The MagPi - February 2020

Heat is the enemy of computer efficiency, which is why a stand to keep

Raspberry Pi 4 cool is a big deal. Rosie Hattersley meets its maker

T

here’s a curious piece of plastic proudly

affixed to the front cover of this month’s

print edition of The MagPi magazine. The

Raspberry Pi 4 Stand is an exclusively designed

holder that does wonders for your computer’s

efficiency. The stand holds up to three Raspberry

Pi 4 computers at once, and has been met with

open arms by overclocking maestros.

Issue 88 of The MagPi magazine included a

thermal testing feature conclusively showing

that running a Raspberry Pi 4 on its side enables

it to run cooler, and therefore at full speed,

for longer.

To try out this principle for yourself, turn to

this issue’s overclocking tutorial on page 34.

If you’re reading the digital version of this

article, you’ll be able to get your hands on

your own Raspberry Pi 4 Stand. We’re making

the files available for you to 3D-print or laser-

cut your stand: find them on our GitHub page

at magpi.cc/github.

Making a stand

Alex Bate is Raspberry Pi’s digital content

manager and the stand’s inventor. “We were

keen to design a system for securing Raspberry

Pi on its side, allowing for greater airflow around

the device,” she tells us. This increased airflow

leads to improved cooling efficiency, which

enables Raspberry Pi 4 to run optimally and

makes it more receptive to overclocking.

“The original idea was the design itself,” says

Alex. “It’s so simple that you could cut slots

in a piece of cardboard and recreate the stand

at home. We wanted to make the system as

accessible as possible, [so offering it as a gift

Raspberry Pi 4 Stand

06 magpi.cc Raspberry Pi 4 Stand