This a basic starter kit for a raspberry pi 3 B+. It's mostly good but I found a few issues.
First, the good: The kit is neatly packaged and contains all that is described in the product description. Powering on the Pi, with the microSD card installed, results in a functioning Pi with a NOOBS prompt on start (unless you format the card). The power supply, card and card reader all functioned normally with no apparent issues.
The neutral: This kit comes with two heatsinks. One for the CPU and one for the ethernet controller. They have sticky pads on the back and are simple to install. The CPU heatsink's pad is slightly off the heatsink (less than a nanometer), but not enough to dock a star.
Now, the bad: The case is poorly designed and looks like a rehash of the 3's case without accounting that much for the additional PoE pins and the movement of the Ethernet controller. After finally getting the case on (bit of a pain), you will find that the slot for Ethernet controller makes it where the heatsink cannot be installed properly. The controller was moved closer toward the ethernet port, but the case just widens the slot. The chip sits just inside the slot and is slightly overlapped by the surrounding plastic. This makes installing the heatsink a bit difficult and prevents it from fully sitting on the chip. The PoE pins slot is even worse. The slot gives more space on the GPIO side of the pins, but overlaps them on the USB port side. This will make using the PoE pins a little more difficult or impossible. Another issue includes the etching for the PWR and ACT lights being on the wrong side. The case has two holes cut on each side of the Display slot for the PWR and ACT LEDs. The LEDs on the Pi are on the microUSB side of the board, but the etching labelling the holes is on the GPIO side. One additional minor issue is that the hole for the CPU doesn't have the CPU in the center (it's slightly to the side), but that's not a big deal. Additionally, the microSD card reader doesn't let the card sit in flush. The card sticks out a little on the notched side. It doesn't affect the usability, but it is a questionable design choice.
To summarize:
- Good:
* Neatly packed
* Comes with all listed parts
* Everything works
- Neutral:
* Heatsink sticky pad is a bit off, but no big deal
-Bad:
* Case doesn't account for PoE pins
* Case doesn't account for movement of Ethernet controller
* Etching for PWR and ACT labels on the wrong side
* microSD card sits crooked in reader
This kit saves you a little time, so it can be worth it to buy for new users. Toss the case and get more open design option that allows for the heatsink to be installed and the PoE option to be more easily used.
| Processor | 1.4 GHz |
|---|---|
| RAM | 1 GB |
| Wireless Type | Bluetooth |
