Raspberry Pi: Transform the popular-single board computer into a showpiece with the Solid Copper Maker Block Case

The volume of cases available for the Raspberry Pi 4 is constantly growing, but few are as striking as the Solid Copper Maker Block Case by Desalvo Systems. As its name suggests, the case is made from copper and has been machined from a C110 copper bar. Expectedly, the case also weighs quite a bit with it coming in at 785 g. By contrast, the original aluminium version of the same case weighs a mere 250 g.

The use of solid copper also makes the case expensive. While the aluminium version retails for US$49.95, the Solid Copper Maker Block Case costs US$249.95, making it a pricey affair for the humble Raspberry Pi 4. However, the copper housing also acts as a massive heatsink to keep the single-board computer (SBC) cool. According to Desalvo Systems, the Raspberry Pi 4 can maintain 2.1 GHz at 50 °C, which is a 600 MHz overclock on the stock 1.5 GHz boost clock.

With that said, the aluminium case holds the Raspberry Pi 4 at 60 °C when running at 2.1 GHz, so the copper edition does not bring much more to the table than its cheaper sibling. In our opinion, the thermal performance of the aluminium case renders the Solid Copper Maker Block Case unnecessary, unless you want a shiny copper block for your Raspberry Pi 4. You will need to polish the copper regularly too, as the 99.9% copper block will lose its lustre, otherwise.