Cambridge Raspberry Jam Goodies

On the 21st September I made my way from Bristol to Cambridge for a Raspberry Jam. It was quite a long journey but was worth it.

I didn’t really plan on buying anything while I was there as I didn’t need anything.

However, that was before I saw the tempting range of Pi items available from the vendors. So here is a quick summary of the various bits and pieces I walked away with.

PiLite (Ciseco)

The Pi-Lite is a 14×9 LED matrix board which plugs onto the Pi’s GPIO header. It’s easy to create scrolling text effects and produce custom animations. The only limit is your imagination and 126 red LEDs. I’ve started to create some articles based on this device.

PiHub (Cyntech/Pimoroni)

I didn’t really need a hub but I figured it would good to have one in my Pi collection for future experiments. It’s designed and made in the UK and highly recommended. It can power four Pis if required.

Pi Case (Cyntech)

I’ve tended to buy clear perspex cases from eBay for my projects. This time I decided to treat myself to a Cyntech case which at £3.50 wasn’t that expensive. For an extra 50p I also grabbed an SD card cover which clips into the case protecting the SD card.

MicroUSB to USB Cables (Cyntech)

These cables are always useful so I decided to add another two to my collection. They were only £1 each and as you can see I went for the safe black/blue option.

GPIO Reference (The Pi Hut)

This is a little PCB that can be placed over the pins on the GPIO header. The labels will then help you identify specific pins on the header without needing another reference. The board has a hole punched in one corner so you can attach to a keyring if required.

Business Cards

Luckily I managed to meet some of my fellow Pi enthusiasts and collect a few business cards. They were all far more imaginative than the bargain-basement cards I bought myself.