Raspberry Pi 500+
The Raspberry Pi folks have a new retro-inspired-the-keyboard-is-the-computer-thingy, the Raspberry Pi 500+. I have never bought one of these, but I've always wanted to, as I think they are so adorable. This one in particular, with a nice keyboard and running a Raspberry Pi 5, really appeals to me. I'm honestly glad that the price is just high enough that I'm giving it a second thought, as I definitely don't need one, although I think for what it is, the price is pretty fair at $200.
Jeff Geerling's reviews of new Pi hardware should be your first watch if you are a nerd about this stuff:
He also typically has blog posts to accompany his videos:
I think something like this might be Nat's first home computer. We'll see when the time comes.
I did put a CM5 in my uConsole a couple of months ago, and I've been floored with how much faster the Raspberry Pi 5 is over the 4. Even complicated web apps like Slack and Discord or high-resolution YouTube videos work really well. I could honestly do a light day of work from the thing if I plugged in a keyboard, mouse, and external display. Based on that experience with my uConsole (which has no fan or active cooling!), I'd say that the Pi 500+ would make a pretty decent little desktop machine for simple needs.
If you want a nice little machine to play around with or learn Linux on, I'd guess this is a perfect choice. Or you could go with the Pi 500 (non-plus) and save a bunch of money and mostly just be stuck with a worse keyboard. For me, the novelty of a nice typing experience (even if the mechanical keyboard nerd in me wishes they were linear switches instead of clicky ones) would probably push me over the edge to save up.
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