Raspberry Pi 500+ puts the Pi, 16GB of RAM, and a real SSD in a mechanical keyboard

The Raspberry Pi 500 (and 400) systems are versions of the Raspberry Pi built for people who use the Raspberry Pi as a general-purpose computer rather than a hobbyist appliance.

The Raspberry Pi has always been one of my favorite little computers. They’re perfect for quick projects and ideal for deployment to non-technical people who just need a basic computer for email, word processing, and similar tasks.

The 400 and now the 500 models take things a step further by integrating everything into a keyboard. Having a complete computer built right into a keyboard is pretty neat, in my opinion.

The main drawback has always been their reliance on SD cards (micro SD cards, to be exact). However, the new 500 series offers a compelling $200 option that includes a built-in 256GB SSD and 16GB of RAM. That combination makes it very attractive.

I’m constantly working on small projects to experiment with new ideas, and I think this could be a great addition to my toolkit.