If you want to connect a computer to your TV, I have a solid solution for you that is dirt cheap. Raspberry Pi! No, I didn’t leave out the “e” in Pie and, no, this is not something you eat.
Raspberry Pi is the smallest desktop computer, the size of a credit card, that plugs into your TV. It works just like a regular desktop support computer would. At just $25-$35, it’s worth a try, right?
Here’s the catch with Raspberry Pi. It’s just a motherboard that requires you to buy a small charger, Pi operating system and storage space. But, that’s pretty straight-forward to add these items on when checking out at the computer support stores who sell them, Farnell and RS. The operating system comes preloaded on a 4GB SD card, the same cards you may find in your camera. All in all, you’ll be paying about $80 for the full tiny computer.
What are the specs on this small computer?
- 512MB RAM
- 2 USB ports
- 1 Ethernet port
- 4-6GB SD Card
- Android-base Raspberry Pi operating system
You may purchase a larger SD card and load up the operating system yourself. The best use to get on these computers is for movie streaming, emailing, Internet browsing, social media checking, and anything else that doesn’t require download and saving big files. The whole point behind this small gadget is to be able to connect to the Internet easily from your TV without messing around with Smart TV devices, such as Apple TV or Roku.
We have set this up for computer office networks who want to be able to quickly get on the Internet from the conference room TV’s. Obviously, you can use it for more fun at home as well.
