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Comment by FerretFred | Hacker News Reader

>simple RPi branded monitor with a Pi built in

Oh, I'd definitely be up for that!!

I’d rather have a miniPC-sized Raspberry Pi computer like an Intel NUC or Mac Mini* mounted on the back of a monitor instead of an all-in-one. Monitors have a much longer useful life so all-in-ones (e.g. iMac) eventually become paperweights or e-waste.

If they go the all-in-one route they should include an external HDMI port and a switch to choose between it and the internal Raspberry Pi.

*: But upgradeable and repairable.

Exactly, this is what the VESA mount on the back of your monitor is for. For an almost no effort solution, you can zip tie a pi to the mount bracket and screw it in (some monitors may even be able to power it via usb). Integrating into the monitor's electronics makes no sense.

You can also get pre-built mounts and cases to attach a pi to the VESA mounts, e.g. https://shop.pimoroni.com/products/omnivesa

> Integrating into the monitor's electronics makes no sense.

Them's fighting words to a NEC C651Q owner.

This is pretty much how I had things setup but it isn't ideal as getting to the Pi is a pain and it doesn't work well with any hats so it didn't last long.

My thinking for a Raspberry Pi monitor would be to have the ports in an easier to access location on the rear of the monitor so hats, etc. can be made to a standard design.

Of course the monitor will likely out last the Pi inside it but there is nothing to stop it being used as just a monitor one the Pi instead is no longer useful.

I have a NUC but I could never mount it to the back of the monitor because the monitor stand/arm itself uses the VESA mount location.

If the stand/arm is using the actual VESA mounting holes, there are brackets that can hold a NUC either to the side or sandwiched between the stand/arm and the monitor.

You could probably DIY that with an RPi case pretty easy, using the VESA mount holes on the back of the monitor. Most of my monitors have two different size VESA mounts, and my monitor mounts use the smaller size, meaning I have 4 extra screw holes on the back of all my monitors, and conveniently nearly all the VESA mounts take standard M4 bolts.

If your VESA mounts are close enough together, you can just drill holes directly in the RPi case and mount it to the back of the monitor. If they're too far apart, use the mounts to put in a plastic or wood bar, then drill holes through the RPi case and the bar (while not attached to the monitor), then mount the case to the bar and the bar to the monitor.

I've looked at doing similar in the past, but I wanted to make the mounting block along the bottom of the monitor with the SD card exposed. That way I can set up a series of SD cards to test with. Want to test something on Ubuntu 18.04? Cool, switch monitor 2 to input 2 (the RPi) and then swap the SD card out to the Ubuntu 18.04 one and you're ready to rock. It's not as easy as a Docker container, but I'm often using the GPIO pins and I don't have the desire to try to make GPIO pins work in Docker. It might not even be that hard, I just don't feel like adding another step to my troubleshooting.

I feel like this is the opposite direction of the 400 ...

Of course, that requires that your monitor have VESA mounts. It seems the big brands have segmented the market by making VESA mounts a “premium” feature. Which is ridiculous if I can get a TV with a bigger screen for the same price that comes with VESA built in to any of them.[a]

[a]: Ignoring the obvious differences between a TV-as-a-monitor and an actual monitor

And make it easy to upgrade or replace later on!

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