A ‘Fun’ Way of keeping a Watchful Eye on Your Crypto-Currency

For those of us who are a little OCD about the peaks and dips of our crypto-pairs, here’s a cool way to get even more stressed-out about what your hard earned coin is doing. 

I got annoyed of constantly checking my phone, installing resource-robbing browser and OS plugins just to keep track of my active currency pairs. 

One morning while ‘making a deposit at the porcelain bank’, (the birthplace of some of humanities best resolutions to first world problems), I found myself effectively trapped until the deed was done. Immobilized and without a mobile device or anyway of checking my numbers… A thought suddenly occurred: 

“Wouldn’t it be great if I could have a few always-connected devices scattered in strategic locations throughout my living space?”  Of course!

The fact that I’d have to deploy multiple units meant this project was contingent on affordability, the ability to connect wirelessly to my network and simple enough for a moderately technical person like me to put together.  

And then there was CryptoPi…

The data is being pulled via BTC-e’s API using a modified version of the ticker.py python script available here.

CryptoPi Parts:

The mainframe! - Raspberry Pi 3 - $40

The screen - Adafruit PiTFT Plus 320x240 2.8" TFT + Capacitive Touchscreen - $45

The enclosure - Pi 3 Case Base + Faceplate and Buttons Pack $10

At proximately $115 including shipping, if you’re building several units, the CryptoPi may not be the most cost effective solution … nonetheless a great project for a rainy weekend.

Now you too can enjoy bestriding the crypto-currency roller coaster of tantalizing climbs to terror-inducing heights, the near-vertical drops and hairpin turns in your humble abode, no matter where you stand… or sit.