It has been less than a week since the Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W debuted and makers have already begun to use the new board in exciting projects. Today we’re sharing a Pi Zero 2 W project created by Clemens with Elektor TV, part of Elektor Magazine, who is using the new module to power a YouTube subscriber counter.
The Pi is connected to an 8-digit MAX7219-based 7-segment display which outputs the current subscriber count for a given YouTube channel in real-time. It also doubles as a clock for a little extra functionality.
According to Clemens, the Pi Zero 2 W uses a script to access the YouTube API and retrieve subscriber data to output the current subscriber count to the display. To keep the project user-friendly, this script is programmed to automatically run on boot so no terminal access or external display is necessary to get it up and running.
The 7-segment display is soldered to the Pi Zero 2 W and housed inside a small case. The best Raspberry Pi projects are ones you can make at home and this is one of them as Clemens has provided a complete tutorial on how to recreate this project over at YouTube. It includes a wiring diagram for the display as well as steps for installing the necessary libraries to get the display to operate with the Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W.
To see this project in action and get a closer look at the assembly process, check out Elektor TV at YouTube and keep an eye on them for more cool projects.