The Next Big Thing (possibly smaller)

This came a few days ago. I wasn't completely aware of its existence. It's a Pi 3a+ and I am told it shares almost identical specs to the Pi 3b+. The differences being the lack of an ethernet port, only a single full-size USB port, and half the ram of the b+. I used a b+ on a previous bartop and it was really good.

My intention was to use this Pi Zero W for the next project.

This 17" Acer monitor was going to pair with it. I looked into what I would need to use the Pi zero, and the main thing I would need was a USB sound card. Of course, this would then use up the only USB socket on the board which would mean using the GPIO (or a powered USB hub, not cheap), and you might have noticed the GPIO pins are missing and I would need to solder those in. Added to that, the Pi Zero is underpowered for a lot of games I would like to run. If I was going to use this one it would be a low expense build.

Then I spotted the Pi 3a+ on Amazon for £23 delivered. Although it only has the single USB port, it does have a GPIO header and a 3.5mm sound output. Also, a full-size HDMI port is a bonus, negating the need for cable converters. So I ordered this one and then the problems started. 

That 17" Acer screen gave me a headache for a couple of days. I could not get that thing to work. Actually, that's not entirely true. I got it to work. Twice. Each time with a freshly burned SD card. And then the next boot it would not wake the screen. Very frustrating. And so the 17" Acer is going back to its actual owner and I will move onto another project instead.

Other Pi's I have hanging about waiting for a home. This Pi4 2gb.

And this Pi b+

And on the left here is probably the monitor I will use for the next build. Its a 19" HP IPS display. Very nice quality screen. I picked it up very cheap off Facebook around December, paid £30 for two of them.

And so I have to come up with a project to fit around that screen. It isn't what I wanted to use so my plans for an ultra-tiny and slim, one-player bartop, have gone out the window. I might possibly revert to making a normal size bartop with a view to selling to fund the next project. That might be fun. If I do that I will probably use the pi 4 instead. The extra USB ports will be needed for the two-player controls (I am not going to go down the GPIO route unless I have no other choice).