them without opening the case and voiding the warranty. The 3.5mm port was probably left out because people expect a headset connector and not a stereo-audio/composite-video connector on a computer nowadays. You can get a USB to headset connector or connect an A/V port to the GPIO port. I also miss the 8GB RAM instead of 4GB and didn't buy it, but if I need another 4GB Pi I will buy it.
You can get an official raspberry pi touchscreen monitor. You can choose from any number of power cells, you know, those things you charge your phones with? Doesn't everyone have a few of those around?
You can get the hat or bonnet, that might solve the camera problem. I saw another video where someone said they used it to zoom, I didn't actually see them zoom but I find it hard to believe you can't attach a little camera.
I agree bro, the 3.5 going obsolete is so friggin' upsetting. I actually had a patent for a mobile phone privacy screen that locked in via the 3.5. It was epic and about halfway through my first production, Apple announced they removed the 3.5. lol. It's just money and time. No big! God is good.
I feel like an old man wanting it, I just reviewed the Wyze headphone, not to plug that, but it was refreshing to see they added in a 3.5 on their new wireless headphones. But then again, I kinda like the sound of records over square digitals..lol..
1. 3.5 jacks are available as a usb adapter.
2. Touch screens can be connected via GPIO.
3. If you need all that extra performance you can always pay 10 to 20 times as much.
Yea watch my mod video, do not disagree it would be more, 10 to 20 x....nah....
Hmmm, well - I bought two of them fairly recently and it’s a year later from the date of this video - Um…..lol - they can’t keep these in stock!!!
Speaking for US based perspective.
In fact, can’t even get a zero 2 right now - I do have ALL the pi models some with batteries and screens, cameras etc. all of Mine runs excellent for what I need them for and the raspberry pi OS desktop on the pi400 does really well - not sure what your view point would be now
-a year later.
I absolutely love mine but there again, my needs may not match yours or my expectations may not the same as your expectations, or anyone else who is reading this post. Depends on what you intend to use it for. Mining for digital stuff may not be the ideal unit and if you want to play triple a games off steam then probably won’t do well either. These are specifically made for learning and tinkering.
For me, it’s fine. I just wanted to learn python and simple Linux based programming. I’m Interested in creating simple games and programs like I did when macromedia flash was still around. Yeah, I’m that old.
I like that it’s light weight and I can take it with me to any room of my house and there always a plug or portable battery that I can hook up to and my monitor is thin and lightweight as well - very easy setup - so, to me…it’s Worth the 100 usd. If you can find one now.
As of may 20th 2022, They are Currently being scalped on eBay and Amazon and selling 150+ for the kit, price will continue to go up- same with all pi units including the dreaded pi 3 A+ which in my opinion is the worst of the rest of them.
Lastly, I’ve dabbled with other SBC’s including the banana BMI zero M2 and it’s just a par below what the 2017 pi zero w can handle - even though it’s specs are way higher than the zero w. Lack of OS and development is to blame there.
I still yet to try odroid UX4 or the le potato and a few others but like the pi’s themselves SBC’s in general are getting harder to find now. And if expectations are for simple learning and browsing, tinkering or for playing retro games then it’s not such a bad product after all, IMO.
I use a Rapsberry PI 4 with 4 gb RAM on a satellite internet connection (not supper fast and goes out any time it rains) as my main home computer and have a couple of years now with no complaints. I watch RUclips on it all the time and occasionally Amazon Prime. Sometimes I have problems with Prime. Trying to do video editing is pretty bad. Well, the editing part isn't bad but to actually create the final video takes a couple of hours for what takes a few minutes on a modern PC. I played through the Doom 3 demo and that was surprisingly decent. The reason I wouldn't by a Pi 400 is...you're kind of stuck with it. At least that's the way it seems. I could take my Pi4 motherboard and one day stick it in a robot or a 3D printed retro handheld gaming console or do a myriad of other things with it. But I don't see any easy was to do that with a Pi 400. Or maybe I'm missing something. There are a lot of other Pi "laptop" or "set top box" projects that fit the original pi form factor. If somebody didn't think 4 GB was enough on one of those projects, they could just buy and 8gb motherboard and keep moving.
can one be able to do data scraping for data analysis projects on it?
