New Raspberry Pi Model B+

Much better board layout by brunes69 · 2014-07-14 00:53 · Score: 5, Informative

The model B has a lot more thought into the board layout. Having the power, and HDMI all on the same side of the board and the optional I/O also all on one other side, makes so much more sense and will allow much cleaner looking enclosures. Although.. I still wish they had done even MORE thought and out the I/O on the OPPOSITE side of the board where they have all the GPIO pins.

Re:Much better board layout by LWATCDR · 2014-07-14 02:10 · Score: 2

I would still like to see a line in.

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Re:Much better board layout by houghi · 2014-07-14 04:26 · Score: 2

I personally would prefer to have everything on ne side, including the SD slot. That way you can close off three side, which is much easier when you want to place it behind e.g. a tv and still be able to access it, whithout too much trouble.
All cables on one side just seems a logical choice for me.
But is is already much better, especially the mounting points.

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Re:Much better board layout by AmiMoJo · 2014-07-14 04:58 · Score: 1

The layout is mostly dictated by the pinout of the CPU. If you have a look at the schematics and board layout files you can see that in order to keep the number of layers down and density down they pretty much just routed everything outwards from that one part.

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Re:Much better board layout by bobbied · 2014-07-14 06:56 · Score: 2

Agreed, stereo if possible, 48Khz sample rate even better...

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Re:Much better board layout by bobbied · 2014-07-14 07:14 · Score: 3, Informative

Agreed, stereo if possible, 48Khz sample rate even better...
Correction... 192 Khz sample rate would be *excellent*....

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Re:Much better board layout by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 10:25 · Score: 0

It is made to be a tool for education, not yet another HTPC.
The new layout makes it a bit cleaner for those that want to use the GPIO to get started with electronics.
For computers that fit neatly behind the TV there are plenty of android sticks
They cost a few dollars more but as opposed to the Pi you are only going to have one anyway.
Re:Much better board layout by ChrisSlicks · 2014-07-14 11:12 · Score: 3, Interesting

Yes, a respectable line-in would be really nice. For now I have been using the Wolfson Audio Card but it costs as much as the Raspberry Pi itself, and you have to patch the OS to get it to work (but the quality is great). I've tried some of the USB audio devices but found the quality to be not good enough, probably because they are really designed for microphones and even with gain at minimal settings there is too much distortion for line-in. 48kHz is good enough IMO, the Pi doesn't really have enough CPU power to do much more than that if recording and compressing in real time.
Re:Much better board layout by bobbied · 2014-07-14 11:39 · Score: 1

I was thinking that having stereo input and high bit rates would make the Pi a pretty good Software Defined Radio platform. It might not have though raw compute power to do much in the SDR world, but surely it could do many of the standard sound card digital modes us Amateur Radio operators do. Having the Pi would make a "digital mode" radio pretty cheap to do. Hams like cheap... (well some do..)
I was thinking of pairing the hypothetical audio enhanced Pi with one of the "Soft Rock" SDR radios sold by Tony Parks (KB9YIG) And seeing if we could get a usable SDR receiver for under $100 and a l low power transceiver for about $150 plus the monitor, keyboard etc.
Ah well, we can dream...
>

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Re:Much better board layout by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 19:00 · Score: 0

And yet, no one in school uses them, but seems anyone that buys one ends up making it a HTPC.
Re:Much better board layout by Shirley+Marquez · 2014-07-15 04:58 · Score: 1

If you're willing to look beyond the Pi, the BeagleBone Black might be a good alternative. It has a significantly faster processor (1 GHz ARMv7 vs. 700MHz ARMv6, about twice the performance typically and even more if your application can take advantage of new SIMD instructions) and more I/O. Add the Audio Cape (24/96 capable TLV320AIC3104 codec, $30) and you're set. The combination won't quite reach your price point (the new 4GB version of the BB Black is about $55) but you could get to $150 for receive-only or $200 for RXTX, not too bad.
Re:Much better board layout by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-16 10:08 · Score: 0

Problem is USB-Ethernet arrange, Raspberry anouns solution with B+
Re:Much better board layout by LWATCDR · 2014-07-17 02:27 · Score: 1

I was thinking of using it as a stereo system.
Add Bluetooth for streaming from mobile devices and streaming to BT speakers. Wifi for Streaming from the Web or a NAS, Audio in for other devices and a Line out to go to an amp or speaker system.

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Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 00:54 · Score: 1

But they fixed some power problems and reduced the power consumption by using switching regulators, like they had planned before they decided to use linear regulators for the first version. The flimsy micro USB port is still the power connector though and other input voltages than 5V are still not accepted, making battery powered applications unnecessarily difficult. Oh, and none of the existing cases fit because they moved the connectors. Yeah, this is great.

Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 01:35 · Score: 1

Oh, and none of the existing cases fit because they moved the connectors.
Good. The old layout was awful, and they've fixed it.
Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by ArcadeMan · 2014-07-14 01:58 · Score: 1

Oh, and none of the existing cases fit because they moved the connectors. Yeah, this is great.
It is great indeed, because the ports are now aligned and the new cases won't look like deformed blobs of plastic.

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Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by CastrTroy · 2014-07-14 02:04 · Score: 3, Informative

Cases have always been problem with the Raspberry Pi. They didn't really think about cases when they designed it. It's almost as if they just expected people to have the board sitting unprotected on the desk. I like that they actually have mounting holes now, which should help things out a lot.

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Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by RabidReindeer · 2014-07-14 03:01 · Score: 1

Cases have always been problem with the Raspberry Pi. They didn't really think about cases when they designed it. It's almost as if they just expected people to have the board sitting unprotected on the desk. I like that they actually have mounting holes now, which should help things out a lot.
Technically, the old Model B had "mounting holes". Two of them, located in places that would really only work if you augmented them via some sort of edge or insulated under-support. The Pi box I have goes strictly for edge mounting, and it really doesn't do that well, although most of the fault is in the box design.
The B+ won't fit that old box, though. Not because of the changed port locations. Because the new card is slightly larger than the old one.
Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by mark-t · 2014-07-14 03:02 · Score: 3, Informative

input voltages than 5V are still not accepted, making battery powered applications unnecessarily difficult.
Only if you think that adding a voltage regulator chip to your power supply is difficult. A 5v regulator, the 7805, costs about 50 cents a piece even when you buy them in very small quantities.

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Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by Hamsterdan · 2014-07-14 03:07 · Score: 1

"other input voltages than 5V are still not accepted"
Putting yet another regulator would increases the cost & complexity. Want to use it with a 12V supply? It's not like it's really hard to use a 7805.

