What's inside the Raspberry Pi 500?

I tear down Raspberry Pi's new Pi 500, a single board computer tucked inside a keyboard.

How easy is it to repair? What's inside? And can we fix the missing M.2 connector?

Contents:

00:00 - Pi 500 Overview
02:08 - Compared to Pi 400
04:32 - Let's crack this case!
05:58 - A new keyboard
06:44 - Passive heatsink
08:46 - The SBC hiding inside
12:46 - Grade-school level M.2 soldering
14:33 - Does an NVMe SSD work?
16:08 - Fresh eyes and solder that's unwise
17:36 - Pi 500 PCB vs Pi 400

[geographicaloddity]

That takes courage: finding out your idea didn't work and yet still sharing the process. Thanks.

[alap]

The absence of an NVMe SSD slot kills the appeal of the Pi 500 significantly. With the slot, the Pi could easily be one of the best entry-level "My First Computer" for students.

[vileerdeng]

Comparing it to the official NVMe hat or the CM5 IO board may reveal what components are missing under the bottom. Electronic companies usually use the same design for different products to reduce costs.

[VoteOrDie]

If they
1) made it user serviceable
2) put an NVME slot on the back with a little door so you dont have to take it apart to add nvme
3) made a 16gb ram version
4) made a version with an aluminum body instead of plastic (optional)
Then i would get one in a heartbeat. Even if it costs an extra 100 dollars, or even 200 dollars, I'd happily make this my favorite pi, and my first full blown pi (i only ever had zeros and picos).

The aluminum body idea with the nvme door idea could also open the door for even better cooling by using the bottom as a big heatsink for the CPU and possible nvme drive. Throw in a tpm and rtc (idk if the 500 has an rtc with a slot for a battery like the pi) and it would become THE GOAT. Idk why, im only 26 so i dont have any nostalgia for the era, but i love the idea of a desktop keyboard/mini pc keyboard combo so much, i really wish they didnt go out of style. It would definitely be possible with an arm processor and all flash storage, and Raspberry pi are the main ones that can do it at the moment.

This is all without mentioning that an easily accessible nvme slot would also allow you to install ai co-processor, which would be an incredible tool for people learning the basics of AI.

I know most of this wont occur, but it just feels like there are multiple good ideas that are both right in front of them and completely being missed/ignored.

This also reminds of the question "why dont they just make USB-C versions of their Pi's?" Id happily pay a few extra dollars for USB C versions of raspberry pi products. I remember that their official stance is that microUSB is more accessible and saves them a few more cents per board (a cost that adds up according to them) but not only is USB-C becoming more common, but plenty of people would pay extra to more than make up the difference in cost between microUSB and USB-C.

[kneekoo]

The lack of M.2 means I'll just wait for the 600. Maybe that will bring both colors back on the keyboard. No idea why they went full white on this one.

3:53 That's a programmable LED. It's a nice thingy to let people start programming. :) It's also useful if you use it as a notification LED for background tasks.

[snooks]

I think they messed up the m.2 placement anyway, it should be on the bottom side so there could be a door to install it through

[ak_rex_]

"i'm really good at bridging these solder joints" - Jeff

Me too Jeff, me Too.

[rklauco]

I seriously wonder how long will it take for someone to:
- take existing NVMe hat and find out the parts missing on the board
- take existing PoE hat and find out the parts missing on this board
- solder it all together
- make RPi 500 pro plus :)

[lideruploader]

Watching Jeff soldering is like watching Bob Ross painting, its relaxing and there are some happy accidents but its always a joyful learning experience.

[AsahelFrost]

The POE circuitry is why there are separate magnetics for the Ethernet.

[mausball]

Check the NVME hat, the POE hat, and the CM5 IOB. I'd bet a fancy pizza that they reused the same schematics, and thus the parts will be the same.

[timseguine]

The m.2 circuit is apparently missing some surface mount capacitors and if you add them it works.

[TheOne-ofMany]

Thanks for the teardown. The reason I was looking for this video was to see if there was enough room inside to add an NVME drive. I didn't expect the board to already be partially prepped for it, and unfortunately it does not look like there is any other way to add one since the ZIF connector used on the regular Pi 5 is missing.
Now that I see this, I am really hoping the Pi 500 "pro" or whatever comes out with NVME and PoE.

[WRND]

Respect for be being brave enough to share that solder job and self-conscious enough to blur it out. 😅
Cheers.

[BadHorsie]

A good method for soldering sockets like this is to use a smaller tip on your soldering iron and drag solder it. Makes for a cleaner and tidier solder joints.

[CGW]

Use more flux and reheat the solder. Surface tension will make it reflow “perfectly”.

[LisSolitudinous]

When it'll get a proper M.2, it'll be SO worth it for me
Looking forward to it

[ColonelTux]

Jeff, you make me feel so much better about my own inept soldering skills! I had to laugh out loud when I saw the small mountain of used solder wick! Been there, done that. Haha

[sslaia]

Wow the OLPC (One Laptop Per Child Initiative) was launched too early. Now they could achieve this goal using this Raspberry board!

[StevenQiang]

if the Pi foundation really cares about the space, swap the Mini HDMI ports to Type C ports, or even just one full size HDMI