Windows 10 IoT Core support for Raspberry Pi 3

I do love me some Pie, particularly Apple Pie.

But I’m also a really big fan of Raspberry Pi. I think everyone should be. And now it seems Microsoft thinks it as well having just announced that they’re currently working on a Windows 10 Internet of Things (IoT) Core for the new Raspberry Pi 3.

The new Windows IoT update also just happened to arrive the same day the Raspberry Pi Foundation released its new version of the Raspberry Pi, the Raspberry Pi 3.  The date was significant since it was also the 4^th anniversary that marked the launch of the original Raspberry Pi.

The new Raspberry Pi 3

“Optimized for connected things and smaller devices with or without a display, Windows 10 IoT Core brings the power of Windows, including enterprise grade security and servicing, automatic updates through Windows Update when connected to the Internet and the rich Universal Windows Platform (UWP) APIs that give apps easy control over system management features.”

$35 

The new Pi will retail at a miniscule $35, but supposedly has 50% more processing power than its predecessor, the Raspberry Pi 2. It ships with a quad-core 1.2 GHz 64-bit quad-core ARMv8 processor with built-in Bluetooth and for the first time, will come with WiFi built into the single board computer, as standard. The Pi 3 is also available to buy direct from the Windows Store.

Can I play The Division?

No.

Don’t get your hopes up about running a fully-fledged Windows 10 install on a $35 piece of equipment. The IoT version of Windows 10 doesn’t have all the bells and whistles that you might think it does. In fact, the IoT version of Windows 10 is closer in experience to Window Embedded than it is to Windows 8.1

Microsoft has been quite vocal in its support of the Pi objective to get children interested in computing and coding from a young age. It’s support for the Pi and the IoT in general, is part of the Redmond based tech giant’s more open and friendly approach toward Open Source in general.

The announcement of this new partnership and show if support for the plucky little underdog from England should hopefully take the Pi line of DIY computers in a new direction and also give it world wide stage from which to grow even further.