Before I get into sharing my thoughts on the Argon ONE V2, I think it is important to give my thoughts on the original Argon ONE.
Back in September 2020, I purchased the original Argon ONE case for my Raspberry Pi 4. I really wasn't doing much hardware tinkering with my Raspberry Pi 4 ( I had other things like Arduino boards for that ) so most of what I was doing on the Pi was related to trying out different software. Of course my Rasperry Pi 4 had a case, but I think it was just a generic plastic one. I started to research various options to add a fan to my Pi 4, and I ended up settling on the Argon ONE case. Not only did it give me a fan, but it gave me a nice case and a power button - all for a reasonable cost.
I have used the case for a year, I wanted to share my thoughts on the original Argon ONE case:
- It has a power button. I know this seems simple, but I really got tired of having to plug and unplug the power from my Pi 4. I even started looking at options like a USB-C cable with on/off switch, or a way to control the power to the actual A/C power adapter. If you keep your Pi 4 on the time this is less of an issue, but if you turn it on/off often you will know how annoying it is. The fact your OS can likely interact with the button makes it even nicer, since you can safely power it off.
- It has a fan, which can be controlled using software. Ultimately the case itself does a pretty good job of doing passive cooling, but having a fan was a good "future proofing" if I ever ran projects that would need it.
- All the ports are on the back of the device, which just makes it easier to connect wires if you move it around often and gives it a very clean look on your desk or if you plan to use it near your TV for entertainment.
- MicroSD slot is accessible from the front, making it easy to swap memory cards (to run different operating systems for example) from the front of the unit. Again, this is helpful if you have the Pi4 on your desk with the cables out the back and the front (with MicroSD slot) facing you.
- GPIO pins are accessible on the top of the unit, in case you do projects that need them. If you are not using them, a nice cover that attaches with magnets goes over the ports given the unit a nice clean look.
- It has an internal jumper you can use to set it an "always on" mode so the Pi would turn on after a power outage, or you can leave the default setting that requires using the power button.
Overall, I was very happy with my purchase of the original Argon ONE case. The Argon ONE case was upgraded to V2, which I think brings some nice improvements to the product. Here are the key differences:
- Full size HDMI ports instead of micro-HDMI. The original Argon ONE case had micro-HDMI ports, which means I had to purchase cables with the right connectors since I didn't already own any. Chances are, most people already have full size HDMI cables.
- IR receiver. While I don't have the official remote, from reading the product documentation it looks like you can use it to control power on/off and also control the interface on certain systems like LibreELEC. If you plan to use your Pi4, the Argon ONE V2 with remote would be a great option to look into.
The vendor (Argon40) also has many other interesting products on their page including an Argon ONE M.2 Case ( or Argon ONE M.2 Expansion Board for an existing Argon ONE case ) that allows you to use a M.2 SATA SSD with your Argon ONE case.
I did another post with some pics I took when I moved the Pi 4 from the old to new case, so if you want to see some hardware pics or plan to upgrade your own original to V2 check it out:
Bottom line: The Argon ONE case was a great purchase, and the V2 upgrade just takes a great product and makes it even better.
Argon40 Products related to the Argon ONE
Argon40 Products related to the Argon ONE
Argon ONE V2 Case: https://www.argon40.com/argon-one-v-2-case-for-raspberry-pi-5.html
Argon ONE M.2 Case: https://www.argon40.com/argon-one-m-2-case-for-raspberry-pi-4.html
Argon ONE M.2 Expansion Board (for existing case): https://www.argon40.com/argon-one-m-2-expansion-board.html
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