Pimoroni's Captain Resetti Adds a Reset Button to Save Your Raspberry Pi Pico's USB Port
Simple add-on offers quick access to the bootloader and one-touch program reset on any Raspberry Pi Pico.
Pimoroni has released an add-on designed to fix the biggest problem with the Raspberry Pi Pico microcontroller board: the lack of a physical reset button.
Released late last month, the Raspberry Pi Pico has proven popular - as has the RP2040 microcontroller which powers it, and is already en route to new boards from companies including Arduino, Adafruit, Pimoroni, and SparkFun. Early adopters, though, have flagged one usability concern: Having to unplug and re-plug the USB cable every time you want to reset the microcontroller.
The solution is simple: A momentary push-button switch between the RUN and GND pins is enough to five any Raspberry Pi Pico a physical reset button — but Pimoroni has gone one step further and launched Captain Resetti, a surface-mount button which solders directly onto the Pico board itself to keep your breadboard clutter-free.
"Captain Resetti (previously the scourge of the seven USB-Cs, now reformed) will help you avoid unnecessary wear and tear to your cables, your fingers and your patience," the company explains. "To enter bootloader mode you can: Hold down Resetti; hold down BOOTSEL; release Resetti; release BOOTSEL."
"To exit bootloader mode and run your code, all you need to do is tap the reset button (though politeness costs nothing, and we're sure they'd appreciate a quick 'Thank you, Cap'n!')."
The add-on is now available from Pimoroni's store, priced at $1.72 — of which $1.37 is passed on to the charitable Raspberry Pi Foundation to support their work in education.
