Arduino vs. Raspberry Pi // Bits | I Like To Make Stuff

In this episode of Bits, we compare the functions and uses for the Arduino line of micro controllers and the Raspberry Pi microcomputer. Each can control your electronics projects, but which one should you use?

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We have lots of projects including woodworking, metalworking, electronics, 3D printing, prop making and more!

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Arduino vs. Raspberry Pi // Bits | I Like To Make Stuff

I Like To Make Stuff

[SwitchAndLever]

Great video Bob! One small thing though, the Arduino UNO (and most other models) can run on anything between 5-12V, because they have a built in regulator which will step the voltage down to what the board needs. The RaspberryPi takes 5V, non negotiable. This means that you're a bit more free in how you power the Arduino, and you could for instance power it directly in a car from the on board electric system, whereas the RaspberryPi needs to have it stepped down first.

[antalz]

Should really have mentioned that the Pi's 40 pins are not all IO, many of them are 5V, 3V3 and GND, or are otherwise limited. The Pi's logic is 3.3V, while arduino is 5V. A Pi has no analog input by itself, it needs help from an MCP3008 or a similar ADC chip. Finally, once you have a working arduino, you can easily scoop out the actual logic chip, and put that in your project for a really compact build. The big difference here is that an ATtiny or ATMega chip costs maybe 2-5$, while a for raspberry pi your only option is the whole board for around 35-40$, excluding SD card.

[scootersworkbench]

Great Bits! Thanks for the difference. Would love to see more Bits on the electronics sides (Motor Controllers, Servos, sensors, etc) Love this series!

[zmurah]

I’ve heard you explain the difference between the two through the Making It podcast and the random projects here and there; however, this Bits expiation takes the cake, or pi, or whatever digital desert you choose. Bob for the win once again! Thanks for all that you do.

[jaylittlefield]

This is one of the best explanations I have heard comparing these two devices. Thanks, as always, for the clear cut education!

[mtslyh]

Shutdown is also important to consider. You really shouldn't just kill the power to a Raspberry Pi as it could potentially corrupt the OS. An Arduino is better suited to consumer products where they are more likely to just pull the plug or want to flip a switch to turn it off. Raspberry Pi's are better suited to long running devices that the user understands need to be used a certain way. So you wouldn't want to put a Raspbery Pi in a toaster. But a Raspberry Pi is reasonable for a network storage device or media streaming server that users intend to leave on all the time.

[georgecunningham]

VERY helpful. I had never heard of a Raspberry PI until a few days ago and was steeling myself to look it up and spend hours trying to decipher the tech-speak and distill it down to terms I can understand. Now I have no need to do have made it clear and concise and I can now astound my geriatric friends with my knowledge LOL

BTW - love the Bits series.these little snippets of knowledge are interesting and useful and don't clutter up my brain with a whole bunch of unnecessary "let me speak a full minute more of nonsense so the video is long enough". Thanks for that!

[MrElemem]

One note about Arduino is that if you build a standalone unit (without the USB connectivity that the Uno has), you will consume much less power. I recently built a Halloween gadget with LEDs for my kids. It runs through a flash cycle and then sleeps until reactivated by a monitored switch. While it is running it consumes ~14mA but while it sleeps it only consumes 0.28mA! And I have no idea what I’m doing! I’m sure more knowledgeable people could do even better

[phillypauly]

I have been playing with these for a while now but this is the best 5 minute summary I have ever heard.

[ionx]

Just getting into DIY and Bits is really helping.

[dleland]

Extremely well said! I started on the RPi and moved to the Arduino (then back to the RPi)... They each have their strengths and weaknesses. Keep up the projects that use both. :)

[ciaranodubhgain]

Just got home from school you are amazing Bob

[MCsCreations]

Really nice!
There are a few projects I would love to build with the PI... Like a smart mirror, for example.

[keenanpress]

My 6-year old and I love watching your videos. So much so that my wife just said “he keeps calling the TV remote an arduino?” We know little about coding so that definitely came from ILTMS. Thanks for the info!

[sasabarisic]

You mentioned the arduino runs a "subset of the C programming language", which is not true. All the arduino sketches are actually programmed in C++. The backend compiler is a modified version of gcc which compiles the code into the AVR instruction set. You can most likely find other compilers online which compile other programming language to the AVR instruction set.

[bradmakes]

Excellent video as always Bob! -- Did anyone else think his desktop background was chicken fingers @ 1:13, or am I the only hungry boi in the room. --- Yes, I do realize its probably a rocket taking off... but ugh, that's some real crispy looking exhaust!!

[jcsmith]

What are the chances you could do a BITS video for an intro to write code for these arcade cabinets bc I REALLY wanna make one and that’s the only thing that’s holding me back!!!! Thanks

[SuperMakeSomething]

Absolutely fantastic summary, Bob! Good stuff and thanks for posting!

[zachthecoolmcyter]

Idk why I’m so addicted to every single video of yours.

[heyimamaker]

I really enjoy the Adafriut feathers and feather wings. I found it a bit overwhelming trying to figure out what works with what and what voltages.

Great video!