The $380 kid computer
Parents keep asking me what computer to get their kid. I've been giving the same answer every time: the Raspberry Pi 500+.
It's a real computer for under $400. It ships with Python, a code editor, and a terminal — everything your kid needs to run stirfry. No setup headaches, no "which laptop should I buy" rabbit hole. Just plug it in and go.
The Setup
Two things to buy:
Raspberry Pi 500+ Desktop Kit — $270. The keyboard is the computer. Not a joke — the Pi 500+ is built into the keyboard itself. The kit comes with a mouse, power supply, micro HDMI cable, and a Beginner's Guide. One box, everything included. 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD. It's an RGB mechanical keyboard too, which kids absolutely love.
Raspberry Pi Monitor — $110. A 15.6" 1080p display designed to pair with the Pi 500+. One cable from keyboard to monitor and you're done. No hunting for a compatible monitor, no adapter dongles.
Total: ~$380. That's a complete computer setup — keyboard, mouse, monitor, everything — for less than a mid-range Chromebook. And unlike a Chromebook, it runs real development tools natively.
Why It Works for stirfry
The Pi 500+ ships with Python 3, Thonny (a beginner-friendly code editor), and a full Linux terminal. That's the entire stirfry stack, pre-installed. Your kid opens a terminal, starts stirfry, and they're building.
I've tested stirfry on the Pi 500+ and it runs great — surprisingly snappy for a $270 machine. Claude Code is a terminal app, so it doesn't need a beefy GPU or tons of processing power. The 16GB of RAM handles everything comfortably.
Oliver uses one of these now. It's his dedicated building machine — separate from any family computer, sitting at his desk, always ready to go. That matters more than I expected. When the computer is theirs and it's always set up, the friction to start a session drops to almost zero.
When They're Ready for Hardware
Here's the thing I didn't expect: the Pi 500+ is also the on-ramp to physical computing.
The Raspberry Pi Pico is a tiny $4 microcontroller that lets kids control LEDs, sensors, motors — real hardware. And the Pi 500+ has native Pico support built right into Thonny. Your kid connects a Pico via USB, picks "MicroPython (Raspberry Pi Pico)" in Thonny, and they're writing code that controls physical things.
The progression is natural: they start with Python on the Pi 500+, build confidence writing real programs, and when they're ready for hardware, the Pico is right there. Same language (Python to MicroPython), same machine, native tooling. No new software to install, no complicated setup.
The SunFounder Starter Kit for Raspberry Pi Pico is a great first hardware kit — it comes with a Pico, a breadboard, LEDs, sensors, motors, and 40 guided projects. Everything your kid needs to go from "writing Python" to "controlling hardware," and it's all built into the machine they already have.
Where to Buy
Raspberry Pi 500+ Desktop Kit — $270 from Adafruit
Raspberry Pi Monitor — $110 from Adafruit
When they're ready for hardware:
New to stirfry? Here's what it is and how it works.