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Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by amiga3D · 2014-07-14 03:08 · Score: 1

It's a hobbyist and education board. The amazing thing really is that it's used in a lot of industrial projects now which I think surprised the Rpi people. The problems pale beside the flexibility and low cost of the board. It's not perfect, I'm sure for another 100-200 dollars it could have been.
Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by jenningsthecat · 2014-07-14 03:52 · Score: 1

...other input voltages than 5V are still not accepted, making battery powered applications unnecessarily difficult.
Yes, a range of, say, 5V to 15V would have been nice. But then they would have needed to add a 5V regulator that would be responsible not only for local regulation, but also for powering anything and everything attached to the four USB ports. Might be a bit much to ask of a small, inexpensive board.
I agree fully with your comment about using a micro USB connector for power though. That thing is awful, and it should be replaced with a real power connector.

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Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by drinkypoo · 2014-07-14 04:07 · Score: 2

Only if you think that adding a voltage regulator chip to your power supply is difficult. A 5v regulator, the 7805, costs about 50 cents a piece even when you buy them in very small quantities.
Okay, you will need two of them, two caps and a heat sink in order to make input current and cover USB peripherals. Or you could spend $5 on eBay and get a boost-buck converter that would let you run it on 3-35V or so. Hmm, I see you can get them for $4 now, I believe I spent $6 actually. $5.37 from a US seller in FL. You can get 5 pcs from China eventually for $11... Bet you can get them around $1/ea by the case off alibaba. So whether you're a hobbyist or have a serious project in mind, the cost of a DC-DC power supply for the Pi just doesn't bear mentioning. It's easy to get 2A out. If you thermal-epoxy a heat sink onto the VR chip you can even get 3A out of some of these cheapies.

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Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by BaronAaron · 2014-07-14 04:31 · Score: 1

While note a "real" power connector, you can power the Rpi through the GPIO header. Works nicely.
Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 04:58 · Score: 0

For those that don't know, the 7805 is a thing that takes a HIGHER voltage and outputs a regulated lower voltage at the same current, and dissipates the difference as HEAT, so it's an absolutely losing proposition for any battery powered applications.
A winning proposition would be something that will make possible to power the thing from 3 x aa/r6 batteries (3--4.5v) or from a 3.7 li-on battery.
Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by AmiMoJo · 2014-07-14 05:04 · Score: 1

A 5v regulator, the 7805, costs about 50 cents a piece even when you buy them in very small quantities.
The problem is not going down to 5V, it's the problem of getting up. Three AA alkaline or NiMH cells will get you around a 3.6 - 4V working range. Lithium is 3.6-3.9V depending on exact chemistry. Therefore you need a boost circuit, and boost circuits waste power. It's not an insurmountable problem, but the wasted energy is not insignificant compare to what the RPi itself, using a tickless low power kernel, consumes.
Take a look at people running an RPi on solar power to see what I mean.

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Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by mark-t · 2014-07-14 05:18 · Score: 1

The heat dissipation isn't bad when you are starting with 6 volts, or 4aa batteries. For battery powered applications, you want to use a low power regulator in the sub 1watt range. Of course, if 4.5 v will suffice then it's not an issue because you can use just 3 cells, but standard USB, I believe does require a regulated 5v

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File under 'M' for 'Manic ranting'
Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by Zaiff+Urgulbunger · 2014-07-14 05:30 · Score: 2

The Pi box I have goes strictly for edge mounting,
it probably does that because the very first Model B rev 1 boards didn't have any holes in them.
Re: Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by pruss · 2014-07-14 05:47 · Score: 1

If you use rechargeable batteries, four AA will be about 4.8v. Which may be close enough.
Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by theNetImp · 2014-07-14 05:54 · Score: 1

bitch bitch bitch bitch bitch. buy a 5V 4400mAh. I bought 1 for ¥1300 which is just barely bigger than a case for 2 AA batteries which is more than enough of a pi backup.
Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by spire3661 · 2014-07-14 05:59 · Score: 1

Buy a battery with a 5v adapter already on it. You can get them by the dozens at retail for charging cell phones. I mated an Adafruit Solar Li-Po charger and a Minty Boost to get 5v from 3.7v batteries, but whatever. The stuff is out there.

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Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 06:18 · Score: 0

Use a Murata 3 terminal switching regulator. It costs a little more - plug in replacement for standard 3 terminal Vreg - no heat - longer battery life.
Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by chihowa · 2014-07-14 07:23 · Score: 2

Unless you're dead set on saving a few bucks, you're much better off getting little modules like this from a reputable source (with schematics, test results, and so on) than from fly-by-night eBay sellers. For example, here's a decent buck-boost from Pololu that fits the bill and it's that much more expensive.
If you start looking hard at some of the anonymously produced and undocumented stuff that comes from China, you'll scream. You wouldn't believe some of the rookie mistakes made in the design of (some of) those modules. Also, in some cases there are some serious compromises made to reach the lowest possible price.

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Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by Iniamyen · 2014-07-14 08:44 · Score: 1

The couple that I have are media centers on my TVs, and I have them hanging from a short HDMI cable without a case. In this particular application, at least for me, the addition of a case would actually make it less useful.
Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by drinkypoo · 2014-07-14 08:45 · Score: 1

Unless you're dead set on saving a few bucks, you're much better off getting little modules like this from a reputable source (with schematics, test results, and so on) than from fly-by-night eBay sellers.

If you weren't dead set on saving a few bucks, you wouldn't be using a Raspberry Pi. Especially the first one, which is filled with rookie mistakes.

For example, here's a decent buck-boost from Pololu that fits the bill and it's that much more expensive.
HAHAHAHA. I love that you accidentally dropped a word, and that made your comment dramatically more accurate. The modules you propose people should use are not only three times the price, but they're also non-variable* — they might be better-made, but they also have inferior specifications.
* No, you don't need a variable supply for Pi, but I like to buy stuff that am likely to be able to repurpose later.

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Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 08:52 · Score: 0

>none of the existing cases fit because they moved the connectors
Well, DUH, print a new case with the new layout!
Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by chihowa · 2014-07-14 09:52 · Score: 1

If you weren't dead set on saving a few bucks, you wouldn't be using a Raspberry Pi. Especially the first one, which is filled with rookie mistakes.
Touché.

