bat:bit battery case for micro:bit

Does exactly what it's supposed to do. Allows you to run your microbit anywhere without the hassle of a separate battery pack. Does not impede access to buttons, or interfere with the LEDs.

Very nice and very compact. Keeps your micro bit safe as a secondary feature, but the ability to have a battery powered project without the cables is a major win

The BBC Micro:bit is an excellent platform for experimenters of all ages to learn how to code. The only weak link is its power supply system, the JST connection from the battery box to the micro:bit is difficult to remove for both small and larger fingers and it is the only method by which the board can be turned off. The leads would be very difficult to repair if they were pulled on instead of gripping the small JST plug. Proto-PIC's bat:bit gets over the above problem and also packages the BBC micro:bit into a very well protected unit, complete with an on/off switch.<br /><br />I actually purchased two of the bat:bits and assembled the first one having watched the YouTube video on how to construct it. All was well when I switched it on with a brand new micro:bit running its demo sequence. It then began to display intermittent break ups on the LEDs. I decided to take it apart to see what may be causing this problem and noticed that the mating of the bat:bit's sprung battery terminals to the micro:bit's pads needs to be accurate. The perspex parts have been made to a tight tolerance to ensure that this accurate mating takes place. I then reassembled the bat:bit by first doing up all the nuts by hand as recommended but this time I finally tightened the nuts with the supplied tool by selecting diagonally opposite ones. The idea came from tightening car cylinder head nuts in a previous life when the sequence was crucial. From that moment on and three weeks down the line both of my bat:bits have performed faultlessly, having ensured that all component parts are properly centered by the even tightening of the very nice rounded nuts. It is great to see steel nuts and bolts in this design too, I personally don't like the wide usage of nylon equivalents, accepting of course that there are sometimes electrical reasons for having to use them. This is yet another well thought out design from Proto-PIC.

Both myself and my 10 year old think this bit:bat is superbly designed. Its solid, has a switch for the battery so you don't need to keep pulling out the switchless battery holder that came with the micro:bit, there is no lead, it feels great in the hand,and best of all my 10 year old can handle it without causing static damage to the micro:bit - which seems to happen quite a lot and cause an overheating problem (its believed to be something to do with the USB voltage regulator). But encased inside the bat:bit the micro:bit is very, very, nicely protected. very well thought out and looks great too.

The bat bit battery case for the microbit is well made and easy to set up. It has the advantage of not only protecting your microbit from possible static discharge but also provides a neat solution for attaching the battery which you can switch on and off. With the microbit installed it sits nicley on a work top solid and robust. No problem with access to all the pins and buttons however you will need an adapter if you wanted to use Proto-Pics excellent micropixel unit.