FazzNoth Posted July 13, 2022 Posted July 13, 2022 The CrowPi L is a powerful Raspberry-Pi powered laptop and effective STEM kit for kids, but you’ll need to pay a premium to take advantage of the available hardware tutorials the system has to offer. Pros + Built-in internal battery + Easy to follow Scratch-based and Python tutorials + Fun game design programming lessons and hardware projects + External monitor and dual-boot system support Cons - Doesn’t work with Raspberry Pi 3 and older - Sensors and controllers needed for hardware projects are not included in the basic kit - Some tutorials have unclear instructions The CrowPi L is a Raspberry Pi-powered laptop built to educate, engage and entertain young minds and usher them into the world of programming and electronics. It incorporates fun activities and interactive lessons to teach kids how to code. The kit includes lots of tutorials to try and a wide range of projects that would appeal to a variety of different interests. From lessons on how to design and program games, to hands-on projects that explain electronic concepts and how circuitry works, there’s a lot for kids to learn and enjoy. Starting at $239 (currently on sale for $203(opens in new tab)), the CrowPi L comes with a USB wireless mouse, a 32 GB microSD card loaded with the custom OS, educational software, and a custom GPIO expansion shield for hardware projects. Pricing and Availability The CrowPi L is available in a few different configurations. You can choose from the basic model or advanced model, which costs about $60 more because it includes the Crowtail Starter Kit for Raspberry Pi. Shipped in a separate box, this kit contains the different motors and sensors you will need for the Letscode (Elecrow’s custom version of the Scratch programming language) and Python hardware projects. The laptop only comes in matte white, but you have an option of getting either a white or black keyboard. On Elecrow’s site, you also have the option to add either a Raspberry Pi 4 4GB or 8GB to the purchase, should you not have your own. Our review sample was an advanced model which came with a white keyboard and the Crowtail Starter Kit but did not include a Raspberry Pi. We should note that the CrowPi L is not compatible with Raspberry Pi 3 or older, so if you do not have a Raspberry Pi 4 then you must include it as an add-on (or buy one elsewhere). The company claims to have included this option to help during the chip shortage. The price of the Raspberry Pi 4 is still way above its original MSRP, but Elecrow’s site sells it much cheaper than Amazon(opens in new tab) right now. Basic ModelAdvance Model Without Raspberry Pi$239*$299 Add Raspberry Pi 4B - 4GB$145$145 Add Raspberry Pi 4B - 8GB$157$157 *Elecrow is currently offering a 15% discount from their website, bringing down the most basic model to ~$200. https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/crowpi-l-raspberry-pi-laptop-stem-kit 1
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