7 Hidden Raspberry Pi Features You Should Be Using

The Raspberry Pi is a versatile device with many features and configurations. Most people know the basics, but so many secret features are waiting to be discovered. How many do you know? Dive in and find out!

Raspberry Pi has many hidden features, from software configurations like headless setup and VNC to hardware features like camera port and overclocking, that can push the Raspberry Pi to its limits.

Discovering Raspberry Pi’s hidden features can be exciting. I’ll share the most useful features with you, a preview of the results and detailed tutorials to help you make the most of them. I hope you find these features as fascinating as I do!

If you’re looking for inspiration for your next Raspberry Pi project, I’ve put together a list of 75+ ideas with full descriptions, difficulty ratings, and links to tutorials. Whether you’re a beginner or more advanced, there’s something here for you. Grab the list for free here!

Running Raspberry Pi Without a Screen

The easiest way to use your Raspberry Pi is to connect it to a monitor and keyboard. However, if you don’t have a monitor/keyboard for your Raspberry Pi, you can do a headless setup and use your Raspberry Pi over SSH.

Using this method, you don’t have to install a dedicated desktop setup for your Raspberry Pi; you can use it over SSH from the convenience of your laptop or PC.

A headless setup is most suitable for use cases where you intend to use your Raspberry Pi as a Server, and a dedicated display is not required.

To do a headless setup, we must apply OS Customization during the installation and enable SSH. Once installed, you can boot your Raspberry Pi and connect to it using SSH.

To determine your Raspberry Pi’s IP address, you can use a tool like Advanced IP Scanner.
Or if you prefer an easier way with your phone, install the RaspberryTips Android App, and it will automatically find the IP address for you!

A detailed step-by-step tutorial is available in the article: How to install a Headless Raspberry Pi (No Monitor) In 2024.

Access Your Raspberry Pi Remotely

To take your headless setup one step further, you can use VNC. While SSH gives you complete command line functionality of your Raspberry Pi remotely, VNC allows you to share your display and access the GUI elements of your Raspberry Pi.

Virtual Network Computing (VNC) is a graphical desktop-sharing system that uses the Remote Frame Buffer protocol to control another computer remotely. In addition to graphical screen updates, VNC shares your Input Devices (Mouse and Keyboard) with the remote server.

Remote Access with VNC is a more convenient method of accessing your Raspberry Pi Server if you are uncomfortable with a CLI (SSH).

You need to enable VNC from Raspberry Pi Control Center / raspi-config.
Then, your Raspberry Pi can be accessed from your PC using VNC client software like TigerVNC.

To remotely access your Raspberry Pi using VNC, follow the tutorial: Getting Started With VNC on Raspberry Pi.

Bonus: RPI Connect

RPI Connect is a beta feature recently added to Raspberry Pi OS. It has the added advantage of being accessible through any web browser without client software. It can be used from anywhere, so you don’t need to be on the same local area network (LAN).

A detailed tutorial on enabling RPI Connect can be found in the article: Introducing Raspberry Pi Connect: Easy remote access to your Pi.

Additionally, you can explore RPI Connect features in-depth using their official documentation page.

Use Your Pi as a Wireless Access Point

Did you know that your Raspberry Pi can be turned into a hotspot and serve as a Wireless Access Point? The latest version of Raspberry Pi OS uses Network Manager, so you no longer need dnsmasq, hostapad, and other services to create an access point.

When used as a Wi-Fi access point, the Raspberry Pi is positioned between your network switch and internet router and connects to it using an Ethernet (RJ45) cable. Other devices can then connect to the Raspberry Pi via Wi-Fi and access the internet.

Using your Raspberry Pi as a Wireless Access Point has the following advantages/ use case scenarios:

• Home Network Extension/ Range Extender: If your home Wi-Fi does not cover your entire home, then the Raspberry Pi can be used as a Wireless Access Point to extend the range of your existing network.
• Portable LTE Hotspot: Raspberry Pi can be used as a portable LTE Hotspot using Wireless Access Point Mode and a 4G/ LTE Modem Kit (It looks like that).
• Network Monitoring & Logging: Raspberry Pi, when used as an Access Point, can monitor and log the network activity of devices connected to it. This can be useful for security auditing, troubleshooting network issues, or analyzing traffic patterns.
• Compartmentalization/ Guest Network: You can set up a separate guest network using Raspberry Pi as an AP, keeping your main network secure and private.

Wireless Access Points can be enabled on your Raspberry Pi via the GUI and CLI using Network Manager. Your devices can then connect to it using Wi-Fi using the SSID and Password, as you would connect to any other Hotspot.

A detailed step-by-step tutorial on setting up Access Point mode on both the latest release and earlier versions can be found in the article: Turn Your Raspberry Pi into an Access Point.

Ditch the SD Card & Supercharge Your Pi

Another useful feature of Raspberry Pi is the USB Boot functionality. Conventionally, a Raspberry Pi is booted from an SD Card. However, you can also boot it from a USB. Additionally, you can use a USB to SATA adapter to boot your Raspberry Pi from an HDD or SSD.

Once configured for USB Boot, your Raspberry Pi will boot the Operating System from USB instead of the SD Card.

USBs are usually more reliable than SD cards. Using USB boot gives you more storage options and larger capacity, helping make your Raspberry Pi more reliable overall. Another key advantage if you are using Raspberry Pi 4 or 400 is that USB 3.0 speeds generally exceed Micro SD Card speeds.

Related: Raspberry Pi Official USB Flash Drives: Are They Worth It?

USB Boot is enabled by default on newer versions of Raspberry Pi Firmware. If no Micro SD Card is detected, the Pi will automatically boot from USB. However, you can also change the boot order from your Raspi-Config.