HAHAHAHA. I love that you accidentally dropped a word, and that made your comment dramatically more accurate. The modules you propose people should use are not only three times the price, but they're also non-variable* — they might be better-made, but they also have inferior specifications.
Three times a small number is still a small number. I don't think $15 is too extravagant and if you need more than a one-off part, you're better off making your own anyway. The link I included was just an example, but their list includes four with adjustable output of the fourteen total. What do you mean by "variable", if not that? (Anyway, that wasn't part of the original specification, nor was that part of your original description.)

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Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by drinkypoo · 2014-07-14 09:57 · Score: 1

The link I included was just an example, but their list includes four with adjustable output of the fourteen total.
sorry, my mistake. I just went by the primary examples displayed.

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"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by AC-x · 2014-07-14 22:16 · Score: 1

The number 1 priority of the Raspberry Pi foundation was a price of $35 and $25 for the 2 models, as that's the price they determined people would pay for a "disposable" computer for kids. Everything else is secondary, that's why all those more powerful clones out there end up costing more.
Re:Slow CPU, crippled network, too little RAM by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-15 06:14 · Score: 0

CubieBoard is a much more thoughtfully-designed platform than the Pi (faster, more RAM, proper ethernet, SATA, *mounting holes*) and is less than $100.

So they update it, but... by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 00:57 · Score: 0

...they do nothing about the two major shortcomings making the board an absolutely pain in the b-hind to use: the weak CPU, and the ridiculous amount of RAM. Good jeooorrrrb.

Re:So they update it, but... by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 01:22 · Score: 1

For simple programming and various custom embedded projects the specs are still plenty.
Re:So they update it, but... by fisted · 2014-07-14 01:41 · Score: 3, Informative

Those aren't the "major" shortcomings, and frankly, those aren't shortcomings at all. The CPU is about as fast as you'd expect at that little power consumption, and there is plenty of RAM. No idea what you're trying to do with yours, running Windows on it?

In case you case, the two major shortcomings are power related (try to hotplug a wifi dongle, say) and the non-dedicated ethernet.

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Re:So they update it, but... by fisted · 2014-07-14 01:42 · Score: 1

s/case,/care,/

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Re:So they update it, but... by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 01:51 · Score: 1

no idea what op is trying to do with his but i'm trying to run raspbian and (among other things) xmbc, and the experience is dreadful. i agree that the cpu and ram is far under what it should be.
Re:So they update it, but... by kent_eh · 2014-07-14 02:04 · Score: 1

It was never intended to be a powerful desktop replacement. Nor a high powered computing engine.
It is intended to be an inexpensive experimenting and learning platform.

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Re:So they update it, but... by serviscope_minor · 2014-07-14 02:07 · Score: 2

and there is plenty of RAM. No idea what you're trying to do with yours, running Windows on it?
Quite. If one grabs an RPi, sees the specs and tries to run a full blown desktop with heavyweight programs on it, it's going to suck. But that's not the fault of the RPi, that's the fault of the user.
The the real worls they work extremely well for a variety of tasks for which an armed and fully operational Linux computeris required, but where one doesn't really need the power to destroy whole planets.
Things I know they're used for:
OctoPi for running a 3D printer. The addition of $35 turns the printer into a network connected device and you no longer have to faff with SD cards, or leaving your laptop plugged in to monitor it.
Display controllers for various things. Add a Pi and a wifi dongle (cheap!) and you have a nice system which can be scriptes, pull data off the network, etc etc etc.
Door and equipment controllers: add an RFID reader and a USB relay and you now have a niec cheap, convenient little access control system.
Mocro servers for things like IRC bouncers and other tasks for which you have low bandwidth requirements but want on all the time.
And so on. They're not suitable for all tasks (DUH!) and there are are other ways of achieving the same thing (again, duh) but they are cheap, convenient, easy to get hold of, easily hackable, a great support compunity, well documented and Just Work.
It turns out that you don't need 16GiB of RAM and a few hundred GFlops of aggregate compute in order to do quite a wide variety of tasks.

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Re:So they update it, but... by monkeyhybrid · 2014-07-14 02:29 · Score: 5, Informative

I've been running Raspbmc (the most popular XBMC distro for Raspberry Pi) for a long time, and it has been excellent. It's small enough to be hidden behind my TV, and with an added remote control, offers one of the best user interfaces you'll find in a 'set top box'. Streams all my 1080p movies and TV shows flawlessly (*), and handles pretty much every codec under the sun. All for ~$40 (including HDMI cable, USB PSU, SD card and MPEG-2 license for hardware acceleration).
If you search for "Raspbmc" on YouTube, you'll see my experience is the norm. If you have any specific issues, post in the Raspbmc forums and someone will most likely sort you out. :)
As for Raspbian, I'm also running this on another Pi. It's certainly not going to replace x86 servers any time soon, but it certainly has its uses. Maybe your expectations are too high for a $35, 700MHz, 512MB machine?
* Apparently, it may struggle with some very high bit rate encodes, but I've yet to see this in practice and is unlikely to be an issue for most people.
Re:So they update it, but... by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 02:34 · Score: 0

Why do you assume he is trying to have it pull those kind of loads? Why do people like you always make extremities out of things to try make your point more valid? I have tried Raspbian, f.e., and it ain't pretty. Period.
Re:So they update it, but... by ChunderDownunder · 2014-07-14 02:35 · Score: 2

Well the specs were modest for ARM SoCs even by 2012 standards. Deliberately so, given the mission to produce a $35 computer.
A rpi 2 with Broadcom's quad core Cortex-a7 SoC would still be no speed demon compared to an iPad Mini but adequate to run, say, Gnome/KDE with all the bells and whistles. (Whether they can achieve the same price envelope...)
A $35 computer will never match a 'desktop replacement', if you're used to a Corei7 workstation but should just about surpass the P4 I'm typing this on in the next iteration.
Re:So they update it, but... by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 02:44 · Score: 2, Informative

You call those shortcomings?!
The CPU is a few thousand times faster than any other microcontroller.
The RAM is 512 MEGABYTES - Most micros used in this same class have 32 to 128 KILOBYTES of RAM.
The PI is a moster powerhouse compared to any other microcontroller in its price class.
In fact the only boards that even compare are full blown embedded PC boards, which arguably is a class or two above what the Pi is targeted at (and cost way more than 2-3x still)
It's hardly the Pis fault you are trying to run a full blown Win8 OS on an embedded microcontroller.
Try that on an adruino and go bitch about how 8kb of ram just isn't enough to blink a led using Win8 :P
Re:So they update it, but... by monkeyhybrid · 2014-07-14 03:03 · Score: 2

