News

Elecrow Launches Crowdfunding Campaign for CrowView Note, the Must-Have Portable Monitor for Tech Enthusiasts

By Jeff Butts

Published August 14, 2024

If you’ve ever wanted a sub-$150 way to turn your Raspberry Pi or mini PC into a laptop, the Elecrow CrowView Note is a good way to do it.

Since I work from home, a traditional desktop computer setup works fine for me most of the time. However, there are still times when a little more mobility is great, and working on my iPhone just isn’t efficient. That’s where the Elecrow CrowView Note comes in. It gives me an all-in-one monitor, keyboard, and trackpad I can just plug my device into. Elecrow just launched a Kickstarter campaign for the device, but I’ve had a production sample for a few weeks.

I still need to do further testing to offer a comprehensive review of the CrowView Note. However, I can already say it’s worth backing this project if you’ve ever wished you could quickly and easily turn your Raspberry Pi, smartphone, gaming console, or mini PC into a laptop. Let’s dive in, shall we?

The Devil’s In the Details, and the CrowView Note Has ‘em Covered

To turn your Raspberry Pi, Jetson Nano, or any other gaming or computing device, into a laptop, you need a few things. You need a display, keyboard, pointing device, and power. It’s also helpful if the whole kit is lightweight and portable.

The Elecrow CrowView Note has that covered. It provides a 14-inch FHD display, an integrated full-size keyboard and touchpad, and a 5,000-mAh battery. It also includes two USB-C ports (one for 5V/5A power output), two USB-A ports, a mini-HDMI port, and a 3.5mm headphone jack.

Elecrow opted to charge the CrowView Note with a 3.5mm barrel DC interface, which I think is quite unfortunate. This means keeping track of a proprietary DC power adapter, rather than using USB-C PD to power and charge the device. Yes, I tried — the USB-C port on the side not in use for an SBC will output power to another device, but cannot be used for charging the CrowView Note itself.

Also available are bridge boards that allow you to plug your Raspberry Pi or Jetson Nano SBC straight into the side of the Note. This is, so far, the only thing I’m not fully happy with — the bridge board doesn’t work with cases, and leaves your SBC bare and exposed. I don’t imagine that’s going to be much of a problem, really, but it still bothers me a bit.

What Devices Work with the CrowView Note?

So far, I’ve used the CrowView Note primarily with a Raspberry Pi 5. It works wonderfully, and the bridge board allows all of the Pi’s functionality to break out into the ports offered on the side of the CrowView Note. This way, you’ve turned your tiny little SBC into a 14-inch display laptop, including a full-size keyboard and touchpad.

The 5,000-mAh battery powers both the CrowView Note and the Raspberry Pi with ease, but you do need to make sure the bridge board is fully seated or your Raspberry Pi will complain it’s not getting enough power.

You can also plug in your smartphone and turn on its desktop mode if it has one. The iPhone, of course, doesn’t have such a mode, but you can connect to the iPhone 15 series via USB-C and use screen mirroring to at least take advantage of the larger display, keyboard, and touchpad on the normal iOS display.

Of course, you can also plug in your mini PC, such as a Mac mini or any other small form-factor PC. Of course, you’ll likely need to plug these into their own power outlet, but the CrowView Note still would work beautifully for providing you with a portable display, keyboard, and touchpad for using the computer on the go.

Elecrow says the CrowView Note will work with any Android phone, laptop, gaming console, or even the Nintendo Switch. In terms of operating system support, it should work just fine with Android, Linux, macOS, and Windows.

Sounds Great, How Do I Get One?

As noted, this is currently being crowdfunded on Kickstarter. I’m usually wary of Kickstarter projects, but Elecrow has done this several times before and has a 10-year history of bringing good products to market. The campaign has also already met its goal, with 31 days left.

Super Early Bird pricing starts at $119, which will get you a CrowView Note and the power adapter. The Raspberry Pi and Jetson Nano bridge boards are sold separately at $5 each.

Other pledge selections can save you a bit more for ordering multiple units. Elecrow says the CrowView Note will begin shipping in October 2024, with deliveries in November.