Tag: sbc

Orange Pi Zero 2 : A new Raspberry Pi contender ?

Fabien Linux, Orange PI Leave a comment
The new Orange Pi Zero 2 Single Board computer

If you were searching for a very small and capable SBC to run some linux app on arm cpu , you were already able to buy the original Orange PI zero ,
but the board has some obvious flaws like .

  • 100mbps ethernet
  • very unreliable wifi
  • no display connector
  • Unreliable power connector (MicroB)

Now after a few years, the company responsible for the original board has created a successor with updated specs.
The size of the board is larger than the first , but this is still one of the smallest SBC available on the market at 60 x 53 mm

Bigger than the original OrangePi Zero

Here are the complete specs :

  • SoC – Allwinner H616 64-bit quad-core Arm Cortex-A53 processor @ up to 1.5 GHz with Arm Mali G31 MP2 GPU
  • Memory – 512MB or 1GB DDR3
  • Storage – MicroSD card slot
  • Wired Networking – Gigabit Ethernet
  • Wireless Networking – Dual-band 802.11 b/g/n/ac WiFi 5 + Bluetooth 5.0
  • USB – 1x USB 2.0 host port, 2x USB 2.0 interfaces via 13-pin header
  • 13-pin header with 2x USB, analog stereo audio output, CVBS video output, IR input, 3x GPIOs
  • 26-pin IO header with I2C, SPI, UART, multiple GPIOs
  • Debugging – 3-pin UART header for serial console
  • Power Supply – USB Type-C port 5V
  • Dimensions – (60 x 53 mm)

All this for a board that cost less than 20euros !
looking at the cpu, we have a quad core that might be able to match the performance of a raspberry pi4 but when you look at the cost , it’s more in competition with the Raspberry PI zero W witch has a lot less features than this board and is way less powerful !

I can completely see that board screwed behind a screen and used has an emulation machine .
Or a IP security camera server using MotionEyeOs
Or connected to a ISP router to run pihole (but i would still prefer the original pi zero for this , this one is too powerful for pihole).
Maybe a domotic server like Domoticz or Jeedom , the possibilities are endless !

The main flaw of this new board is the USB port . It’s only a USB2.0 port , and it will limit pretty severely the kind of projects that you can realistically do on this board,
Even if USB2 still has a 300mbps bandwidth. I would choose a board with USB3 to run a server like OpenMediaVault.

you can buy this board here

The NanoPI NEO Plus 2

Fabien Geek Leave a comment

the guys at Frendly elec Just created a very interesting board witch check a lots of mark in the things I look for in a SBC,

  • First : a good CPU
    the Allwinner H5 , is a powerful enough CPU that you might need to cool if you wish to use it at it’s full potential
  • Lots of RAM , 1GB DDR3
    the main issue i have with the OrangePI zero is that there is only 512 MB of ram in the biggest version. for a  lot of usages , it’s not enough.
    1GB should be plenty
  • integrated flash memory
    the problem with µSD card is that they degrade overtime , and after a year or two , you will see problem with you card unless you take special precaution to limit writes to the SD card.
    With eMMC the life of the memory should be longer.
  • Wifi b/g/n with a well supported chipset : the AP6212
  • Some GPIO’s
  • GIGABIT ethernet ,  a must have !

the price is 24.99$ at http://www.friendlyarm.com

Libre Computer Board a nice 4K capable SBC

Fabien Geek Leave a comment

Kickstarter spawned a very interesting board ,
it’s called Le Potato from the company Libre Computer Board

this board is designed to offer exactly the same layout as the RPI3 , but absolutely destroy it in term of performance

‘the powerful cpu and the large amount of ram enable usages forbidden by the low power of the RPI3.

  • A powerful web server
  • A NAS
  • A fast VPN gateway
  • A local media server
  • A torrent downloader
  • A media encoder
  • A IP camera storage server
  • Or a lightweight desktop computer

 

The cpu is a Quad 64-bit ARM Cortex-A53 CPU + ARM Mali-450 GPU it will need a active CPU cooling , which is provided in the 65$ option.

The specs given by the manufacturer are

HDMI 2.0
4 USB 2.0 Type A
RJ45 100Mb Fast Ethernet
CVBS
Infrared Receiver
S/PDIF Header
UART Header
I2S + ADC Header
40 Pin Header for PWM, I2C, I2S, SPI, GPIO
eMMC Daughter Board Connector with the option for a 64GB emmc in the 99$ reward
MicroSD Card Slot with UHS Support

 

In some multiusers cases the 100 mbps ethernet port might limit the usage as a NAS. But in most cases, it should be fine as a NAS for 1 or 2 simultaneous users
But the hdmi 2 port is great if you think using it as a media machine connected to a TV for example
The lack of wifi connectivity is disappointing. And one of the 4 USB ports will be reserved for a Wi-Fi adapter
They justify this decision because of a lengthy certification process.
The maker plan on releasing a Wi-Fi + Bluetooth mezzanine in the future witch will address the lack of radio connectivity

The new Orange pi  Zero Plus 2 |allwinner h3, 512mb, 4K hdmi, 8gb emmc

Fabien Orange PI 1 Comment

orange pi is an awesome sbc manufacturer known for excellent hardware and awful software support. 

I’m a very happy owner of the first generation orangepi zero witch I use as a headless Linux server on my network. 

Today orangepi release a new version of the orange pi zero called the “orange pi zero 2 plus” the cpu goes from the H2+ to the H3, the wlan controller is better, you get a csi camera interface. And 8gb onboard mmc flash. 

Also the board gain an hdmi port witch enable easy video output to a screen or a TV. 

The board also gain bluetooth support if that something that’s useful to you. 

Overall its seems the addition of the hdmi port is at the expense of the disappearance of the ethernet port witch was for me one of the best feature of the first edition of the orange pi zero. 

The board is made for a different purpose, the 2 plus is going to be ideal for a very small media player or a emulator gaming device. Since the video output and the 4k capability are adding  this kind of possibilities 

The board is also much more expensive than its predecessor at 18$90 compared to the original 512MB orange pi zero at 8$99.

Since I don’t require a video output the original orangepi zero suits better my purpose, but for most people a video output is mandatory, 

The orange pi zero 2 plus is going to be be an excellent board once the armbian team release an image for it.