All I can say is, I have something in the region of 300 1080p movies, mostly H.264 encoded, all of which play with no trouble at all. Google it, YouTube it, there are countless people doing the very same thing.
If you're not just trolling, report your issue in the Raspbmc forums, ideally with a link to a sample video for others to test with. I'll quite happily test a video or two on my Pi if you supply some links.
Re:So they update it, but... by amiga3D · 2014-07-14 03:14 · Score: 1

It does it about as well as anything under 200 dollars will. I've seen an occasional glitch on mine but it's rare. It'll not compete with a full blown media machine of course but it does extremely well. I have to admit I was amazed at what it can do. The only issue I had with mine was solved with a powered USB hub and it looks like the B+ fixes that problem.
Re:So they update it, but... by amiga3D · 2014-07-14 03:21 · Score: 2

I've tried it and it was beautiful. I have to assume you're trying to do something the hardware isn't capable of. It's fully capable of any sort of light computing tasks. It works well as a media machine. This in spite of the fact it was designed to be neither. It was designed to provide a low cost, low power, small and full featured computer board for educational use. At that purpose it's off the chain. People bitching because it wont transcode blue ray movies on the fly just pisses me off. If you say Raspbian doesn't work you either don't know what you're doing or you're lying.
Re:So they update it, but... by serviscope_minor · 2014-07-14 03:37 · Score: 1

Same. I've used OctoPi quite a bit which runs off Raspian. It works great.

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Re:So they update it, but... by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 03:42 · Score: 0

The "relax reboot" issue is still a deal killer for Raspbmc, going on two years now. Some say it's due to audio, others wifi but the bottom line is no one seems to know. i.e. consider yourself lucky if everything worked well.
After endless hours pouring over the logs, I ended up punting it and going with Raspbian+xbmc. Except for configuring wifi by hand it's been exceptional.
Re:So they update it, but... by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 03:46 · Score: 0

adequate to run, say, Gnome/KDE with all the bells and whistles.

Maybe it can technically run the software but it runs like utter crap. Just running the desktop with Midori stresses the thing.
Re:So they update it, but... by kick6 · 2014-07-14 04:19 · Score: 1

Streams all my 1080p movies and TV shows flawlessly (*)/
* Apparently, it may struggle with some very high bit rate encodes, but I've yet to see this in practice and is unlikely to be an issue for most people.
I can confirm. It chokes hard on any of my DTS audio'ed recordings.
Re:So they update it, but... by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 04:24 · Score: 0

Raspberry Pi is not a microcontroller.
Re:So they update it, but... by slashdice · 2014-07-14 05:04 · Score: 1

When in Rome, do as the Romans.

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Re:So they update it, but... by Ingenium13 · 2014-07-14 06:32 · Score: 1

I completely disagree. I've been using a Model B with xbian for over 6 months now and it plays everything I throw at it flawlessly, even high bitrate 1080p h.264 videos. Sometimes the navigation can have a little latency, or transitions from one category to another (like switching from TV Shows to Movies on the main screen) can stutter or not be smooth, but I partially attribute that to my huge library and the underpowered CPU. The actual video playback itself is always flawless though. I was impressed when I first set it up, I didn't expect it to work as well as it does.
Re:So they update it, but... by amiga3D · 2014-07-14 10:10 · Score: 1

So far I keep getting this answer but no one has a link. I've sure seen nothing for less than 50 dollars that's anywhere close. I've seen a couple of boards near the 100 range that I'd say are a close equivalent, better in some ways and lacking in others.
Re:So they update it, but... by DamnOregonian · 2014-07-14 11:23 · Score: 1

Beaglebone Black eats its lunch for general computing, if you don't mind the inability to handle media quite so well, and for only $10 more. The Cortex A8 in the BBB eats the ARM11 in the RPIs' lunch.
It also dominates in actual embedded hardware applications, since it's got 2 little built-in processors that allow deterministic timed code to run with access to GPIO/peripherals, and many more GPIOs to play with.

The RPi VideoCore hardware-accelerated codecs and ability to frame 1080p are awesome, and it definitely takes the cake in graphics/media.

I've got both, and I will be getting one of the B+'s, just because the old layout was goddamn atrocious, and an RPi is still a neat toy, but my RPi has been retired and replaced by BBB's for embedded work where a Linux installation is beneficial.
Re:So they update it, but... by ChunderDownunder · 2014-07-14 12:37 · Score: 1

Technically, but only using a distro crafted for ARMv6.
Doubling the RAM aside, switching to a modern core such as a CortexA7 would make for a faster experience and allow RPi2 to use stock debian.
Re:So they update it, but... by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 15:41 · Score: 0

What, no lasers. My plans for a cyborg shark army will have to wait.
Re:So they update it, but... by CountZer0 · 2014-07-15 02:10 · Score: 1

I run 5 Pi B's as XBMC media head-ends, playing video off of a Linux based NAS, and it works quite well with all content, including 3D. The only time I had any problems with stuttering or playback was when I had a few drives in my NAS going bad. Once I replaced those drives, the problems went away.
My only complaint now has to do with fast-forward and rewind, however, I suspect much of that has to do with the fact that most of my content is still rar'ed and thus XBMC is having to decompress on the fly, which works fine for normal playback, but apparently XBMC gets a bit confused if trying to seek through the file.
Re:So they update it, but... by anethema · 2014-07-15 02:47 · Score: 1

Hm the X86 XBMC server I build and my personal AppleTV2 running XBMC all skip through RARed videos with no issues.

--

It's easier to fight for one's principles than to live up to them.
Re:So they update it, but... by Agripa · 2014-07-15 16:25 · Score: 1

If one grabs an RPi, sees the specs and tries to run a full blown desktop with heavyweight programs on it, it's going to suck. But that's not the fault of the RPi, that's the fault of the user.
How would it compare to a Pentium III at the same clock speed? They were commonly available with the same amount of RAM.

Does it have audio in yet? by johnsie · 2014-07-14 01:03 · Score: 1

We're wanting to put some of these inside wind turbines so operators have the option to listen for potential problems. Having audio in is important for that. I think maybe some other boards have audio in. I'd be interested in hearing other ideas for broadcasting audio over tcp/ip from a network connected wind turbine..

