Mon Jul 30, 2012 12:32 pm

Like so many other Pi fans and users i too have been looking for the ultimate case for my Pi. Plenty pre-made cases are available by now but hey, wheres the fun in that! So i built my little comPiuter from old stuff from my garage!The thought behind this build is that the main use for my Pi is a multimedia computer that i can bring to friends to go watch a movie.... you know how waay back in the past you could just grab a great movie or two from your video tape collection, add a sixpack and head over to a friends house for a movie-marathon?! In spirit of this i am proud to introduce my little VHS-Pi!!Now as you may notice, for a Pi build its actually pretty large. This is because i did not want to bring _just_ the Pi but also some hardware to extend its functionality and the VHS cassette housing has ample room for just that. The case holds the following;-RaspPi (duh) fully un-modified with the following directly connected--Ethernet 'break-out' cable--Audio 'break-out' cable (not fully completed yet)--5v Supplied over GPIO-7-Port D-link Hub (4 ports exposed, 3 for internal use)--Wifi dongle--Bluetooth dongle--USB thumbdrive for added storage (not pictured)The PSU that came with the 7-port D-link hub (rock solid 5v rated @ up to 3A) now powers the whole lot though the power port on the back next to the HDMI connector;So if you just want to watch a movie you can just hook up power and a HDMI cable and youre set for movie-mayhem controlling the Pi over HDMI-CEC (or bluetooth/wifi).... heck you can even keep the Tape-Pi in the card-board sleeve!When needed the Ethernet and USB ports are accesible behind the tape-flap thingy;again plenty room for future plugs/addons.Now the cassette is built pretty nice and solid and can be disassembled with screws;The inside is not a pretty sight with all the tape and glue going on..... but hey, it worksWith the Pi removed it looks like this;As you can see only one of the two USBports on the Pi are used (to connect the Hub). I did this on purpose as i am powering the Pi through GPIO so im bypassing the polyfuse in theory allowing the Pi to draw more power then it actually good for it. To make the chance of this happening as small as possible im only connecting the bare essentials to it directly.Now if i ever need more space i can ofc de-solder connectors on either the Pi or the Hub and wire it all directly but for now this will do just fine and i like having my little Pi completely nice and intactI do have some future plans building one like this only with its own power-source (a couple 18650s are no match for a VHS case size-wise) and maybe even a SSD.I hope you guys like!!