I've said this before but I feel like the Raspberry Pi Foundation hasn't met its objective of making computers accessible and affordable to everyone (especially children in disadvantaged places). In South Africa, the average child from a disadvantaged background has no chance of buying a Pi.
Arduino on the other hand, and them open sourcing the hardware means very cheap but less powerful SBCs from companies in China (and elsewhere). I hope to see something in a similar vein from them as they have the ecosystem and resources to mass produce very cheap boards, but the Pi itself is prohibitively expensive, and it looks like they cater to companies first and prioritise making a profit.
The Foundation is not the same as Raspberry Pi (Trading) Ltd. While the Foundation is hardware-agnostic, they have a particular fondness for the Raspberry Pi.
> Arduino on the other hand, and them open sourcing the hardware means very cheap but less powerful SBCs from companies in China.
You probably don't know that the Raspberry Pi Pico is now also produced in Africa (I only learned last week). It offers better value for money compared to the ATMEGA328P. Additionally, Raspberry Pi is actively supporting the development of hardware manufacturing skills in Africa.
Raspberry Pi always felt more commercial than Arduino with a stronger focus on a branded range of products than providing a template for others to copy. We've even come to the point where it's no longer the cheapest option for what it provides at the same form factor. There are usually cheaper options with similar or even superior hardware even for things like the Raspberry Zero.
for most countries (besides the uk and the us afaik), getting an rpi almost often meant paying more than the "$35" sticker price, despite accounting for taxes.
in the past, what would have been the prices in South Africa in your experience? for me, usually the final price would have been a 50% mark up minimum.
Arduino on the other hand, and them open sourcing the hardware means very cheap but less powerful SBCs from companies in China (and elsewhere). I hope to see something in a similar vein from them as they have the ecosystem and resources to mass produce very cheap boards, but the Pi itself is prohibitively expensive, and it looks like they cater to companies first and prioritise making a profit.