I do not see why not, its not the most powerful for crunching data but it would certainly work IMO.
No offence but you are asking for battery packs built in, more ram, more ports, but then you are paying a higher price. For its price point, I'd say it's about right.
As for battery/portability i seen a video where a guy is running the pi400 and a portable touch screen on an external battery pack
None taken. I think a small lipo would not be much, bet we see it in v2. Take a look at my mod video, hooked up some peripherals and recent OS upgrade has me liking it.
@@HillPhantom Cool. Will check out your other vids. I guess with some tinkering can squeeze some good performance out of it. For me it's basically just an off-grid portable computer. As i will have access to solar power soon and can't be using high powered PCs just need something that works, has a small energy footprint, and size and i think the pi400 is perfect for those kinds of requirements.
@@RyanX1899 yea I am thinking I have to review my stance, while I still would have liked to see more out of this version on the hardware side, I believe it deserves another video as the foundation have made some upgrades that make the video experience much better.
@@HillPhantom Oh I'd like to know about those upgrades would be cool to cover it in a video.
The more I use mine the more I am falling in love with it. Next on my agenda is a Mayflash Dolphin bar and a Wiimote with a plastic gun adapter. Mame and Playstation gun games here I come.
Nice man! Thats awesome! I have enjoyed mine as a retro gamer as well.
Dude made legit points. Downvoters mad.
Also, battery pack is interesting, not sure we can do an aftermarket solution at 3amps though.
Ty man! I appreciate that greatly! I'm making some mods I'll post once done...battery pack, display, m2 am eager for the parts! Cheers!
R-Pi4 8GB kit cost $265 ATM! I just grabbed a Pi400 for $135 and I think its pretty awesome (coming from R-Pi3 1GB RAM). From where I come from 4GB is a lot of RAM for this sort of SOC.
Nice!
I disagree here.This is not meant to be a high end Desktop Computer, it's not meant to be for doing heavy duty work. You won't be doing high end video or graphical editing or rendering with it as it's not mean to be for that. It's a lightweight computer that a low cost solution for doing simple things with such as document creation, light internet work such as searches and looking at email and you can watch video's in lower quality too, you can program with it as it comes with several different programming programs, it's great for emulation of older machines and consoles.
So going in expecting it to replace or be an equivalent to you existing desktop computer is the wrong way to look at it as that's not what it is.
Also, you keep talking about it "not having a battery", well, it's not meant to be a laptop, it doesn't have a screen either so that's even more so. Having said that it is still very portable as it's very neat and tide and it's packaged into a nice little box and a lot of places you could take it would have a TV with a HDMI connection so you could use it or you could get a monitor with a HDMI input cheaply. Not as convenient as a laptop, but then again it's not meant to be one. The Raspberry Pi 400 is meant to be in the spirit of computers such as the Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum, where you use use exiting equipment with it that you already have in the home so it can reduce the cost for the consumer. The ZX Spectrum didn't even come with a means of loading data into memory, what you got was the computer and a set of leads for you to connect it to you stereo and you used that for loading, and it was that philosophy that the creators at the Raspberry Pi Foundation were going for with the Raspberry Pi 400.
I enjoy mine very much, and when you know the capabilities, and limitations, of it you do have a decent machine and I like it for programming, document creation, playing games, programming, light internet work and I can watch video's on it, so giving the price and what it is I'm happy.
Wired like it too www.wired.co.uk/article/raspberry-pi-400-review
Still has the same amount of RAM as my laptop :/
and I bet it play videos way better and has a graphics card no?
Not a bad video but IMHO you chose an incomplete title : should read do not buy if you use it as desktop. As for retrogaming performance having 4 gig is more than enough, if you are loosing FPS it is due to the CPU... You have a point about the Jack 3,5 mm missing.
Totally fair I should have ...
It is refreshing to get an honest opinion and some interesting ideas, but why draw the conclusion to not recommend this device because it does not have the 8 GB a “power user” might want, or for it making compromises regarding the interfaces, or for it not having a battery? (All of this at what price?). Ok, I would have bought mine with 8GB if I could have, but even just offering two SKUs adds to the total cost in the supply chain.
