For me it is about the laptop fan.
My old/cheep laptop started crashing after using it for a while in the garage. It turns out the inside was packed full of MDF dust. (This was before I got a dust deputy)
Cleaning it out fixed the problem (thought the DVD drive is trashed)
This was my motivation to switch to a “tablet” - no cooling fan.
I looked at small, fanless, PC’s, but the tablet option was way cheaper.
How about a LattePanda?
It’s a small, Pi sized single board computer that runs Windows 10 on an Atom processor 2(4)GB memory and 32(64)GB MMc. It also has an Arduino on board for I/O stuff.
I saw this mentioned over on the eevblog and thought it geeky enough to rate a mention here.
I’d award a prize for the first person to have Easel and grbl running on this 
I’ve got a GOAL1 PLUS connected to the X-Carve, running Estlcam. The Goal1 Plus has more memory and a faster processor than the smaller Pipo type mini PCs. This is useful since Estlcam does a lot of processing on the host PC to speed up machining. It is mounted to a grommet base monitor stand for a desk (vesa 75x75 mounting holes) and sits out of the way of the machine, but close enough for quick access to the programs. Using Windows 10, you can cast (notification center under “connect”) your screen to another PC. This makes running the machine from a laptop or desktop from inside the house very easy. Estlcam also supports webcams, so you can get everything up and running, then go inside and watch everything on a laptop, plus have the ability to stop things if need be or get notified it’s time to do a tool change. When I’m ready to do a job I just send the file over the network to the machine and get it set up and casting, then go on about my business. The company that makes the GOAL1 Plus is Higoal, and the computers can be found on Amazon. I’m also testing the GOAL1, it’s little brother with a smaller screen. I’m hoping to have a separate control PC for each machine in my shop so I don’t have to leave my laptop tethered to them anymore.
I purchased a Yoga 710 for about $400, it’s a laptop/tablet with a 1080p 11" screen, bluetooth, and an SSD. Best for the money I could find.
hope this thread isn’t dead. Could one use a browser on the Pi to log into Easel instead of sending the gcode downloaded from easel? I have a Pi 3 that I just may use for this purpose.
I use a Raspberry Pi 3 to run my whole x-carve system - including importing the G-code… I generally do my “drawing” on my main desktop computer (I use LibreCad and HeaksCad/Cam) and upload the g-code to my Dropbox (you can do the same with easel and grab the g-code). Then, I used my raspberry pi to download the G-code from Dropbox.
Run, Rinse. Repeat.
the pi can run Easel however the detailed preview wont work. What I would do is download bCNC onto the pi and use it as a Gcode sender.
This is pretty much how I run my machine except I have a CNC hat on my Pi so I do not use a Xcontroller.
Can you show what your setup looks like?
I have been using a Raspberry Pi on mine for a couple of years now.
I use as needed.
Easel with Easel Local compiled from the mac version as per this forum. and with WEBGL turned on it can preview in the right window but it also causes firefox to crash every once in a while so I do not recommend webgl turned on.
UGS when I generate larger G-code files (laser) as web based solutions tend to crash on larger files (browser restrictions executing large files for security reasons).
Bcnc when I need auto-level or hightmap for engraving on uneven surfaces.
I have tried but do not use very often
UGSplatform not because any reason just use regular UGS
CNCjs browser based and has same limits as easel for large files.
I also design on my desktop (Ubuntu) and save the files then cut from Easel on the pie. I have also controlled the X-Carve remotely with Easel from the desktop system but that is more of a novelty than practical. (just wanted to try it and it was cool but not useful).
I recommend if you choose the Pi then try all of these as they all have pros and cons. pick and use the ones that you like best as that is what makes this a great platform.
I also use the kay pad with the touch pad, this makes it very easy to stand over the machine to jog and set the zero as you can hold the keypad in one hand and stand directly over the Z axis and watch.
I use a 10 year old Mac Mine. Works great…most of the time. Recently I keep having to re-setup my machine. I think it’s probably due to the recent Easel/Driver updates.
Here are some links to the videos I did putting it together
FWIW, this is the exact setup I use (including the bCNC software). Runs like a champ and it really easy to use and set-up.
