The latest version of British computer Raspberry Pi has become the first computer to be given away free with a magazine.
The Pi Zero is a fully fledged computer which measures just 6.5cm by 3cm. Made in Wales, it sells for just £4 in the UK and $5 in the US. Raspberry Pi is also giving the device away for free with the purchase of its £5.99 monthly magazine, MagPi.
Like all computers made by Raspberry Pi, the machine runs Raspbian, a version of the Linux operating system built for the devices. It ships with a 1GHz processor and 512Mb of memory (the same amount that was included in the iPad 2 in 2011, and equivalent to a desktop computer in the early 2000s), and can run apps built for the operating system, such as coding tool Scratch and the game Minecraft.
Raspberry Pi says: “Of all the things we do at Raspberry Pi, driving down the cost of computer hardware remains one of the most important. Even in the developed world, a programmable computer is a luxury item for a lot of people, and every extra dollar that we ask someone to spend decreases the chance that they’ll choose to get involved.
“The original Raspberry Pi Model B and its successors put a programmable computer within reach of anyone with $20–35 to spend … At the start of this year, we began work on an even cheaper Raspberry Pi to help these people take the plunge.”
Although the Raspberry Pi is the best selling British computer ever, the company which manufactures it, Premier Farnell, still ran into financial trouble this summer, leading to the ousting of the chief executive Laurence Bian.
The Raspberry Pi foundation, which developed the computer, is a non-profit.
