![]() ![]() If you want to build a retro arcade machine, complete with an arcade joystick and buttons, the Pimoroni Picade X HAT is the board to get. There is nothing not to like about the Pimoroni IO Expander, which is small in size but big in features and it should be in the bits box of every Raspberry Pi enthusiast. This design is not accidental, rather it is deliberate as the IO Expander is part of Pimoroni’s Breakout Garden range of boards. These five pins can be soldered to using the included male / female header pins, then placed atop the I2C pins of the GPIO. The need for so few connections is due to the IO Expander using I2C, a two wire serial communication protocol. Measuring a mere 1 x 0.9 inch (25 x 23mm) the board has only five connections which are made to the GPIO. The Pimoroni IO Expander is not a typical add on board for the Raspberry Pi. ![]() The IO Expander provides up to 14 extra GPIO pins, with all offering digital input / output, six with PWM (Pulse Width Modulation), useful for precise control of motors, and eight analog inputs to be used with electronic components such as potentiometers. Whether you need more GPIO pins or your project needs analog inputs, the IO Expander from Pimoroni is a cost effective and simple means to do just that for $10. If not used with Breakout Garden HAT, soldering is required. We do lose access to all of the GPIO pins when using the Explorer HAT Pro, but considering that this board provides so many different inputs / outputs and is designed with beginners in mind, we can forgive this loss. To top it all off there is a built in breadboard on which we can build our experiments. Two built in motor controllers mean we can build a robot using this board. Perhaps most importantly, it has four built-in analog inputs so you can attach analog devices such as potentiometers and joysticks without the need for an additional analog-to-digital converter chip (something the Pi lacks on its own). Four capacitive touch pads and four crocodile clip pads offer touch and capacitive input which can turn conductive objects, such as fruit and aluminum foil into fun inputs.īuffered 5v tolerant inputs and outputs and provide easy use of common electronic components you would normally need an Arduino board for. The Explorer HAT Pro is an all in one electronics lab which fits neatly on to the GPIO. We've used the Explorer HAT Pro since 2015 and it remains a powerful add-on for the Raspberry Pi. Does the HAT use all your pins? While most Raspberry Pi HATs physically cover all 40 GPIO pins, many of them allow a pass-through so you can use many of those pins with other devices or even another HAT stacked on top of the first one.įor general purpose experiments in electronics nothing can beat Pimoroni's Explorer range of boards.How can the HAT be programmed? Does it come with a Python module, and is it user friendly? Can it be programmed in another language? Is there documentation to support your learning?.If you are using a Raspberry Pi 400 then you will need a breakout board to access the GPIO. Raspberry Pi Zero W users may want to look for pHAT, smaller HATs designed for Zero form factor. Does the HAT work with your Raspberry Pi? Every Raspberry Pi since 2014’s Raspberry Pi B+ features a 40 pin GPIO, and all HAT boards are designed for that.What is the HAT for? If it’s for a particular project, does it do what you need it for? If it is for a child, does the HAT have enough features to grow with their learning?.When buying a Raspberry Pi HAT, ask yourself these questions: Why you can trust Tom's Hardware Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. HATs are an easy way to add extra features without connecting a mess of wires. The HAT standard follows a similar standard used by Arduino boards, where they are called "shields". It provided a standardized means to connect the Raspberry Pi’s set of 40 GPIO pins (increased from 26 to 40 with the B+) to add-ons providing functionality such as lights, motors, sensors and fans without a mess of wires. But all this changed when the HAT (hardware attached on top) standard was introduced along with the Raspberry Pi B+ in 2014. Some, such as the first official expansion, 2012's GertBoard (opens in new tab) were larger than the Pi itself. Originally the Raspberry Pi didn't have a standard definition for boards. But to make the most of the Pi, it helps to have the right expansion board. ![]() We can learn to code, build robots, monitor the location of the International Space Station (they've even been onboard the ISS!), and so much more. The Raspberry Pi is an awesome platform for learning and experimentation. ![]()
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