The Raspberry Pi, a series of compact single-board computers, was created in the UK by the Raspberry Pi Foundation and Broadcom. Initially aimed at promoting computer science education in schools, it gained unexpected popularity beyond its target market. Its affordability, adaptability, open design, and compatibility with HDMI and USB standards made it a favorite among hobbyists, robotics enthusiasts, and for applications in home and industrial automation.
1920: Raspberry Pi Display Resolution Support
The Raspberry Pi's video controller was capable of outputting a range of resolutions, from older CRT TV standards to modern HDTV resolutions like 1080p. However, maximum resolution support didn't guarantee the GPU could decode video formats at those resolutions.
1981: Acorn's BBC Micro Inspires the Raspberry Pi
The Raspberry Pi's design draws inspiration from Acorn's BBC Micro, released in 1981. The naming convention for the Raspberry Pi models, specifically the Model A, Model B, and Model B+, is a direct homage to the original models of the BBC Micro, a British educational computer developed by Acorn Computers.
1997: Raspberry Pi Performance Comparison
The first-generation Raspberry Pi, while operating at 700 MHz, offered performance comparable to a 300 MHz Pentium II processor from the 1997-1999 era.
2006: Early Raspberry Pi Concepts Emerge
The initial concepts for the Raspberry Pi began to take shape in 2006, with the design initially centered around the Atmel ATmega644 microcontroller. In a move towards transparency, the schematics and PCB layout were made available to the public. Eben Upton, a trustee of the Foundation, assembled a team of educators, academics, and computer enthusiasts to develop a computer capable of inspiring children's interest in technology.
January 2012: Raspberry Pi Generates Interest from Schools and Governments
By January 2012, Raspberry Pi had garnered significant interest from schools in the UK, with private schools showing a higher level of engagement. There were hopes for businesses to sponsor the technology for less privileged schools. Notably, a Middle Eastern government expressed interest in providing every schoolgirl with a board to improve their future employment opportunities.
February 2012: Raspberry Pi Model B Orders Open
The Raspberry Pi project took a significant step in February 2012 by starting to accept orders for the Model B, the higher-priced version at $35. This marked the beginning of the Raspberry Pi's journey to becoming widely available.
October 2012: Raspberry Pi Model B Release and Memory Management Update
The Raspberry Pi Model B with 512 MB RAM was released in October 2012. Initially using separate memory split files, a week later, a new start.elf file enabled dynamic RAM allocation for the GPU through a config.txt entry, simplifying memory management.
October 2012: Raspberry Pi Wins Innovation Award and Inspires Projects
The Raspberry Pi won T3's Innovation of the Year award in October 2012. The same month, the British Computer Society expressed interest in the Raspberry Pi following the announcement of enhanced specifications.
February 2013: Raspberry Pi Model A Released
Expanding its product line, the Raspberry Pi Foundation introduced the Model A in February 2013, priced at $25, offering a more affordable option.
2013: Raspberry Pi Foundation Subsidiary Established
In 2013, a subsidiary of the Raspberry Pi Foundation, Raspberry Pi Ltd., took over the development and support of Raspberry Pi devices.
May 2014: Next Thing Co. Launches OTTO Digital Camera with Raspberry Pi Compute Module
In May 2014, Next Thing Co. introduced OTTO, a digital camera powered by a Raspberry Pi Compute Module. The project successfully secured funding through a Kickstarter campaign, showcasing the versatility of the Raspberry Pi platform in consumer electronics.
June 2014: TECHBASE Releases ModBerry: Raspberry Pi for Industrial Automation
In June 2014, TECHBASE, a Polish industrial automation manufacturer, introduced ModBerry, an industrial computer powered by the Raspberry Pi Compute Module. ModBerry's numerous interfaces, tailored for industrial applications, expanded the Raspberry Pi's reach beyond home and academic projects. This marked its potential in Industrial IoT solutions and Industry 4.0 advancements.
August 2014: Slice Digital Media Player, Powered by Raspberry Pi, Launches via Kickstarter
August 2014 saw the launch of Slice, a digital media player with the Compute Module at its core. The project turned to Kickstarter for funding and found success. Slice's software is based on Kodi, highlighting the growing use of Raspberry Pi in home entertainment.
November 2014: Raspberry Pi A+ Released
In November 2014, the Raspberry Pi A+ was introduced, further lowering the entry barrier with its $20 price tag.
