Raspberry Pi 4 Kit Hookup Guide

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Contributors: bboyho, MTaylor
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Hardware Assembly

The Pi is straight-forward and easy to put together, but in the event that something doesn't seem right, this section will give you an idea of what it is supposed to look like to get the Pi up and running.

Basic Kit Desktop Kit Hardware Starter Kit
Basic Kit Desktop Kit Hardware Starter Kit

Unbox and gather these components before beginning the assembly

Attaching a Heat Sink Enclosure Optional

If you are using the heat sink enclosure, grab the thermal pad that matches the size of the Pi's CPU. Remove the thin, clear plastic film and paper from both sides of the thermal pad. Attach the side that had the paper to the Pi's CPU. There are thermal pads shaped for other IC and can be added on those chips as well. However, those do not get hot.

Thermal Pad

Grab the top of the heat sink case with the cutout for the GPIO pins and place it on the Pi. If you are using the DSI port or Raspberry Pi camera, now would be good time to insert the ribbon cable between the Pi and the top of the heat sink.

Top of Heat Sink

Align the mounting holes of the bottom of the heat sink case.

Bottom of Heat Sink

Screw and tighten the hex bolts using the allen key.

Tighten

Rotate the Pi. Your heat sink enclosure should look like the image below!

Raspberry Pi with Heat Sink

Insert the microSD Card

With the image flashed on the microSD Card, insert it into the microSD socket.

MicroSD Card Being Inserted without Enclosure MicroSD Card Being Inserted with Enclosure

Attaching Peripherals

Attach desired consumer computer equipment. At a minimum to get up and running or navigate through the Pi, we recommend using a monitor, keyboard, and mouse. The following images will use a Pi without an enclosure to show where to connect the peripherals.

Monitor

Using a monitor with a HDMI port [3], insert the HDMI end of the cable to the connector. Then connect the mini-HDMI end of the cable to the connector. Note that the Pi 4 has two mini-HDMI outputs. You will need to connect to the HDMI0 port. closest to the USB-C connector.

mini-HDMI Cable to Pi

Keyboard and Mouse

Connect a keyboard and mouse to the USB ports. In this case, we were using a wireless keyboard and mouse that had a USB dongle. While you can insert the HID device into any USB port, we recommend connecting it to the USB 2.0 port so that you have the faster USB 3.0 ports (with blue) are available for certain devices (i.e. flash drives).

Wireless USB Dongle for Keyboard and Mouse

If you are using a wireless keyboard/mouse combo, the wireless USB dongle that is included maybe hidden in the battery compartment. If you are using the Logitech K400 Plus, flip it over and slide the compartment for the battery holder off.

Slide Cover Off Battery Compartment Logitech K400

Flipping over the cover, you'll notice that the dongle is attached inconspicuously on the back. Grab the wireless dongle from the back to insert into the Pi's USB port and slide the cover back on the Logitech K400 Plus.

Hidden Dongle on Logitech K400

To power the keyboard, make sure to flip the power switch to the green position on the side of the Logitech K400 Plus. Feel free to flip the power switch back to the red position to remove power.

Flip Switch to On Position

Power Supply

If you have not already, make sure that you inserted the microSD card into the microSD socket. Once everything is connected, insert the power supply [4]!

Power Up the Pi

Completed Setup

At this point, your setup should look similar to the images below to get the Pi up and running. You could add ethernet, a second monitor, headphones, speakers, or a camera depending on your setup as well!

Full Setup Full Setup with Enclosure

Connecting Hardware

Need easy access to the GPIO pins on the board? If you ordered a Qwiic cable, Qwiic enabled device, and any of the kits, take a look at the Qwiic SHIM [5] to quickly access the I2C pins. If you are looking to use certain I2C devices with Python, we recommend taking a look at the Qwiic SHIM Kit or Qwiic Starter Kit for Raspberry Pi to get started.

Qwiic SHIM for Raspberry Pi Hookup Guide

December 5, 2019

Ever wanted to prototype I2C components on a Pi? Now you can!

Qwiic SHIM Kit for Raspberry Pi Hookup Guide

February 16, 2021

Get started with the Serial LCD with RGB backlight and 9DoF IMU (ICM-20948) via I2C using the Qwiic system and Python on a Raspberry Pi! Take sensor readings and display them in the serial terminal or SerLCD.

If you included the Pi Wedge with prototyping parts in your order or the Hardware Starter Kit, check out the associated tutorial for the Pi Wedge[5] to easily access the GPIO pins on a breadboard. We recommend taking a look at the Raspberry gPIo tutorial to get started with LEDs and buttons. If you decide to go headless, you can use the 3.3V FTDI to configure or control your Pi via serial.

Preassembled 40-pin Pi Wedge Hookup Guide

October 29, 2015

Using the Preassembled Pi Wedge to prototype with the Raspberry Pi B+.

Raspberry gPIo

October 29, 2015

How to use either Python or C++ to drive the I/O lines on a Raspberry Pi.

Headless Raspberry Pi Setup

April 23, 2018

Configure a Raspberry Pi without a keyboard, mouse, or monitor.