Before Setting Up a New Raspberry Pi

In this blog post I am going to discuss about the key points you want to consider before setting up your new Raspberry Pi for the first time use.

Targeted Audience:

             I am a newbie to the Pi. And I have just started experimenting with it. So this Post aimed at newbies like me who just have their Pi's on their hands.

Finding the things you need:

        Since Pi doesn't come with 'all batteries included'. I had to think and search a lot on the Internet before purchasing gadgets that make the Pi work. This blog is for easing off the head ache of other beginners of Pi like myself. Although you would find the official documentation for setting up a Pi,there are some other facts you have to care.

1. Power Supply 5V,micro USB  port
2. SD Card above Class 4,capacity >=4Gb
3. Monitor with HDMI connectivity,or old TV monitor with RCA,USB keyboard,mouse(optional for headless setup) 

1.Power Supply for the Raspberry Pi

          Before choosing a Power supply for your Pi, look for the specifications for it. Any high end mobile phone charger with micro usb port might well be serve as a power supply for your Pi,provided it can provide sufficient current.

For a Model A Raspberry : choose a charger with current rating >= 800mA.Although the official documentation says,only 500mA is required :- it is for running the Pi alone.In the near future you will have to connect peripherals like keyboard,mouse,camera,USB flash drives etc... which also draws current from the power supply. So some extra current rating won't harm your Pi(But extra Voltage will!). And check the Volage provided by the charger before you connect it to Pi, it should be less than 5.25V(above may result in overcooked Pi) and greater than 4.75V(lesser will result in corruption in the SD card).

For Model B Raspberry the current rating should be >= 1000mA.

2.SD Card 

        Before buying a SD Card for your Raspberry Pi. Look not only at the specification but also look whether it is supported by your RPi. For that visit the following link whose data base is updated with the RPi users around the world,which list the working and non-working SD cards. I would recommend you to choose a SD card of class 6 or greater for good performance of the Pi. 

3.Monitor for the Pi

       Actually I don't have a monitor for the Pi. But I found a solution for that : You can run your Pi headless(without its own monitor). You can your computer monitor,keyboard and mouse for accessing your Pi.This will be discussed in my upcoming blog posts.

Doubts, feed backs if any are always welcomed. Thank you.:)