This new Adafruit Pi Plate makes it easy to use a blue and white 16x2 Character LCD. We really like the 16x2 Character LCDs we stock in the shop. Unfortunately, these LCDs do require quite a few digital pins, 6 to control the LCD and then another 1 to control the backlight for a total of 7 pins. That's nearly all the GPIO available on a Pi!
With this in mind, we wanted to make it easier for people to get these LCD into their projects so we devised a Pi plate that lets you control a 16x2 Character LCD, up to 3 backlight pins AND 5 keypad pins using only the two I2C pins on the R-Pi! The best part is you don't really lose those two pins either, since you can stick i2c-based sensors, RTCs, etc and have them share the I2C bus. This is a super slick way to add a display without all the wiring hassle.
New, we've updated this Pi plate so the buttons on on the right side, which makes it a little more mechanically stable
This pi plate is perfect for when you want to build a stand-alone project with its own user interface. The 4 directional buttons plus select button allows basic control without having to attach a bulky computer.
The plate is designed for both Revision 1 and Revision 2 Raspberry Pi's. It uses the I2C (SDA/SCL) pins. We have a special xtra-tall 26-pin header so the plate sits above the USB and Ethernet jacks. For Pi Model B+ and Pi 2, the resistors sit right above the new set of USB ports. To keep them from shorting against the metal, a piece of electrical tape must be placed onto the USB ports.
This product comes as a kit! Included is a high quality PCB and all the components (buttons, header etc). A 16x2 Character blue&white monochrome LCD is included! Assembly is easy, even if you've never soldered before and the kit can be completed in 30 minutes.