Sure, you may not need or use all of the sensors provided in the kit. And yes, you can get the sensors and accessories separately and use them with tons of open source projects available online but kits like CrowPi, make it all streamlined. This is ideal for schools and for people who want to explore programming the hardware devices without struggling with the hardware assembly.There is an empty slot at the bottom that could hold a few tiny accessories. It’s a small thing but Still, it is tiny which is okay for retro gaming and a few small stuff to check the output or see debug info but you’ll need a proper screen to make use of it.The ready-to-use kit eliminates the setup frustration that could arise from manually connecting all those sensors, fans and lights.
Table of Contents
What is CrowPi 3?
This is suitable for classrooms, as well as motivated self-learning at home. It is also a good Christmas gift candidate if you have children in your family that might be interested in learning AI, coding and electronics. The kit features two breadboards positioned strategically on the main board, eliminating the frustrating “where do I connect this?” moments.This is why the Raspberry Pi and Arduino like devices provide such a great learning environment. Adding hardware components to the board gives meaning to the software.
- Raspberry Pi 5 as the brain of the kit (advance kit includes the pi)
- 20+ sensors pre-wired and ready
- 4.3″ touchscreen + HDMI connections for external monitors
- Built-in breadboards and GPIO access
- Arduino and Pi Pico can be attached on top of it
- 128 GB micro SD card with custom operating system
There is a visible cooling fan with RGB lighting. While it seemed cool at the beginning, it started to annoy me later. Don’t get me wrong. I know that Raspberry Pi like devices must have some sort of cooling system. This is evident as the customized learning interface is not properly displayed in the tiny screen. You are not restricted to this customized interface. You can also use the classic Raspbian interface and access the editors and projects from there as well.
Who is this kit for?
The CrowPi takes this forward by giving an entire learning laboratory that transforms abstract programming concepts into tangible, interactive experiences.I don’t have the pricing at the time of writing this review. Elecrow is planning to run a pre-order campaign through Kickstarter very soon. Please check it for pricing and release dates.The basic kit has the following item in addition to the pre-wired ones on the board already: The CrowPi 3 solves the “hello world” problem in programming education. Instead of printing text to screens, students control real-world devices and see immediate physical results.
But all this can be assembled…
Hardware assembly could be fun, too, but it could be frustrating and time-consuming. These kits flatten the learning curve a little, letting the students enjoy dipping their toes in the vast ocean of electronic geekery.To use the interactive projects, you’ll have to create an account. I think it’s a local user account that stays on your system. This way, more than one people can save their progress.
CrowPi 3 Kit contents
I also think that it is suitable for teachers that need turnkey STEM curriculum tools.
The advanced kit has these items in addition to everything in the basic kit:
The core components are:
The CrowPi kit comes in a briefcase styled box which kind of gives me the cyberdeck feel. The case looks good with the frosted glass.
Okay, I could access pretty much most of the things with this tiny screen and it becomes even easier to use when I connected proper keyboard and mouse to it. The small screen has touch capability and the touch response is pretty decent but I would only use it when there are no other options available. My fat fingers and eyes are not suitable for tiny screens anymore.A dedicated section of AI projects to try beginner level AI projects using the on-board camera and various sensors.
The sensory board experience
📋No prizes for guessing that there were at least two more such CrowPi kits in the past and considering the fact that this is the third such inastallment, I would think that the first two devices met with success.
The cooling fan
This is a well-thought and well-built device. It comes in a briefcase styled box with a fold-out handle that makes it easy to carry. The frosted glass cover doesn’t come off easily as it has strong magnets and all the sensors and components are firmly fixed in the kit.I mean, those variables are more meaningful when they represent real sensor readings. The conditional logic makes more sense when you can control lights and motors with it.
Bottom line
Of course, it is not just limited to children. People new to Raspberry Pi/Arduino would also benefit from the guided experiences of such a kit.But this fan is much too loud for its size. And it runs continuously, unnecessarily. There is no on/off button for that and I don’t expect such a feature. Now, this could be a good programming challenge to write a script that turns the fan off when the CPU reaches a certain temperature threshold.For example, in the screenshot above (if it is visible), it creates a simple program that sounds the buzzer on the board for the specified time.Elecrow has been known for creating great Raspberry Pi products. They are launching their latest product, CrowPi 3. They sent me the device to test and share the experience and that’s what I am going to do in this article.This custom operating system is a customized version of Raspbian OS and has numerous ready-to-explore projects across multiple programming environments like Python, Scratch etc.