I should have been more clear as I am referring to those who may want to desktop replacement as so many of us have found on the pi4 8gb. Overclock it and it there thankfully. Thank for watch cheers
10:00 "what breaks my heart"?? Lol!
I disagree. This is not going to be a replacement for the old models. The raspberry 5 will come in the old format.
This is just a cool option for people who want to integrate CPU and keyboard, to keep having great capabilities for developing code & prototyping electronics while making it more portable and faster to plug. All computer brands have different formats so this is a great new option for raspberry pi. Good video though!
Fair
i want to get one to run Amiga
you can still use a camera and digital screen using the gpiu
I am not 100% sure you can use a screen or render a screen rather via GPIO on the 400, its another thing they took away.
you can use I2C or SPI ports to attach any kind of device you want. which is the whole point of having them on a Pi in the first place. you can use something like stemma to daisy-chain I2C devices. just attach an I2C codec for your audio and an OLED screen. this is the main concept behind SBCs not an all-in-one computer, there's mac and pc computers for that.
All I think they needed to do is add a 3.5 jack a full size hdmi and offer an 8gb model
Totally here is to version 2, though I have a usb to 3.5 adaptor I am trying.
I get the complaint about the RAM size. I don't understand why you'd want a battery in there given that it is meant to be hooked up to a monitor that won't run on batteries either. I don't get the price complaint given that a pi 4 4gb + heat sink + case + pi keyboard would set you back about the same or probably more than the pi 400. The full kit costs more of course. And while the mouse is probably useless, I really appreciate that they included an actual physical book with it. I learned programming as a kid because Commodore included a BASIC programming book with the C=64. Maybe this pi is targeted more towards future software developers than hardware engineers.
Fair points, I will post video of my mods, I want to take it mobile so needed a tight package, but not to worry, I put my maker cap on and hacked away!
4GB for email? I think the man protests too much. When I saw this, I immediately bought one, maybe it was my 8bit days coming back. Using it so far, it is very zippy. What I end up using it for is going to be part of the fun.
Not trying to protest, just bringing to light the 8gb, out of box, without overclock can replace an everyday driver desktop for those like me who stream. What you have there, it's not gonna hold up to streaming without and overclock. I have no doubt the value for hobbyist maker projects, I have some myself with it. I stand by my "protest" they did not give us 8GB.
I do agree that I would prefer 8 gb version. One thing I do like is how much better it is for cooling than any of the other raspberry pi. I overclocked it to 2100 mhz. It never gets hotter than 55 degrees. Every old style rasp pi (3, 3+, 4) I have has over heated and I've had to attach a case and a fan. Over clocked I have no problem running youtube / twitch etc... I plan on 3d printing a custom laptop case where I will put in a battery pack and screen. Fun future project :)
I personally love it and use it as a desktop system at the moment.
Doesn't the Pi 400 come in a kit with some assembly required? The Pi 4 board should be able to fit other boxes, and to be clustered. Two units together have 8gb of RAM as well as 8 cores at 1.8ghz (or 2.4ghz overclocked). Other boxes may have connectivity for more devices.
No sadly not a kit. That would be awesome though!
HillPhantom, I think you missed the point. You can enjoy plenty of media with just a 2gb pi4, heck even a pi3 with its measly 1gb of ram works fine for media consumption, when you actively choose to use it as such. These are small embedded computers, they are meant to perform tasks, and they do so admirably. Want to use the pi to consume media? Set it up as a Kodi box, youtube? You can access youtube via kodi, and consume content from your favorite creators just fine. Narrowing in on the Pi400 itself, USB cameras work just fine on it, so the official camera board is not really a necessity, and for the formfactor it makes more sense to jsut use a usb camera as it's not a naked board being implemented into a project, its a little AIO keyboard computer. As for portability, did you forget that USB battery banks exist? USB powered portable monitors also exist, if you really want to make it portable, go for it.
