Raspberry Pi Zero W launches with wireless LAN and Bluetooth
It's the fifth birthday of the original Raspberry Pi, and what better way to celebrate than with a new release? Today Raspberry Pi Founder Eben Upton announced the Raspberry Pi Zero W, the next iteration of 2015's Raspberry Pi Zero. Not a whole lot is changing with this new release, save for a couple very important additions.
In a video announcing the Raspberry Pi Zero W, Upton says that the reaction to the original Zero was great, but they noticed that a number of owners were using dongles to attach their peripherals. With the Zero's limited ports, that became something of a problem, leading to the introduction of the Zero W, which now includes 802.11n wireless LAN and Bluetooth functionality.
The Zero W uses the same Cypress CYW43438 wireless chip found in the Raspberry Pi 3 Model B. While this is an exciting announcement, the major draw of the original Zero was that it only cost $5 to purchase – a truly minuscule amount considering what you got. With this added wireless functionality, how much will the price increase?
Not much, it turns out. The Raspberry Pi Zero W will cost a mere $10, keeping the cost well below the already inexpensive Raspberry Pi 3 Model B. Here's the full list of hardware in the Raspberry Pi Zero W:
- 1GHz, single-core CPU
- 512MB RAM
- Mini-HDMI port
- Micro-USB On-The-Go port
- Micro-USB power
- HAT-compatible 40-pin header
- Composite video and reset headers
- CSI camera connector
- 802.11n wireless LAN
- Bluetooth 4.0
Just as well, Raspberry Pi has announced a case for the Zero W, made by the folks at Kinneir Dufort and T-Zero. The case will ship with three different covers – one covers the Zero W entirely, while the second has an opening to access the GPIOs and the third has an opening and mounting point for a camera. The case is compatible with both the Zero and Zero W, and can be had in a bundle with the Zero W from The Pi Hut for £15.60 (about $19).
The Raspberry Pit Zero W is available now, so have at it if you've been wanting to add some wireless functionality to your micro computing.
SOURCE: Raspberry Pi