“As soon as I saw there was an upgrade to the Picade, initially, I was hesitant. I loved my original Picade, don't get me wrong, but the wiring drove me nuts the first time around! The connectors into the Picade PCB screw terminals gave me fits, and I would have to keep my joystick/button panel loose to make sure it would stay connected and check it to make sure I had easy access. It was still a blast and having my own arcade machine in my own home, was quite the honor. I even performed upgrades to the Picade 1.0 (gave it a 12.1" screen and a Sanwa 8-way restrictor gate for the joystick). I use a Pi 3 Model B for the main board with Retropie and some fan/heatsink combo to control temps on the board.
But with the Picade 2.0, and most importantly, the Dupont wiring connectors and Picade X Hat, the difference between the wiring of the old and new versions of the Picade, and the reliability of the button/joystick placement is a night-and-day gap, and it's a joy to behold. I no longer have to worry about the wires coming loose during play sessions (something that happened when I got a little too animated during previous sessions with the original Picade). I secured the joystick/button panel down now, and it's so much easier to access from the back, and it's smaller footprint is much more accessible. The way the Picade X Hat fits using the GPIO Pins on the Pi was genius and the plug-in wiring for the Hat on top made it so much easier to troubleshoot issues. The packaging, the stickers (OMG @ that poster, I'm framing that bad boy!) and the build was just as much fun as the original (even better because the wires we re
However, a word of warning: because of the Picade X Hat, fans that use the GPIO pins can't be used with the Pi because access to them will be blocked. You have to use a USB-based fan if you must, which will become necessary if you're using a Pi 3 Model B (the thermal heat conductivity will kick in the overheating notice, especially if you overclock your Pi). It is HIGHLY recommended to use the Pi 3 Model B+ for this build. The better thermal conductivity helps out immensely, and you won't get the warning nowhere near as much, if at all.
The Picade 2.0 has now supplanted the original as my favorite machine. Get the 2.0 one, you will NOT be disappointed!”
“Good fun to assemble - the standoffs were split between two packets so be patient - the Pimoroni crew pay attention to detail.
Going to be a gift for my elderly Father who is a secret techy - me not so secret!”
“The build was surprisingly easy with very few surprises and the result is fantastic. perhaps a little on the expensive side, but I didn't mind paying for the peace of mind that the design was proven and simple.
It's now a permanent fixture in our living room beside the fish tank and looks lovely.”
“Awesome product. Easy to assemble and works great. You need too research a bit yourself on how to get games and buttonmappings working after assembly. Buttons and joystick are not high end brands, but they do the job well enough for home use. You may want to pimp it a bit with better graphics and more LEDs”
“+/+/+/+/+ EXCELLENT — I regret not buying one sooner. Premium waggle/wiggle factor round the joystick parts. Crisp and sensitive buttonfeel throughout. BRIGHT and LOUD (or quiet if you turn it down a bit).
MARVELLOUS — The packaging is remarkably nice. Building the Picade is a lot of fun. Powering it up is a delight. Using it is a hoot. I love it.
xxx 5/5 QUALITY EXPERiENCE xxx
bloop blopp pew pew”
