RoadTest: XBMC Bundle for Raspberry Pi
Author: migration.user
Creation date:
Evaluation Type: Independent Products
Did you receive all parts the manufacturer stated would be included in the package?: True
What other parts do you consider comparable to this product?:
What were the biggest problems encountered?: Difficulty connecting to WiFi, but that was more an issue on our end than the OS. Some discomfort using the keyboard for extended periods of time.
Detailed Review:
The HDMI cable and SD card are standard fare, nothing too exciting there. You can pick up better ones for a few more dollars or cheaper ones for a few less dollars at your local big box store. Or, you might already have a few laying around. However, these are nice to bundle along with a Raspberry Pi for someone who might not have them, like some of my students.
The nice feature here is the wireless keyboard. It's a little bigger than a cellphone but has full mouse features. It is definitely one of the better small size wireless keyboards I have used. It is very solid and if you are used to texting, it works great. I lent the bundle out to my students for a few days at a time and all them felt very comfortable using the keyboard. They liked it a lot better than the old USB keyboards I was able to salvage and give to them.
The operating system worked without any problems. I made a few copies of the SD card to give them out to more than one student at a time and so they would all have the opportunity to go through the set up. None of them reported any problems that were related to the operating system (we are having trouble connecting to the school's wireless network with the Raspberry Pi, but that happens with any OS we use; wired networking works without a problem. Our network is set up to automatically change permissions and access based on the kind of device that connects and it seems that it doesn't know what to do with a Raspberry Pi).
Overall, the students really enjoyed it. The keyboard and ease of using the OS gave them something they could quickly show off to their friends so people could see the usefulness of the Raspberry Pi.
