How important is a case for the Pi? (And how to safely create my own?)

Question

How vulnerable is the Raspberry Pi without a case? I've seen the many Lego cases which look great, but I'm constantly wondering what the risk of such a case is. Will a Lego case successfully protect the Pi just like a regular case will? And what is it that a regular case protects the Pi from?

Answer 1

For me:

• The pins, headers and external components look fragile and easily bent.

• It looks easy to accidentally short GPIO pins and other conductors on the Pi by (e.g.) dropping it on a coductive surface, brushing a conductive object against it or dropping a conductive object onto it while it is powered up.

• a number of the sockets, the HDMI connector in particular, are quite stiff; anything that makes it easier to grip the board edges or otherwise aid plugging/unplugging cables without exposing fragile connectors to undue forces therefore helps

Even something like the punnet goes a long way to solving those concerns. However, if you do put it in a case:

• connector joins stick out of the bottom of the device, as does the SD card socket, so simply resting it on a flat case bottom could cause problems - there may be mechanical forces on the solder joins when inserting/removing cables, and it may be difficult to insert/remove SD cards or lay the device flat when an SD card is inserted

• there isn't a great deal of clear space on the bottom of the device where feet / pads for it to rest on can go, so these would have to be very carefully positioned if such a solution is taken

Answer 2

I reckon the best case is The Punnet; it is a case made from card. You can print it yourself, fold and glue, and you will have a case in minutes. It protects the RPi from dust, which is the main threat.

Other cases may protect the RPi from light spills or unwanted electrical interference, but I don't think it is worth it given the cost of the RPi!