Re:Does it have audio in yet? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 01:14 · Score: 1

We're wanting to put some of these inside wind turbines so operators have the option to listen for potential problems. Having audio in is important for that. I think maybe some other boards have audio in. I'd be interested in hearing other ideas for broadcasting audio over tcp/ip from a network connected wind turbine..
You could use a USB microphone.
Re:Does it have audio in yet? by AkumaKuruma · 2014-07-14 01:35 · Score: 3, Informative

you could add the Wolfson Audio Card to the Pi and get all the audio support you could need from a pi
http://www.adafruit.com/produc...
Re:Does it have audio in yet? by kriston · 2014-07-14 03:08 · Score: 1

Can you not use a garden-variety USB audio adapter like any of these dozes of examples?
http://www.amazon.com/s/?keywo...

--
Kriston
Re:Does it have audio in yet? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 03:22 · Score: 0

Only problem there is it effectively doubles the price of the Pi. It would be a lot better to have a good simple baked in solution.
Tho the more financially viable alternative would be finding a decent/acceptable USB audio adapter for somewhere around $3-$5.
Re:Does it have audio in yet? by amiga3D · 2014-07-14 03:25 · Score: 2

That's the thing about the Pi, the add-ons just keep rolling in. The community support is unbelievable.
Re:Does it have audio in yet? by drinkypoo · 2014-07-14 03:58 · Score: 1

Tho the more financially viable alternative would be finding a decent/acceptable USB audio adapter for somewhere around $3-$5.
Perhaps Gamestop would give you a deal on PS3 and/or 360 microphones in quantity. They sell them for $10 in the shops. Apparently they only charge $1.99 for PS2 mics, which is fairly stellar.

--
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
Re:Does it have audio in yet? by advocate_one · 2014-07-14 06:10 · Score: 1

the Wolfson Audio Card is NOT compatible with the new modle B+ as it chashes with the new USB ports

--
Donald 'Duck' Dunn: We had a band powerful enough to turn goat piss into gasoline.
Re:Does it have audio in yet? by houghi · 2014-07-14 07:21 · Score: 1

http://www.dx.com/s/usb%2Bsoun...
No idea about quality. No idea if any of them will work for you.

--
Don't fight for your country, if your country does not fight for you.
Re:Does it have audio in yet? by AkumaKuruma · 2014-07-14 12:14 · Score: 1

use the original Midel B with the Wolfson then. if you need the B+ specifically, you are limited to USB audio inputs.
Re:Does it have audio in yet? by rephlex · 2014-07-14 12:40 · Score: 1

You could use a USB microphone.
You could and it might work, but it might not since the Raspberry Pi has problems with USB and isochronous transfers are particularly problematic.
Re:Does it have audio in yet? by dgatwood · 2014-07-15 05:24 · Score: 1

Tho the more financially viable alternative would be finding a decent/acceptable USB audio adapter for somewhere around $3-$5.
In my experience, even at $10, you have a good chance of buying something that produces massively distorted output and then smokes itself after a few hours. Just saying.

--
Check out my sci-fi/humor trilogy at PatriotsBooks.
Re:Does it have audio in yet? by advocate_one · 2014-07-15 17:26 · Score: 1

and when they start only shipping model B+ variants out?
I'm just slightly miffed that I'd only just ordered two model Bs a fortnight ago...

--
Donald 'Duck' Dunn: We had a band powerful enough to turn goat piss into gasoline.

Micro SD by feargal · 2014-07-14 01:06 · Score: 2

Like the move to micro-SD, always ended up using full-size SD adapters that just protruded needlessly from the side. I had one device damaged thanks to the SD adapter being knocked, damaging the board, and I know this has happened to many others.

--
"A goldfish was his muse, eternally amused"

Re:Micro SD by sylvandb · 2014-07-14 02:22 · Score: 2

Can get 'short' micro-SD to SD adapters that barely protrude. I use them with the R-Pi, Chromebook, MacBook, and several other devices which do not need a full-length SD.
FYI the micro-SD goes in the side so is not removable while the adapter is plugged in.
Re:Micro SD by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 05:28 · Score: 0

Looking at the 360 view at
http://www.element14.com/community/community/raspberry-pi/raspberry-pi-bplus?ICID=rpimain-topban-BPlus
It looks like the microsd slot is on a different side than the power adapter so it should be removable.. Unless you just meant it's not removable when one since it hosts the OS =P
Re:Micro SD by spire3661 · 2014-07-14 06:10 · Score: 1

Yep, i had to super glue a SD-to-microSD adapter into the SD socket. After that i bought the half-length SD to micro SD adapters to avoid that issue. http://www.adafruit.com/produc...

--
Good-bye

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by queazocotal · 2014-07-14 01:06 · Score: 1

To quote wikipedia.

'Eben Christopher Upton is a Technical Director and ASIC architect for Broadcom.'

No mystery there then.

You Can make a Rasberry Pirate Radio by FudRucker · 2014-07-14 01:12 · Score: 2

http://makezine.com/projects/m...

did i read about this here a few weeks ago?

--
Politics is Treachery, Religion is Brainwashing

Re:You Can make a Rasberry Pirate Radio by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 01:33 · Score: 1

I'd love one with two Ethernet interfaces. Small boards with duel Ethernet seem pretty rare. Anybody know of one?
Re:You Can make a Rasberry Pirate Radio by petermgreen · 2014-07-14 02:06 · Score: 1

How small is small?
Once you go up to mini-itx there are loads of options but I sense that is rather bigger than you want to be.
The utilite standard and pro models (but not the value model) have dual ethernet but they are kinda pricy. Theres various hackable routers but they tend to be rather lacking in CPU power and storage (they make a Pi look postively high end by comparision)
The other option is to use an external USB ethernet adaptor.

--
note: i'm known as plugwash most places but i screwd up registering that here somehow in the past and now can't register
Re:You Can make a Rasberry Pirate Radio by CastrTroy · 2014-07-14 02:10 · Score: 1

I'd love one with an Ethernet interface that wasn't tied the USB bus. I'd also like the ability to have some kind of storage that supports DMA, be it SATA or IDE to Compact Flash I tried using the Raspberry Pi as a Torrent download device. Saving the files to the SD Card caused so much overload that the whole thing froze up. Using USB allowed me to run without the thing freezing up, but the download speeds were still pretty slow, and the slowdowns seemed to be from waiting for writing to the disk rather than waiting for the network. The I/O on both the USB and the SD Card causes way too much CPU activity.

--

Anthropic principle: We see the universe the way it is because if it were different we would not be here to see it.
Re:You Can make a Rasberry Pirate Radio by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 02:23 · Score: 0

Have a look at ALIX devices (www.pcengines.ch)
I have one at home wih 3 Ethernet interfaces, serving as a NAS (USB connected drives), and it seems to work well.
Re:You Can make a Rasberry Pirate Radio by kriston · 2014-07-14 02:51 · Score: 1

I'd love one with just one ethernet interface that was NOT on the USB bus. Performance of the already stressed CPU is bogged down with the ethernet being on USB.