I think 4gb is perfectly fine when it comes to the Pi400, and getting an 8GB model in the future would be cool, but not entirely necessary. 4GB is the happy medium in the pi4b line, if you need more than that, your crunching large datasets, or logging to ram extensively. I of course do see an 8GB model potentially happening in the future if there's enough demand for it, but I don't think it's all that important as in general use it's not necessary. Change some settings allot a little more ram to the GPU, overclock if you want to, stop expecting to get buttery smooth youtube playback in resolutions higher than 720p in a web browser.
Headphone jack missing? Eh... not really needed. It would be nice to have, but only if it stays being a combo jack with an analog video output, if only to expand the ability to use it on older TVs/monitors, like my commodore monitor that still looks so good. Most modern small tv's / monitors have audio out on them you can plugin headphones to them. Both my 24inch monitor, and my 24 inch tv have audio out ports that I can plugin headphones to if I really want to.
1st party accessories and addons, not likely. Aside from alternate grey/black color scheme for itself and the mouse, don't expect much here. MAYBE an official 45 degree hat board to bring the GPIO port out and up for compatibility with the wide assortments of already available hats including the official sense hat, will be made, but even that's not likely to be from the Pi foundation themselves, Though Adafruit is/has released one, so that's nice.
In the end these are maker boards. The pi400 is too. These are made so makers young and old can make what they want to make. To that end they are fairly bare bones and only have the most basic of official accessories and addons, because the point is to make it yourself. Going back to that battery/screen you want so bad, GPIO is there, the whole thing can be powered from the 5v rail, and pi computers have had gpio driven displays for a long time, would take a little engineering, but it would not be too difficult for someone who knows what they are doing to design an addon that would plug into the GPIO header, provide battery, screen, and even an on/off switch. What I hear is you want a Cyberdeck already made for you from the pi400.
And yea, at $100 USD, the pi400 does come pretty close to the price of a cheap chromebook. But you can't plug a cheap chromebook into a breadboard and prototype a dotmatrix display that scrolls your twitter feed, then build it on some protoboard and slap it to a pi0w and set it on your desk to do its thing.
Anyway this got long, I think in the end, an intel NUC might suit your needs better. It's more expensive, a little bigger, but your not going to have problems watching videos in your browser, and you can cram all the ram you want into it.
TL;DW: it only ships with 4GB memory, which according to the video makes it unfit as a desktop computer (weak for youtube playback or video processing), while okay for retro gaming.
A little bit better now the software update but still not great but awesome RETRO gamer for sure!
Chromebook doesn't have GPIO & development tools for learning. Runs old school game emulators fine as well.
Can not please them all!! I love mine, and with the inability to get any PI's, you can gut it and use it for other things. It also works good for Kali and Programing, as well as most Lenux destro's.
I would buy it with 8gb ram and headphone jack. I really want it.
I added usb to 3.5 dongle and overclocked works well! If you want it and ok modding it..get it for sure...
@@HillPhantom thank you.
I have an 8 gb raspberry pi 4 overclocked to 2.147 ghz and its using about 900 mb watching this video on youtube and its buttery smooth, I have never seen my pi go more than 1.5 gb with normal stuff, I dont get why 4gb is not enough for email on your opinion, my raspberry pi 4 gb behaves the same as the 8 gb , its safe to say that I myself have not tapped the 4 gb potentieal much less the 8, I agree on everything else the audio jack not being there is a big miss.
I'm so happy that I did not follow the reviewers advice. No offense. Build quality is great and I'm really enjoying my pi 400.
None taken! Enjoy. I have mine modded and it fits my needs after another 60 dollar investment. Cheers
@@HillPhantom Cool! Your mod to get the pi400 closer to where you want it sounds like another video you could do!
@@toddknudsen9192 little gun shy after all the down votes, but I think I will, what the heck! I am waiting on one last part then I will certainly post, I hope you will watch!
@@HillPhantom Of course I'll watch!
They sell ups batteries for raspberry pi which would work with the gpio port
My thoughts on it were "well it has 2 hdmi outs, and it's a fraction of the cost of a GPU card with the same functionality".
Oh and it cam talk to electronics .. I'm not aware of much other platforms that can do that