Join 350,000 subscribers and get a daily digest of news, articles, and more.

By submitting your email, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

Dave McQuilling has spent over 10 years writing about almost everything, but technology has always been one of his main interests. He has previously worked for newspapers, magazines, radio stations, websites, and television stations in both the US and Europe. Read more...

2021 saw the launch of the Raspberry Pi Pico, and while it may not pack the same punch as other small computers, the tiny $4 microcontroller still has enough power for an extensive range of applications that are both fun and useful.

The best part is anyone can complete all of the following projects thanks to the detailed guides provided by Raspberry Pi enthusiasts. Your little $4 Pico can even be a fantastic entry point into the world of coding and electronics.

None of the projects we’ve listed will result in useless or boring electronic devices that make noise for no reason or make an LED blink on and off. We have all the details on cool things like Pico-based emulators, smart home controllers, robots, and even drones, so keep reading.

Why Pick a Pico For Your Project Fun and Games Make Your Home Smarter Build a Robot

The Raspberry Pi Pico is a microcontroller, a tiny computer housed on a single semiconductor. This comes with some positives and negatives. The main downside is, a Pico isn’t going to be as powerful as its big brothers. A Raspberry Pi 4 boasts a 1.5GHz quad-core processor and up to 8GB of RAM—while the Pico clocks in at 133MHz and sports 256KB of RAM. But the Pico has some significant upsides, the main two being its tiny size and the fact you can pick one up for $4.

While the Pico’s lack of power might make it seem limited compared to the rest of the Raspberry Pi family, it is still capable of becoming the core component of several fun projects. In some cases, like with drone building, the Pico’s lack of weight makes it far more suitable than any other Pi.

To help get the most out of the hardware, microcontrollers like the Pico have their own stripped-down and efficient version of Python 3, called MicroPython. However, experienced Python users shouldn’t worry; MicroPython is cross-compatible, and in a lot of cases, code from regular Python can be transferred with ease.

Using any version of the Pi to create something is rewarding and fun. But the fun doesn’t have to stop when the project is complete. The Pico can emulate older video game systems, several visual games, and even cutting-edge toys for the family pet despite its limitations. These projects aren’t easy, but their creators have provided guides anyone can follow, and if you make it to the end, you have something you can enjoy for a long time.

Smart home technology is becoming more common and easier to set up and integrate. However, if you want to be more hands-on with your smart home, a Pi Pico may be the way to go. You can use it to control some existing devices or even create a new device from scratch.

If you watched Battle Bots or its infinitely superior British cousin Robot Wars as a kid, you might have dreamed of building your own little death machine one of these days. While none of the following robots have chainsaws or flamethrowers attached, they are all an excellent way to get to grips with amateur robotics. And hey—you can always attach a chainsaw tape a butter knife to one of them if you want to.

The Best Free Tech Newsletter Anywhere

By submitting your email, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.