--
Kriston
Re:You Can make a Rasberry Pirate Radio by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 03:13 · Score: 0

I guess they're rare because one Ethernet killed the other one, you know, since they're duel...
Re:You Can make a Rasberry Pirate Radio by amiga3D · 2014-07-14 03:32 · Score: 1

Alix3d3 here goes for about $125. Specs lower than the pi for cpu and ram but it does seem like a potent board.
http://www.mini-box.com/Alix-3...
Re:You Can make a Rasberry Pirate Radio by drinkypoo · 2014-07-14 03:52 · Score: 1

The best device for your purpose (torrent download device) is probably a Pogoplug Series 4. You can get them for $20 brand new from Amazon, and they have SD, GigE, SATA, 2xUSB3, a wall-wart and a case. Real-world performance on the GigE shoveling data from a USB3 disk is more like 200Mbps tops, but that's nothing to piss on for twenty bucks.
R-Pi is pointless if you're not using the GPU. It just has too many deficiencies. If you are using the GPU, the value is probably unbeatable. There are other options for embedded Linux with GPIO, and they tend to have more of it than the R-Pi. If you're using the GPIO and the GPU, then you're spot on. Otherwise, you really want something else.
If it is possible to get better value specifically for something like downloading torrents than a Series 4 Pogoplug, I'd sure like to know what it is. But I don't actually believe that there is anything. I've looked quite hard.

--
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
Re:You Can make a Rasberry Pirate Radio by linuxpyro · 2014-07-14 06:02 · Score: 1

I would second this. I've got a 2d3 I run OpenBSD on for a firewall, and it works pretty well.

--
Saying "I'll probably get modded down for this" in a post is the best way to get it modded up.
Re:You Can make a Rasberry Pirate Radio by spire3661 · 2014-07-14 06:14 · Score: 1

Mini-ITX means a relatively BIG power supply. I own several ITX cases including Antec 300-150 and 310, Cooler Master 110, and 130., plus an Antec 110. All of them have power supplies that are massive in comparison, even with external bricks. Mini-ITX isnt jsut a step up, its a giant leap. Intel Bay Trail NUCS are MUCH closer to what you have in mind of a cheap x86 machine.

--
Good-bye
Re:You Can make a Rasberry Pirate Radio by bobbied · 2014-07-14 07:23 · Score: 1

I'd love one with two Ethernet interfaces. Small boards with duel Ethernet seem pretty rare. Anybody know of one?
Just go get a USB Ethernet dongle and a USB hub if you don't have enough ports. The "on board" Ethernet is USB based to start with, so the rate limit of the USB port shouldn't be an issue....
I'm just wondering... Why do you want multiple NIC's? You building a router or firewall? If so, skip the Pi and pick up a cheap router that you can run OpenWRT (or some other distribution). You will be happier. Not that the Pi is a bad choice, I just think you'd get better results for a router/firewall using something else.

--
"File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
Re:You Can make a Rasberry Pirate Radio by petermgreen · 2014-07-14 12:22 · Score: 1

Looks like the NUC has the same issue most high end arm boards do, only one ethernet port :( looks like it may be possible to add a minipcie card but only by butchering the case.

--
note: i'm known as plugwash most places but i screwd up registering that here somehow in the past and now can't register
Re:You Can make a Rasberry Pirate Radio by spire3661 · 2014-07-14 13:23 · Score: 1

You can go Thunderbolt to Ethernet.

--
Good-bye

Imagine... by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 01:18 · Score: 0

a Beowulf cluster of these.
Wait, somebody already did:
http://coen.boisestate.edu/ece...

Ram and cpu by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 01:28 · Score: 0

Solidrun has the Hummingboard which addresses the short comings of the rasp pi. I've not tested yet but I will be soon. Does anyone see any issues with the Hummingboard?

So they update it, but... by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 01:32 · Score: 2

Perhaps you're expecting it to do too much? Unless you have very modest needs, it isn't intended to be a desktop/laptop replacement.

Who produces it? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 01:33 · Score: 0

There are versions of Raspberry on Amazon that people say are shoddy, and there are version reviewed as top quality. How can I know, who produces e.g. the B+ version on Farnell?

Real Time Clock? by UnknownSoldier · 2014-07-14 01:34 · Score: 2

Last I checked there was no RTC (Real Time Clock). Don't see any mention of timer chips?

Re:Real Time Clock? by Foreign+Entity · 2014-07-14 02:38 · Score: 1

You can use a software based solution that utilizes the PWM or PCM chip to generate pulses, and will let you drive 8 or more servos at a time: https://github.com/richardghir...
Re:Real Time Clock? by Foreign+Entity · 2014-07-14 02:51 · Score: 1

Ugh, sorry. I replied to the wrong comment. :-/
Re:Real Time Clock? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 03:29 · Score: 0

If you really need an RTC you can pick up an I2C RTC board for ~$10. It isn't exactly a cheap solution but it works and if you are already buying a few hundred dollars worth of other I2C breakouts you really don't notice the extra ten dollars :P
Re:Real Time Clock? by drinkypoo · 2014-07-14 03:45 · Score: 1

Last I checked there was no RTC (Real Time Clock).

So use NTP. By default debian launches with the -g opt.
If you're looking for hardware to operate a satellite site, spend a little more money. Get something with an RTC.

--
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
Re:Real Time Clock? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 04:01 · Score: 0

Yea the lack of an RTC is kinda annoying :/
Re:Real Time Clock? by AmiMoJo · 2014-07-14 05:20 · Score: 1

You are supposed to supply your own, or you can use NTP. The idea is to make you learn about computers, not hand you a feature complete system to start with.

--
const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
Re:Real Time Clock? by bobbied · 2014-07-14 07:27 · Score: 1

Last I checked there was no RTC (Real Time Clock).
So use NTP. By default debian launches with the -g opt.
Only really of value when you have a network connection, which for embedded problems can be an issue.

--
"File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
Re:Real Time Clock? by drinkypoo · 2014-07-14 09:02 · Score: 0

So use NTP. By default debian launches with the -g opt.
If you're looking for hardware to operate a satellite site, spend a little more money. Get something with an RTC.
Only really of value when you have a network connection, which for embedded problems can be an issue.

I note that you didn't quote my whole comment. I note from actually reading your comment that you didn't read my whole comment. Read the whole comment, then don't reply.

