When Red Bull Gives You Wings and a Retro Gaming PC

An enthusiast known by the nickname Titan3DAZ has unveiled an unusual project-a fully functional computer disguised as a Red Bull energy drink can. The device, housed in a small cylindrical case, is a gaming system based on the Raspberry Pi 5. Inside, there is a 512 GB SSD and 16 GB of RAM, utilizing Recalbox as the software platform, a popular OS for emulating classic consoles and arcade machines.

The project was originally created as a Christmas gift for the creator’s father, a big fan of retro games. To make the surprise special, the author added ROM images of dozens of iconic games, a list of which is placed directly on the can’s “label.” Among them are Doom, Donkey Kong, Pac-Man, Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter, Frogger, Space Invaders, and others.

The mini-PC case is a cylindrical shell with realistic Red Bull graphics. The internal frame and component mounts were fully designed from scratch in FreeCAD and 3D printed. All components are tightly housed within a volume of about 1.8 liters. HDMI and USB-C ports are provided for connections at the bottom, along with USB-A on top. In a demonstration video on YouTube, Titan3DAZ spectacularly shows how the mini-PC literally slides out of the energy drink can.

The Raspberry Pi 5 offers a powerful quad-core processor, clocking in at 1.8 GHz, improved GPU performance, and support for dual 4K monitors, making it competitive with other single-board computers like the Odroid N2+ with similar processing power but offering different port configurations, and the ASUS Tinker Board S known for its excellent audio capacity.

Recent trends in DIY computing, particularly with Raspberry Pi, include the rise in hobbyists creating unique, nostalgic gaming setups, often integrating emulators for vintage experiences within innovative form factors.

The creator has made the CAD files and 3D models available for free on the Printables platform, allowing anyone interested to replicate the project.