December 2014: Astro Pi Project Launches, Sending Raspberry Pi to the International Space Station
A groundbreaking project took flight in December 2014: the Astro Pi. This initiative, launched by the UK Space Agency, featured an augmented Raspberry Pi equipped with a sensor hat and camera. It paved the way for the Principia competition, open to UK primary and secondary school students, challenging them to develop code for the ISS.
2014: Raspberry Pi Foundation Launches Educational Initiatives
In 2014, the Raspberry Pi Foundation expanded its educational outreach by hiring community members, including former educators and software developers, to create free learning resources for its website. The Foundation also introduced Picademy, a teacher training program designed to equip educators with the skills to integrate Raspberry Pi into their classrooms for teaching the new computing curriculum.
February 2015: Raspberry Pi Achieves 5 Million Sales, Becomes Best-Selling British Computer
By February 2015, Raspberry Pi had sold over 5 million units, a significant milestone that established it as the best-selling British computer. This achievement underscored the project's success in making computing accessible and promoting computer science education.
February 2015: Raspberry Pi 2 Model B Light Sensitivity Issue
In February 2015, it was discovered that the switched-mode power supply chip (U16) in the Raspberry Pi 2 Model B version 1.1 was vulnerable to light, especially from camera flashes and lasers. This vulnerability was due to the exposed silicon die in the chip's packaging. The Raspberry Pi Foundation recommended covering the chip or using a case to mitigate the issue.
November 2015: Raspberry Pi Zero Released
Making the Raspberry Pi even more accessible, the Raspberry Pi Zero was released in November 2015, with an unprecedented price tag of $5 (£4).
2015: Raspberry Pi Outsells ZX Spectrum
By 2015, the Raspberry Pi became the best-selling British computer, surpassing the ZX Spectrum in unit sales.
2015: Raspberry Pi Community Flourishes
In 2015, the Raspberry Pi community experienced significant growth and was recognized for its vibrancy. It was praised for its supportive nature, allowing the Foundation to focus on educational resources. The community-driven fanzine, The MagPi, gained popularity and was eventually brought in-house. Raspberry Jam events, fostering community engagement, were held globally.
May 2016: USB Gadget Functionality Integration
In May 2016, the ability to use certain Raspberry Pi models as a USB device, or "USB gadget," was integrated into the mainline Raspbian distribution.
November 2016: Raspberry Pi Sales Reach 11 Million Units
Continuing its impressive sales trajectory, Raspberry Pi reached the 11 million units sold mark in November 2016, further solidifying its position as a market leader in the single-board computer market.
2016: Broadcom BCM2836 SoC Discontinuation
The Broadcom BCM2836 SoC, used in the initial release of the Raspberry Pi 2 Model B version 1.1, was discontinued in late 2016.
March 2017: Raspberry Pi Sales Hit 12.5 Million, Becomes Third Best-Selling General Purpose Computer
By March 2017, Raspberry Pi sales had climbed to 12.5 million units, securing its place as the third best-selling general-purpose computer. This milestone highlighted the Raspberry Pi's widespread adoption beyond its initial educational focus.
June 2017: Raspberry Pi Receives Royal Academy of Engineering MacRobert Award
In June 2017, the Raspberry Pi was honored with the Royal Academy of Engineering MacRobert Award for its impact on computing accessibility, education, and industrial applications.
July 2017: Raspberry Pi Sales Approach 15 Million Units
Raspberry Pi sales continued to climb, nearing 15 million units by July 2017, demonstrating a consistent and growing demand for the single-board computer.
2017: European Space Agency Launches Proxima Competition Using Astro Pi
Expanding the reach of the Astro Pi project, the European Space Agency launched the Proxima competition in 2017, open to all students in the European Union. This competition provided another opportunity for students to engage in space exploration and coding, with winning programs run on the ISS by French astronaut Thomas Pesquet.
March 2018: SUSE Announces Commercial Support for Raspberry Pi 3 Model B
Expanding the Raspberry Pi's reach into the industrial sector, SUSE announced commercial support for SUSE Linux Enterprise on the Raspberry Pi 3 Model B in March 2018. This move aimed to assist several unnamed clients who were implementing industrial monitoring solutions using the Raspberry Pi.
March 2018: Raspberry Pi Sales Reach 19 Million Units
In March 2018, Raspberry Pi announced that it had sold 19 million units, a testament to the platform's continued popularity and versatility across various applications.