--
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
Re:Real Time Clock? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 17:43 · Score: 0

I bought a tiny add on board RTC from afterthought software. Plugs right into the GPIO header, less than $20 as I recall.

Four holes? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 01:35 · Score: 0, Offtopic

One big step for Raspberry Pi is that it now has four holes for mounting in standard enclosures.

That's one more hole than my girlfriend.

Re:Four holes? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 02:10 · Score: 0

Oh, c'mon, mods. Somebody had to say it.
Re:Four holes? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 02:36 · Score: 0

Why is it offtopic? I call my girlfriend Cutie Pi.
Re:Four holes? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 03:50 · Score: 0

That's one more hole than my girlfriend.
She's just not adventurous enough.
Re:Four holes? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 07:33 · Score: 0

No, nobody had to say it...
But this is slashdot, so you can bet that if it was crass, socially unacceptable and/or crude, It would get posted...

Finally has mounting holes by jvschwarz · 2014-07-14 01:36 · Score: 2

Glad to see it finally has mounting holes! With a board mounted on top of the Pi, it was a pain to find an enclosure that would work for my projects.

--
... if that's your best, your best won't do... - Twisted Sister

Re:Cue the anti not-invented-in-the-us hatred by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 01:37 · Score: 0

So, is "anti not-invented-in-the-us hatred" hatred of those who espouse a not-invented-in-the-us position (and you wish to defend) or is it more along the lines of trying to stop those who hate people who are advocating for US inventions?

Either way, your advocacy is confusingly meta and double-negative.

Re:Cue the anti not-invented-in-the-us hatred by ArcadeMan · 2014-07-14 01:42 · Score: 0

Relax

--
Get free satoshi (Bitcoin) and Dogecoins

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by fisted · 2014-07-14 01:43 · Score: 1

see this reply

--
CLI paste? paste.pr0.tips!

DSP by Charliemopps · 2014-07-14 01:58 · Score: 2

Slashdot questions here: Has anyone on slashdot made an effects processor yet?

I've been toying with the idea of making a RPi based Effects processor. I primarily play guitar but am not going to differentiate between it and any other sound application. I've looked around and found 2 projects, one was "Guitar extended" http://guitarextended.wordpres... Which, I'm afraid, is a bit too "We're going to change guitar forever!" for me. I don't want to make yet another crazy sounding thing that no-one wants to listen to, that requires an insane peddle board to control. After I get some decent DSP reverb, gates etc... going, then I'll worry about foot controllers. The fact of the matter is, in most applications I don't need to mess with effects on the fly. I'd even argue that's a bad idea in general.

My main problem with retail effects is the size. Getting a decent processor usually means it's a double rack space unit. But if you open them up they could have easily fit into a half rack space. I'm guessing this is an appeal to the same part of the brain that likes SUVs. I build my own combo amps, so I'd like to throw in a half rack effects module and maybe something else. But all I've found is the Roland Vf1 which isn't that great, isn't in production anymore and sells for $200+ used. Also, hey I built the amp... why not the processor as well?

I've not really dove into it yet, I dont like to start these projects myself. It's way easier to let someone else make all of the mistakes and solve the problems for me :-) Also, it seems the RPi has audio latency issues like just about every non-firewire based computer out there. You can fix it, but it's a nightmare of driver and hardware tweaking. I've got a guide: http://wiki.linuxaudio.org/wik... But that sounds like the typical thing you have to do. That level of complexity is terrifying when you're trying to do a live situation. If you haven't ever played in front of people... God hates live performances... anything that can go wrong, will. I've had retail, $1000+ processors fail live and leave me to just pull the damn plug in the end and go raw.

I've seen some Arduino projects that use a DSP chip and the arduino swaps out code from the chip to change effects... but that sounds insanely error prone to me. I could pull it off, but I would never really trust it.

So if anyone has any experience in this area, or links to articles they've found on the topic, I'd love to see them.

Re:DSP by frog_strat · 2014-07-14 03:30 · Score: 1

I am considering buying some embedded board for the guitar effect purpose. While I am familiar with Linux audio recording, I am new to these embedded boards. What kind of latencies does this have ? I want to try to build a multiband distortion, kind of like the Source Audio Multiwave, except more voiced like a TS9, and friendlier to single coils. I hate the nasty sound of too much blocking distortion, typically caused by allowing too much low frequency into the initial distortion stage. I used to configure my Vetta to simulate dual band, and it was awesome.
Re:DSP by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 04:50 · Score: 1

I don't do effects pedals but if I was going to do them, with reliability in mind:
I would skip linux (or any OS) altogether and run straight compiled code on a device with onboard flash - preferable to using a flash card IMO.
You want the effects pedal to boot as quickly and reliably as possible, especially in the case of a glitch causing the watchdog (do use a watchdog) to reset the device.
If you're designing a board, or equipment, I suggest you read an EMC book, my favourite on the subject is Electromagnetic Compatibility Engineering. You'd be playing live, you need to make your equipment is "bulletproof" and handle anything the stage can throw at it. Topics of interest: shielding, transient resistance, clean power, differential (or balanced) signalling.
Look for guidelines on designing fault-tolerant software, or transient-resistant software. This might be something like using triple the amount of RAM for critical variables and taking the majority value as correct, in case one variable has a bit flip in it. You could also double check the stack depth for accuracy by incrementing/checking/decrementing a counter for each subroutine to make sure the program counter didn't land in an incorrect spot due to a glitch.
Whatever device you use, read the documentation and any concerns for interrupts and realtime processing.
Just as an example, when using the raspberry pi, you ought to be aware of the RAM refresh period of 500ms: http://www.raspberrypi.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=37&t=7696
Also consider heat management.
Re:DSP by Charliemopps · 2014-07-14 05:22 · Score: 1

The latencys is entirely based on the chip. Most are designed for live applications so it's not really an issue. The thing with DSP chips is they don't really need to be all that powerful because they were designed for the specific application you're using them for. If I were you I'd look at the Arduino DSP shields that are out now. I can't really speak for them because I've not used them.
Here's an older one:
http://www.amandaghassaei.com/...
Sounds awful though...
This ones a bit better, but still not that great. Seems like it would be easier to code for, but it's adding a LOT of noise to the signal.
http://www.electrosmash.com/pe...
Again, I've found some rudimentary projects like the above out there... but nothing I'd want to use in front of people that paid to get in.

