LCD and Keypad Kit, 16x2, RGB, Raspberry Pi

This was a pretty simple kit to put together. The instructions were clear and there weren't many components, albeit there are a lot of solder joints when you add in all the connectors. The components were clean and took solder well, the circuit board is clearly labeled and the holes nicely plated.I followed the instructions on the Adafruit site, easy to follow with plenty of pictures; check it out before you buy: https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-16x2-character-lcd-plus-keypad-for-raspberry-pi/assemblyOnce assembled it worked first time. Initially I thought it was broken as the display had no text but all I had to do was turn up the contrast.I found the kit very easy to assemble but I am lucky enough to have a temperature controlled iron and several years of hobby experience. If you are new to soldering I recommend only soldering a couple of legs of the IC at a time then leaving it to cool down a bit while you solder something else. The row of header pins for the LCD need a bit more heat so either turn up the temperature or expect them to take more time for the solder to flow.

This was my 1st purchase, which I screwed up in the soldering phase. Once I upgraded to a Weller butane iron, all that changed, don't scrimp on an iron, they need to produce a ton of hear (I think 900 degrees or so) and it needs to be in the tip of of the iron. The cheap ones seem to heat up to the prescribed temp, but not at the tip, about 1/8-1/4" below, which makes for sloppy soldering. Again, the butane iron I got is awesome, I am soldering with 10x plus magnification making connections that are very similar to those from machines when done properly. (Using one of the magnifiers that fit around head and can flip up and down easily, you need both hands free to properly solder electronics like this.Adafruit sells this as well as just the LCD or just the back plate as well, pretty nice if you can salvage one after a sloppy soldering job. The final lcd I got was from adafruit, the RGB negative type.

This was a fun project putting together. It does come as a kit, but most people ordering this item will likely understand that. Make sure you go to adafruit's website and use the instructions provided. Most of it is foolproof (assuming you know how to solder); however, there is a chip that must be installed a certain way, and if you do not do that correctly, it will be a bust. I would like to see Adafruit add something to the kit to prevent shorting between the board and the usb ports of the raspberry pi b+ (and I assume 2 also?). I used the electric tape method, but would like to see the manufacturer come up with something to support newer models of pi. Overall works great!

It takes a little time to assemble and remember to check out the Adafruit site for the assembly instructions. It also comes with a few extra parts just in case you need them. I didn't, so I have parts for other projects when I need them!

No instruction on soldering components into the board. Looked online and still did not find one. When soldering in the chipset I mounted it so the words were facing a readable direction (top up), the chip is supposed to be mounted upside down... Too much of a pain to desolder and solder again so I just got rid of it. Poor experience.

They state it is the. we model with the buttons on the right side. It isnt. I bought two and on of the boards is busted.should have just bought it from adafruit.

simple to build ,superman fast delivery,works a dream,highly recommend ,all support software on Adafruit website,better with RGB one than with duel mode one.

I use these on headless Raspberry Pis that just need a little input and output. Like Pandora and WiFi radio.

Looks as per the description. Just needed these for POS testing. Raspberry Pi 2 is a must everyone should have to get computer literate. Need to test more if this Adafruit works stable over time and durability.. Indiatally ok.