Skip to main content

NEC serves up a slice of Pi, will start building Raspberry Pi 3s into its displays

nec raspberry pi 3 necpi
NEC
NEC’s business-focused displays are going to have a whole new realm of functionality in the near future, as the Japanese electronics maker has announced that it will be incorporating Raspberry Pi 3s into its displays going forward. It is hoped that these displays will facilitate better connectivity with the internet of things (IOT) and will be able to offer customizable functionality to third parties.

The Raspberry Pi project was initially designed to help children learn to program and to encourage bedroom hardware hacking and experimentation. However, in its third generation, NEC sees the Pi as a very capable piece of kit and wants to include it in its future hardware. The 1.2GHz processor is powerful and NEC hopes that when combined with the micro-PC’s varied ports and feature set, the resulting pro displays will really stand out.

Recommended Videos

“Our strategic initiative to team up with Raspberry Pi is an example of how we continue to ensure that organizations in any sector have the most advanced technology in place to meet their application needs,” said senior VP of marketing at NEC, Stefanie Corinth.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

Also front and center in this new development was CEO of Raspberry Pi Trading, Eben Upton, who said: “Overall, this collaboration shows NEC’s confidence with our ability to provide a platform that can be used in a variety of environments.”

The credit-card sized systems will be included in NEC displays as part of the firm’s Open Modular Intelligence platform, specifically in the professional P and V series large-format displays. These are more commonly used in meetings, or in public settings, so this could provide some exciting functionality for third parties that make use of them.

Using the Pi 3’s functionality, these displays could be connected to all sorts of services, or be given whole new functions thanks to the myriad of mods and accessories that can be applied. The main functions NEC is expecting are in cases of signage, streaming media and making presentations to large audiences, but if we have learned anything from the Pi’s evolution over the years, the projects people can create with it are never what you might expect.

Jon Martindale
Jon Martindale is a freelance evergreen writer and occasional section coordinator, covering how to guides, best-of lists, and…
Apple’s Vision Pro is getting the M5 chip, but that’s not what it really needs
Two people talk while one wears an Apple Vision Pro headset. Their eyes are visible through the device using the EyeSight feature.

We’ve not yet seen the full rollout of Apple’s M4 chip family -- the M4 Ultra is still yet to make an appearance -- but already we’ve just learned that the M5 chip is now in production. That means it’ll probably arrive in Macs either late this year or early next year.

If you’ve been waiting to buy a new MacBook Pro, that could mean 2026 is the year to finally pull the trigger. After all, Apple is expected to fully redesign its flagship laptop for next year’s release, and if that coincides with a powerful new M5 chip, all the better.

Read more
This Acer Predator gaming PC with RTX 4070 Ti Super is $350 off
The side profile of the Acer Predator Orion 5000 gaming PC.

You should be careful if you're thinking about upgrading with gaming PC deals, as not all machines are worth your hard-earned money. Here's one that we highly recommend: the Acer Predator Orion 5000 at $350 off from Best Buy, which brings its price down to $1,750 from $2,100. It's still not what you'd call affordable after that discount, but this is the type of machine that you will never regret buying. You're going to want to complete your transaction for it as soon as possible though, as there's no telling when the offer expires.

Why you should buy the Acer Predator Orion 5000 gaming PC
The Acer Predator Orion 5000 challenges the best gaming PCs with specifications that will let you play the best PC games at their most demanding settings. It's powered by the 14th-generation Intel Core i7 processor and the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super graphics card, along with 32GB of RAM that our guide on how much RAM do you need says is the sweet spot for high-end gamers. The gaming desktop also comes with Windows 11 Home pre-loaded in its 2TB SSD, which will provide enough storage space for multiple AAA titles with all their necessary updates and optional add-ons.

Read more
Grab this Lenovo Legion gaming PC while it’s under $1,000
The Lenovo Legion Tower 5i Gen 8 gaming PC on a white background.

You don't need to spend more than $1,000 in upgrading your gaming desktop, as there are gaming PC deals out there with huge discounts on powerful machines. You won't have to do the searching yourself though, as we've done that for you -- check out the Lenovo Legion Tower 5 Gen 8, which is available with a 30% discount from Lenovo that drops its price from $1,330 to only $930. There are only limited stocks for this computer though, so you have to hurry with your purchase if you want to secure the $400 in savings.

Why you should buy the Lenovo Legion Tower 5 Gen 8 gaming PC
The Lenovo Legion Tower 5 Gen 8 is an affordable gaming desktop that's built similar to the Lenovo Legion Tower 5i, which appears in our list of the best gaming PCs as our favorite option for below $1,000. The major difference is that the Lenovo Legion Tower 5 Gen 8 is powered by AMD -- the AMD Ryzen 5 7600 processor, to be exact, alongside the AMD Radeon RX 7600 graphics card and 16GB of RAM that's the best place to start for gaming, according to our guide on how much RAM do you need. With these specifications, you'll be able to play the best PC games on this gaming PC without any issues.

Read more