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I'm looking for a small and neat solution to give the Pi Zero Wi-Fi connectivity. Something along the lines of a Micro-B USB dongle would be nice, but I'm not sure they exist. I'm currently using an OTG adapter plus standard type A dongle and the amount of superfluous wire and plastic involved is ridiculous.

stovroz
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    I really hope someone near the RPi Foundation reads RPi.SE and absorbs the demand for the Pi Zero+ with on board WiFi! – Ghanima Nov 30 '15 at 15:44
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    Why not soldering the wifi chip directly to the board? – user236012 Nov 30 '15 at 15:46
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    @Ghanima I doubt they will take any notice. Neither do I think they should. People wanted a lite version of Jessie. Now people don't like the lite version and want features added back. Similarly people have argued for an unpopulated Pi. Now they have an unpopulated Pi they want features added. – joan Nov 30 '15 at 16:15
  • While the hack certainly has its merrits, I still argue that a Pi with WiFi would be something with many use cases. And @joan, there was never a Pi with WiFi yet, so I don't want anything back ;) I still think that a WiFi'd Pi fits the goals of the Foundation well. – Ghanima Nov 30 '15 at 16:18
  • @Ghanima, they really should, it would huge improvement on several fronts to have this built in. User236012, thank you that's certainly an interesting approach! – stovroz Nov 30 '15 at 20:29
  • @joan :-) came here looking for info on how to get my 5 OG zeros up to date date with my only zero W - as Ws are so hard to get hold of currently - and couldn't help but chuckle at your comment. Hope you're having a great day. – db9dreamer Nov 06 '22 at 19:16

7 Answers7

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You can do better than that micro USB adapter. Try this guy out: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B015XA3W0G/. I'm still waiting for my Pi Zero to show up, but I was able to test that adapter with another couple of devices: https://twitter.com/techhat/status/674249853174546432.

techhat
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I have not seen any dedicated micro-USB Wifi Adapters, but you can come pretty close by buying these two products:

  1. A microUSB-to-USB adapter - there is also this one but it might not have data connections as it is intended for charging.

enter image description here

  1. A micro-sized WiFi adapter like the Kootek or the Edimax (both have the same hardware underneath and work with Raspberry Pi's).

enter image description here

Plug 2 into 1, then 1 into the RPi and you have Wifi in a smaller size than your usual USB Wifi dongle (excluding the Kootek/Edimax of course).

Glorfindel
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Phil B.
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  • That's pretty much my current setup I wish to improve upon, albeit mine has a few cm of cable between each end of the adapter. Even without the cable the whole thing seems several times larger than it could be, and is quite incongruous coming out at right angles from the run of the board. I have since found this: http://www.everbuying.net/product1101392.html which should improve matters substantially, but a micro socket based dongle could be half this size again I'd have thought. – stovroz Nov 30 '15 at 20:17
5

Problem Solved!!!

Just get an IoT HAT for Raspberry Pi from RedBear and for only $9, you get WiFi as well as Blue Tooth. IoT HAT for Raspberry Pi

IoT HAT for Raspberry Pi

This really is a must have for Pi Zero

Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are essential for most projects and Pi Zero is just too small to have a bunch of wires and gizmos connected to it.

Best of all, a HAT which is the perfect size and exact match to the Pi Zero provides the best possible form factor. Nothing that sticks out like a sore thumb. Nothing that makes the final package more bulky than it needs to be.

You can even use the standard acrlyc protective case after installing the IoT HAT.

Last but not least, you can order an optional extended range WiFi antenna from RedBear

I have to say, I am really impressed by these guys! They get it!

And I am impressed not just by this project, but by other Kickstarter projects RedBear has launched.

Alex Smart
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The best option is HubPiWi - an add on board for Raspberry Pi Zero with 3 USB Ports and an integrated Wifi. The board has a PCB Antenna and does not require and Cable or Connector.

Reference Designer's HubPiWi

There are two versions of it - one for newer Pi Zero 1.3 ( with Camera Connector) and one for earlier versions. The details can be checked at

HubPiWi at kickstarter

Vikas Shukla
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Took me some searching, but then I found this:

Micro USB wifi dongle

https://www.modmypi.com/raspberry-pi/raspberry-pi-zero-board/rpi-zero-accessories/pi-zero-wifi-micro-usb-wifi-dongle

I think this would be the smallest plug and play option.

Daniël van den Berg
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For the adapter, you can also try the following product:

Micro USB OTG Adapter http://www.amazon.com/Adapter-LDesign%C2%AE-Android-Smartphone-Samsung/dp/B015XA3W0G/ref=sr_1_2?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1464898004&sr=1-2&keywords=micro+usb+wifi+adapter

Micro USB OTG Adapter Usage Example

Tony
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  • That's actually the exact same product from techhat's answer – Jeff Meden Jun 03 '16 at 15:01
  • @JeffMeden Yes, you are right, it's the same product, but my answer has images ;) – Tony Jun 06 '16 at 18:54
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    Instead of literally doubling the cost of the Pi Zero why not get 5 connectors for $2.34 http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B015GZOHKW/ref=s9_simh_gw_g147_i2_r?ie=UTF8&fpl=fresh&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=&pf_rd_r=198SJWZHS53RGK0DV3JR&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=b2f7ca14-9d6b-4341-8eb1-a70e22819d56&pf_rd_i=desktop – Jeff Meden Jun 06 '16 at 20:03
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Well, time passed. I think the cheapest option now is to buy the Raspberry Pi Zero W which has Wifi & Bluetooth built-in.

https://www.adafruit.com/product/3400

Omar Aflak
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