For a more detailed, step-by-step tutorial on USB Boot, follow the article: How to Boot from SSD on Raspberry Pi.

Note: If you want to see how to boot to an SSD for blazing fast speeds, I have a video on this topic just for community members. Join here to watch, and get access to 30+ other lessons for Raspberry Pi along with many other benefits!

Push Your Pi to Its Limits

Performance-wise, the Raspberry Pi already delivers impressive performance considering its size. However, did you know you can squeeze even more power out of your Raspberry Pi by overclocking it?

The Raspberry Pi runs a Broadcom BCM2711 processor with four Cortex-A72 cores on the default clock speed of 1.5GHz. However, it can be clocked up to 2GHz to improve performance significantly.

Overclocking your Raspberry Pi can significantly enhance its performance. The overclocked GPU can also improve video exporting, speed up the desktop experience, or boost gaming emulation performance.

Note: An Overclocked CPU can get significantly hot (up to 70 degrees Celcius) and can be counter-productive as it might cause the CPU to throttle and cause freezing issues. Therefore, ensure you have a heatsink installed with appropriate cooling arrangements before overclocking. See this article for an example of a cooling arrangement.

To overclock your CPU follow these steps:

• Make sure your Raspberry Pi is up to date by using the following command:
  sudo apt update && sudo apt full-upgrade
  
• Additionally, make sure your Raspberry Pi Firmware is up to date as well using the command:
  sudo apt install rpi-update
  
• You can overclock the Raspberry Pi by changing the /boot/firmware/config.txt file with any text editor and adding the following three entries to the bottom of the file.
  (Note that the Pi 4 uses ‘over_voltage’ whereas the Pi 5 uses ‘over_voltage_delta’ instead.
  Be sure to check a guide for your specific Pi model to get it right.)
  
• Save and Exit the file.
• Restart your Raspberry Pi.

That is, you have successfully overclocked your Raspberry Pi. To read more regarding the processing capabilities of your Raspberry Pi, follow the article: Can a Raspberry Pi 5 Replace Your Main PC? I Tested It!.

Tip: Command lines can be a pain to memorize. I put the essential Linux commands on a printable cheat sheet so you don't have to keep googling them. You can grab the PDF here if you want to save some time.

GPIO Pins Beyond Input Output

While most people are aware that GPIOs on a Raspberry Pi can be used for digital inputs and outputs, they can also handle more complex tasks such as PWM, SPI, and I2C.

GPIOs are the 40-pin header on your Raspberry Pi. In addition to being used as digital I/O, a few pins have some extra/ hidden functionality associated with them.

A few of the interesting features available on your Raspberry Pi GPIO are as follows:

• I2C: I2C is a serial communication protocol that enables multiple devices to communicate using only two wires. The Raspberry Pi can act as both a master and a slave device on an I2C bus, making it suitable for connecting to various integrated circuits.
• SPI: SPI is a serial communication protocol for high-speed data transfer between the Raspberry Pi and peripheral devices. It uses four wires and is commonly used with sensors, displays, and flash memory.
• PWM: PWM lets the GPIO pins change the voltage output over time, acting like an analog output. It’s useful for adjusting LED brightness, motor speed, or servo motor position.
• UART: UART is a simple way to connect the Raspberry Pi to other devices like microcontrollers, GPS, and Bluetooth. It uses two wires for data transfer: one for transmitting and one for receiving.
• Interrupts: The Raspberry Pi can be set up to respond to specific events on its GPIO pins, such as a rising edge, falling edge, or level change, without monitoring the pins continuously.

Utilizing these functions can greatly enhance your Raspberry Pi’s capabilities. Using GPIOs, you can connect several accessories to your Raspberry Pi. To read more about Raspberry Pi GPIOs, follow this article.

Owing to the standard layout of Raspberry Pi GPIOs, several HATs (Hardware Attached on Top) accessories greatly enhance the functionality of your Raspberry Pi. Read a list of the Top 13 Raspberry Pi HATs you must try in 2024.

Give Your Pi Eyes for Countless New Projects

Did you know your Raspberry Pi has a dedicated connector for camera modules? Connecting the camera module is much simpler and baked into Raspberry Pi OS.

Once connected to the Camera, your Raspberry Pi can shoot photos and record videos. It can then be coupled with Python libraries for projects that require your Raspberry Pi to have its own eyes.

Raspberry Pi and a camera can be used in Home Surveillance Systems, Smart doorbells, Object Recognition, and Augmented Reality Projects.

You can connect your camera module to your Raspberry Pi via the dedicated camera connector. You can then enable the camera from Raspi-config and utilize the camera library tools to take photos and record videos.

To follow a step-by-step tutorial on connecting your camera to Raspberry Pi follow the article: Install a Camera on your Raspberry Pi: The Ultimate Guide.

To read more about how to use your camera with Python, read these articles:

• For beginners: How to Use picamzero to Take Photos and Videos
• For intermediate users: How to Use the Raspberry Pi Camera with Python.

Whenever you’re ready, here are other ways I can help you:

Test Your Raspberry Pi Level (Free): Not sure why everything takes so long on your Raspberry Pi? Take this free 3-minute assessment and see what’s causing the problems.

The RaspberryTips Community: Need help or want to discuss your Raspberry Pi projects with others who actually get it? Join the RaspberryTips Community and get access to private forums, exclusive lessons, and direct help.

Master your Raspberry Pi in 30 days: If you are looking for the best tips to become an expert on Raspberry Pi, this book is for you. Learn useful Linux skills and practice multiple projects with step-by-step guides.

Master Python on Raspberry Pi: Create, understand, and improve any Python script for your Raspberry Pi. Learn the essentials step-by-step without losing time understanding useless concepts.

You can also find all my recommendations for tools and hardware on this page.