Raspberry Pi Model A goes on sale in Europe for £19

Raspberry Pi has confirmed that a stripped-down version of its flagship Model B device is now available to buy across Europe for around 19.

The ARM-based device, known as Model A, features a single USB port, 256 MB of RAM and reportedly uses a third of the power of the 512MB Model B.

A cheaper version of the handheld computer is sure to be warmly welcomed by the developer community, who have championed the Raspberry Pi Model B since its launch as a means of encouraging children to learn coding and programming skills.

Due to unspecified paperwork-related issues, the Model A will only be shipped to European customers at this time.

In a blog post, announcing the Model A's release, the Raspberry Pi Foundation said the product is available to buy now from its long-standing distribution partners RS Components and Premier Farnell/element 14.

However, due to unspecified paperwork-related issues, it will only be shipped to European customers at this time.

"RS customers outside Europe (Allied in the US) can order a Model A now, but there will be a short delay in processing their order because we're waiting on some paperwork before the Pis can be shipped," said the post.

"Farnell customers outside of Europe (Newark in the US) will see Model A appear on their local sites when this paperwork has been filled."

Speaking to IT Pro back in December, Raspberry Pi founder Eben Upton predicted the firm would have sold 1 million devices by February 2013, and also set out plans for a sequel to the Model B.

"Even if we were to refresh the hardware we'd still support existing devices. I expect the Model B to carry on shipping until 2020, but won't be the lead model, it'll be part of a portfolio," he explained.