Curious about what Plugable products will go best with your Raspberry Pi? This article will cover what products work best with different models of Raspberry Pi SoCs.
Unless otherwise noted, we'll be focusing on products that are best used with Raspbian/Raspberry Pi OS. There are many specialized operating systems available for the Pi, and those other OS options may or may not include support for the devices listed here.
Raspberry Pi
As time has gone on, the Raspberry Pi platform has become more robust in terms of its features, such as integrating Bluetooth and Wi-Fi functionality, but there are still lots of great additions for Raspberry Pi systems from Plugable!
USB Audio
The Plugable USB Audio Adapter adds a 3.5mm headphone and microphone jack to the Raspberry Pi.
USB Hubs
The Plugable USB 2.0 7-Port Hub With 60W Power Adapter turns one USB 2.0 port (or 3.0 port) into seven USB 2.0 ports with plenty of power for external devices like USB hard drives.
The Plugable USB 2.0 10-Port Hub With 20W Power Adapter turns one USB 2.0 port (or 3.0 port) into ten USB 2.0 ports.
Note: In our testing, this hub causes the Raspberry Pi to reboot upon connection, because it supplements the 2.5A wall power with 500mA from the upstream port. This is too much for the Pi right at that moment when it is plugged in. If you plug the 10 port hub in when the Pi is powered down, you can boot into the Pi and all will be well. But since there are better options, we do not recommend our 10 port hub with the Pi.
The Plugable USB 2.0 7-Port Hub With 15W Power Adapter turns one USB 2.0 port (or 3.0 port) into seven USB 2.0 ports with decent power availability for most hub-powered USB devices.
The Plugable USB 2.0 7-Port Hub With 12.5W Power Adapter turns one USB 2.0 port (or 3.0 port) into four USB 2.0 ports.
The Plugable USB 2.0 2-Port Hub turns one USB 2.0 port (or 3.0 port) into two USB 2.0 ports.
Note: Causes the Raspberry Pi to reboot upon connection. This is simply because this is an unpowered hub. Only hubs with their own power adapter should be used with the Pi.
The Plugable USB 2.0 Switch simplifies the process of using one USB device between two hosts. For example, you could have a keyboard that you swap between your Pi and another PC at the push of a button.
The Plugable USB 3.0 10-Port Hub With 48W Power Adapter turns one USB 3.0 port into ten with plenty of power for USB devices.
Note: This hub produced inconsistent results when used with a Pi. It performs best if powered by one of the flip-up ports. The Pi reboots upon connecting this Hub to the USB ports. We really do not recommend using this USB hub.
Using the Realtek RTL8153 chipset, the Plugable USB 3.0 Gigabit Ethernet adapter with 3-port USB 3.0 Hub is a great way to add a couple more USB 3.0 ports to your Pi along with an additional Gigabit Ethernet port. On Pi models that do not have USB 3.0 ports, the transfer rate will be limited to USB 2.0 transfer speed (480Mbps).
Note: It has been observed that plugging this adapter in while the Pi is powered on can trigger the Pi to restart. It is recommended to connect this adapter while the Pi is powered off.
The Plugable USB 3.0 Switch simplifies the process of using one USB device between two hosts. For example, you could have an external hard disk that you swap between your Pi and another PC at the push of a button after completing a read/write operation.
Input Devices
Plugable has been producing input devices for a number of years. Below is our current lineup of USB keyboards and mice to provide a great input experience on your Pi.
The Plugable Compact 87-Key Mechanical Keyboard with Blue-Style Switches provides a tactile and clicky typing experience and backlit keys that won't lose their legend over time. This keyboard omits a 10-key for a smaller keyboard design. For a quieter typing experience, consider our keyboards with red-style mechanical switches.
The Plugable Compact 104-Key Mechanical Keyboard with Blue-Style Switches provides a tactile and clicky typing experience and backlit keys that won't lose their legend over time. This keyboard features a full keyboard layout with 10-key. For a quieter typing experience, consider our keyboards with red-style mechanical switches.
The Plugable Compact 87-Key Mechanical Keyboard with Red-Style Switches provides a linear experience and backlit keys that won't lose their legend over time. This keyboard omits a 10-key for a smaller keyboard design.
The Plugable Compact 104-Key Mechanical Keyboard with Red-Style Switches provides a linear typing experience and backlit keys that won't lose their legend over time. This keyboard features a full keyboard layout with 10-key.
The Plugable Performance USB Gaming Mouse features a superb imaging sensor for accurate tracking of hand movements. Requiring no additional software, the DPI sensitivity of the mouse can be adjusted via a switch on the bottom of the mouse, and the DPI level is communicated by the color of the LED lighting in the mouse. This is a great entry-level gaming mouse for use on the Raspberry Pi.