2018: NASA Launches Open Source Rover Project Using Raspberry Pi
In 2018, NASA launched the JPL Open Source Rover Project, a scaled-down version of the Curiosity rover. This project, aimed at students and hobbyists, utilized a Raspberry Pi as its control module, encouraging participation in various STEM fields like mechanical, software, electronics, and robotics engineering.
June 2019: Raspberry Pi 4 Launch
The Raspberry Pi 4, launched in June 2019, was available in 1 GB, 2GB, and 4 GB RAM options.
December 2019: Raspberry Pi Surpasses 30 Million Units Sold
December 2019 marked a significant achievement for Raspberry Pi as it surpassed 30 million devices sold. This milestone solidified its position as a major player in the technology market.
February 2020: Raspberry Pi Announces Vulkan Driver Development
Raspberry Pi revealed it was working on a Vulkan driver in February 2020.
March 2020: Raspberry Pi Demand Surges During COVID-19 Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020 led to a surge in demand for Raspberry Pi. This increase was primarily driven by the rise in remote work and the use of Raspberry Pi Zeros in ventilators, particularly in countries like Colombia, to alleviate strain on healthcare systems. Consequently, sales skyrocketed, reaching 640,000 units – the second highest sales month in the company's history.
March 2020: Raspberry Pi 4 1 GB Model Discontinued
In March 2020, the Raspberry Pi 4 1 GB model was discontinued.
May 2020: Raspberry Pi 4 8 GB Model Introduced
May 2020 saw the introduction of an 8 GB RAM variant of the Raspberry Pi 4.
November 2020: Raspberry Pi 4 Vulkan 1.0 Conformance
On November 24, 2020, Raspberry Pi announced that the driver for Raspberry Pi 4 achieved Vulkan 1.0 conformance.
2020: Global Chip Shortage Impacts Raspberry Pi Availability
Starting in 2020, a global chip shortage significantly impacted the availability of Raspberry Pi products. This shortage posed challenges for both consumers and businesses relying on the single-board computers.
January 2021: TECHBASE Introduces Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 Cluster
Further solidifying the Raspberry Pi's place in industrial settings, TECHBASE unveiled a Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 cluster in January 2021. Designed for AI acceleration, routing, and file server applications, this device housed one or more Compute Module 4s within an industrial DIN rail enclosure, with some models even incorporating Coral Edge TPUs.
May 2021: Raspberry Pi Manufacturing Commitment Extended
As of May 2021, Raspberry Pi committed to manufacturing most Pi models until at least January 2026, including the 1 GB Pi 4B, which remained available through special order.
October 2021: Raspberry Pi Achieves Vulkan 1.1 and 1.2 Conformance
Raspberry Pi Trading announced further driver conformance for Vulkan 1.1 and 1.2 on October 26, 2021.
October 2021: Raspberry Pi 4 1 GB Model Reintroduced
The 1 GB model of the Raspberry Pi 4 was reintroduced in October 2021.
December 2021: Astro Pi Returns to Space Aboard NASA's Dragon 2 Spacecraft
In December 2021, the Astro Pi project continued its journey into space, with a pair of the devices launching aboard NASA's Dragon 2 spacecraft. This marked another milestone in using Raspberry Pi for educational purposes and space exploration.
2021: Raspberry Pi Demand Increases, Availability Issues Persist
Demand for Raspberry Pi products continued to rise in early 2021, further exacerbating the availability problems caused by the ongoing global chip shortage.
2021: Raspberry Pi (Trading) Ltd. Renamed
In 2021, Raspberry Pi (Trading) Ltd. underwent a name change to become Raspberry Pi Ltd.
April 2022: Raspberry Pi Prioritizes Business and Industrial Customers Amidst Shortages
In April 2022, Raspberry Pi addressed the ongoing availability issues, stating that it was prioritizing business and industrial customers due to the global chip shortage. This decision aimed to ensure critical supply chains remained operational but also led to longer wait times for individual consumers.
August 2022: Additional Vulkan Driver Conformance Announced
On August 1, 2022, Raspberry Pi Trading announced additional driver conformance.
January 2026: End of Manufacturing Commitment
January 2026 marked the end of Raspberry Pi's commitment to manufacture most Pi models, including the 1 GB Pi 4B.
2048: Raspberry Pi High-Resolution Display Support
Higher display resolutions, up to 2048x1152 and even 3840×2160 at 15 Hz, were possible, although the latter had a frame rate too low for smooth video. It's important to note that the Raspberry Pi's ability to display these resolutions didn't mean it could decode video formats, such as H.265, commonly used at very high resolutions.