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What to buy
A Raspberry Pi, a memory card, a cable, and any screen with an HDMI socket. If you already have a monitor or a TV lying around, the rest comes to about $90.
The shopping list
| Item | Notes | Approx. cost |
|---|---|---|
| Raspberry Pi 5 (4 GB) | A Pi 4 works too. The Pi 5 is noticeably smoother with animations and bigger screens. | $60 |
| Official 27 W USB-C power supply | The Pi 5 needs this one. Phone chargers do not deliver enough power and cause random black screens. | $12 |
| 32 GB microSD card (A1 class) | Any 16 GB or larger A1-class card works. SanDisk Ultra is a safe pick. | $8 |
| Micro-HDMI to HDMI cable | The Pi 4 and Pi 5 use micro-HDMI, not the full-size plug. Your old HDMI cable will not fit without this. | $8 |
| A screen | Any TV or monitor with HDMI. A portrait 1080 x 1920 panel suits the default layout, but any 1080p screen turned on its side is fine. | varies |
Total: about $90 plus the screen.
Which screen?
- A repurposed monitor on a kitchen wall is the classic setup. Turn it portrait for the default layout, or leave it landscape and pick the landscape version of any template.
- A small TV works the same way. Turn off its sleep timer so it stays on.
- A touchscreen is a bonus, not a requirement. With one, kids can check off chores and tap through screens on the wall itself. Without one, they do the same from a phone.
- Brightness matters more than resolution. Text on the wall is read from across the room, so a bright 1080p panel beats a dim 4K one.
Pi 4 or Pi 5?
Both run Home Screens. The Pi 5 handles the full-screen weather and photo modules, screen transitions, and larger screens with more headroom, and it stays that way as you add modules. A Pi 4 with 2 GB or more is fine for a clock, weather, calendar, and chore chart. The Pi Zero and older models are too slow for the display, though a Pi Zero 2 can act as an extra display driven by a bigger Pi.
Already have a Pi running something?
You do not have to wipe it. Home Screens can be installed onto an existing Raspberry Pi OS setup with one command; see the install script. A fresh card with the ready-made image is still the smoother path.
Next steps
- Install: flash the card and boot for the first time
- Your first screen: from a blank display to a working one in ten minutes
- On your phone: the family remote and the kids' chores page