If you experience mouse lag or slow mouse pointer speed please try adding the following to the /boot/cmdline.txt file and reboot the Raspberry Pi.
usbhid.mousepoll=0
The Plugable Full-Size Bluetooth Folding Keyboard is a great input device if you'd rather go for wireless controls on Pi models featuring Bluetooth connectivity. This keyboard can also be used via a wired USB connection using the included Micro USB to USB-A cable.
USB Microscopes
The Plugable USB 2.0 250x Magnification Microscope is a great addition to the Raspberry Pi when used with a powered USB hub.
We have tested our microscope connected through a powered USB hub to work with GTK+ UVC Viewer. Use the command sudo apt install guvcview to install the utility, then use the command guvcview to start the utility.
The Plugable USB 2.0 800x Magnification Inverted Microscope is a great addition to the Raspberry Pi when used with a powered USB hub.
We have tested our microscope connected through a powered USB hub to work with GTK+ UVC Viewer. Use the command sudo apt install guvcview to install the utility, then use the command guvcview to start the utility.
USB Storage
The Plugable USB 3.0 Flash Memory Card Reader adds SD and MicroSD card connectivity to the Raspberry Pi, or can be used to help write the Raspberry Pi OS image to a MicroSD card.
This card reader can be connected to the Raspberry Pi, Pi 2, Pi 3, or Pi 4 to add support for SD, SDHC, SDXC, MicroSD, MicroSDHC, and MicroSDXC cards, as well as MS, MS Pro, MS Duo, MS Pro Duo, and MSXC cards. This adapter is also compatible with Windows, macOS, and Linux and can be used to write your Raspberry Pi OS image to the SD card or MicroSD card when first setting up your Raspberry Pi.
The Plugable USB 3.1 Gen 2 Vertical Hard Drive Docking Station adds SATA hard drive and SSD storage to your Raspberry Pi 2, Pi 3, and Pi 4 with USB 3 speeds!
Use this external hard drive enclosure to setup a home NAS (Network-Attached Storage) server or to add more storage to your desktop Raspberry Pi computer. This hard drive dock supports 2.5-inch and 3.5-inch SATA SSDs, and hard drives with an external power supply to not tax the Raspberry Pi's power supply and is backwards compatible with the Raspberry Pi, Pi 2, and Pi 3, limited to USB 2.0 speeds.
Wired Network Adapters
Plugable offers a wide array of wired network adapters that are compatible with Linux devices, including models of the Raspberry Pi.
Using the ASIX AX88179 chipset, the Plugable USB 3.0 Gigabit Ethernet adapter is a great option for adding a Gigabit Ethernet port to your Pi. On Pi models that do not have USB 3.0 ports, the transfer rate will be limited to USB 2.0 transfer speed (480Mbps).
Using the Realtek RTL8153 chipset, the Plugable USB 3.0 Gigabit Ethernet adapter with 3-port USB 3.0 Hub is a great way to add a couple more USB 3.0 ports to your Pi along with an additional Gigabit Ethernet port. On Pi models that do not have USB 3.0 ports, the transfer rate will be limited to USB 2.0 transfer speed (480Mbps).
Note: It has been observed that plugging this adapter in while the Pi is powered on can trigger the Pi to restart. It is recommended to connect this adapter while the Pi is powered off.
Using the Realtek RTL8156 chipset, the Plugable USB 3.0 and USB-C 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet adapter can add a new generation of Ethernet connectivity to the Pi. It is important to note that the transfer rate is CPU-dependent, so your transfer rates may vary. Additionally, many storage options for the Pi will not provide sufficient throughput to take advantage of the network performance possible with this Ethernet adapter. Lastly, other devices on your network must support 2.5Gbps Ethernet standards (802.3bz) to get a 2.5Gbps link rate.
Using the ASIX AX88772 chipset, the Plugable USB 2.0 100Mbps Ethernet adapter is an inexpensive way to add a lower-bandwidth 100Mbps Ethernet port to your Pi.
Power
Once upon a time, we produced Micro USB power supplies for earlier Raspberry Pi models. However, these are no longer being produced and sold.
Providing more power than is needed for Raspberry Pi devices, the Plugable USB Type-C Power Delivery 60W Power Supply is still well-qualified to be used as power supply for Pi models equipped with USB-C power inputs, able to safely negotiate the right amount of power for Pi devices.
Bluetooth
Most modern Raspberry Pi models include Bluetooth support. However, if you need to add Bluetooth separately, the Plugable USB Bluetooth 4.0 Adapter is a great option.
Raspberry Pi Zero
Using the ASIX AX88172 chipset, the Plugable USB 2.0 On-The-Go 100Mbps Ethernet adapter is a great option for adding a wired Ethernet port directly to your Pi Zero without needing an additional hub or USB port adapter.