Last Updated on September 11, 2023 by pg@petergamma.org
The solution shown by Tech Craft with a Raspberry Pi 4 and an iPad pro connected over usb-c is great:
But what about Windows tablets, Android tablets & Android phones? Can they not do the same as the iPads Pro? Tech Craft uses a Raspberry Pi 4 with an iPad Pro for two years, and he is happy with it.
With iPad Pros, a connection over usb-c is relatively easy and simple, but not with the other devices. But for our application, we do not need usb-c. Our main goal is to avoid WIFI connections as much as possible, since the use a lot of power, and Bluetooth connections, since they are a very slow solution for remote desktop and is not recommended for this purpose.
1. Windows 10 tablets
Microsoft Surface Pro 4
- Microsoft Surface Pro 4 tablets can currently be bought starting from 100 USD on eBay, this is even less than a Raspberry Pi display at the same size.
- A docking station with an ethernet port is available for it, which can be connected easily over a router to a Pi 4.
- The Surface Pro 4 is from 2015 and has only dual core processor support, but if we only want to use it for a remote desktop over ethernet to a Pi 4, it is eventually powerful enough.
- Internal SSD, battery and display can be replaced by a skilled person.
- A keyboard is available which connects to the POGO pins of the Microsoft device.
Microsoft Surface Pro 7
- available on eBay starting from 260 USD and has four cores, the SSD is easily replaceable without opening the devic.
- It has usb-c.
- If we look at the above video a direct usb-c connection to a Pi 4 can be tested to see if it works.
2. Android tablets
- We have shown that there are affordable 10 inch tablets with docking station as for instance the Levono Pad 10:
- This solves the problem Tech Craft described in the above video that he did not find a solution how to charge an Android device and use an internet connection over usb-c at the same time.
- But is it not simpler to try an ethernet to usb-c adapter than usb-c and sniffing out the port number?
2. Android phones
- The Pi 4 is often used with a 7 inch display in many applications.
- Can we not use a 7 inch Android tablet instead of the 7 inch Raspberry screen?
- After a first quick search, we did not find a 7 inch tablet which has a usb-c connector and a second connector for a charging dock.
- But smartphones as the Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 have a resolution of 1080 x 2400 pixels which is better than many Pi screens which cost the same. And the Redmi has a screen size of 6.43 inches which is great as well as usb-c.
- Smarphones do not offer a second connector for charging. But the Redmi Note 11 has an all-around battery life of 126 hours, and its standby time is very long with a single charge.
- Do Pis have such a great power management as Android phones when used with a 7 inch screen? We do not know anything about that.
- And if the battery life time of a Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 is not enough for our application, we can simply multiple smartphones after each other.