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 02:07 · Score: 0

What can I say except that you're wrong. Model B is a terrible for running Linux. Even the custom Linux packages made for it are frustrating to work with even when the processor is over clocked.

Anything even nominally better than RPi is much more expensive but the RPi has played itself out.

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by itsdapead · 2014-07-14 02:09 · Score: 1

Really guys, you update it but you do nothing about the processor or amount of RAM?!

Seriously, what do you expect for $35? They've done well to add the extra USB without raising the price (and, hopefully, removed the need to buy a powered USB hub which was the real dealbreaker with the old Pi).

The stated aim of the Pi was to always encourage people to muck around with programming and electronics without the risk of bricking an expensive PC. Its quite deliberately built down to a price, so letting the magic smoke out is never a big deal.

Devices like the Hummingboard and the BeagleBone Black (which probably wouldn't have existed without the success of the Pi) look great, but they already cost ~30% more.

--
In a survey of 100 programmers, 111111 thought that duck-typing was a good idea.

spoiled, wasteful. 2000X as much RAM as Arduino by raymorris · 2014-07-14 02:18 · Score: 2

Get off my lawn, ya spoiled brat. The Pi has 2000 times as much RAM as the Arduino Uno, a million times as much as a Picaxe.

It really isn't necessary to run Windows 8 for embedded^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H any applications. You can run a full operating system with a GUI, web browser, and onboard server in 8 MB. How much more do you need?

Re:spoiled, wasteful. 2000X as much RAM as Arduino by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 10:35 · Score: 0

JVM? or doing sensor synthesis for a robot with cameras for a point cloud. maybe transcoding server. There are lots of reasons to have that performance. to do it for the cost of a cheap date is not bad at all.

yes, there was a bbc model b+ by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 02:22 · Score: 0

continuing the naming theme I guesss - http://chrisacorns.computinghistory.org.uk/Computers/BBCB+64.html

PWM? by ShanghaiBill · 2014-07-14 02:25 · Score: 1

Does anyone know if the additional I/O lines include any hardware PWM pins? TFA doesn't say. The old RPi-B has only one PWM pin, which is insufficient for keeping two robot wheels in sync, running an X and Y axis on a CNC machine, etc. Even one more PWM would be great. A total of four would be better.

Re:PWM? by Foreign+Entity · 2014-07-14 02:47 · Score: 2

You can use a software based solution that utilizes the PWM or PCM chip to generate pulses, and will let you drive 8 or more servos at a time: https://github.com/richardghir... [github.com]
Re:PWM? by ebenupton · 2014-07-14 03:09 · Score: 4, Informative

Yes - we bring out both PWM outputs to the GPIO connector now.
Re:PWM? by ShanghaiBill · 2014-07-14 03:16 · Score: 1

You can use a software based solution that utilizes the PWM or PCM chip to generate pulses, and will let you drive 8 or more servos at a time: https://github.com/richardghir... [github.com]
Software PWM is not going to give the same smooth movement, and will result in both audible hum and vibration. It is fine for dimming an LED, but not for precision motor control.
Re:PWM? by Foreign+Entity · 2014-07-14 03:29 · Score: 2

It's not pure software PWM, as it is using the seperate clock signal from the PCM chip for the timing of the pulses. It's worked fine for me so far, but I'm not doing anything precise either.
Re:PWM? by LoRdTAW · 2014-07-14 07:54 · Score: 1

If you look at the pinout diagram from here: http://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/#introducing-raspberry-pi-model-b-plus
You will notice GPIO_GEN0->6. Perhaps those are 7 hardware PWM's.
But if not then go grab a PWM breakout board such as http://www.adafruit.com/products/1455?gclid=CN6MjrTKxb8CFSwS7AodhDYAcw
I have used their 16 channel PWM breakout and it was a pleasure to use.
Re:PWM? by dgatwood · 2014-07-15 06:18 · Score: 1

And if you don't mind a little latency, you can always get two more PWM outputs by writing software that drives the headphone output appropriately, then adding a suitable gain stage as needed. Because it is buffered by the audio hardware, unless your Pi is badly overloaded, I'd expect it to make a pretty clean PWM output, but the latency is likely to be significant, depending on the buffer size you choose.

--
Check out my sci-fi/humor trilogy at PatriotsBooks.

USB Bandwidth & Power Problem by thygate · 2014-07-14 02:32 · Score: 1

Did they fix the USB problems ?

Re:USB Bandwidth & Power Problem by Dave+Whiteside · 2014-07-14 02:48 · Score: 3, Informative

yes as long as your input power adapter is decent
the B+ can provide upto 1200 mA
see
http://www.raspberrypi.org/for...

--
who where what when now?
Re:USB Bandwidth & Power Problem by rephlex · 2014-07-14 12:45 · Score: 1

The Raspberry Pi's USB problems have been reduced but they will never be totally solved.

Make a VGA version! by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 02:37 · Score: 1

A VGA version would be awesome...many of my ideas for the RPi can't happen because of the HDMI requirement, and buying a $35 VGA adapter just doubles the cost of it.

Re:Make a VGA version! by SB2020 · 2014-07-14 03:09 · Score: 2

Get one of these - works just fine (although was only £8 when I bought one), hdmi>dvi cables also work.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/pro...

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by monkeyhybrid · 2014-07-14 02:43 · Score: 1

And whilst you're at it, where's the SSD, SATA, Thunderbolt, optical I/O, gigabit ethernet and built in Wifi?

It is quite obvious that the Pi is designed for a very specific price point; one that gets it into the most hands possible. Every dollar you add to the production cost, makes it much less likely to get into the hands of people who would otherwise not be tinkering with such things. If you need something more capable, look elsewhere, the Pi is not for you.

improvements by CosaNostra+Pizza+Inc · 2014-07-14 02:43 · Score: 1

It sounds like they added more GPIO to make it more competitive with the BeagleBone Black but it still has an outdated CPU with fading support.

More power to the USB ports? by Aardpig · 2014-07-14 02:47 · Score: 1

The addition of 2 extra USB ports is useless, unless they have changed the polyfuse set up to allow more power to be delivered to the ports. As things currently stand with the original model B, attaching anything more than a low-power keyboard to the Pi requires a powered hub -- the Pi itself can't deliver the required juice. It would be great if this restriction were lifted.

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Tubal-Cain smokes the white owl.

Re:More power to the USB ports? by SB2020 · 2014-07-14 03:15 · Score: 2

It is - you can go up to 1200ma if you have the PSU to support it http://www.raspberrypi.org/for...
Re:More power to the USB ports? by Dave+Whiteside · 2014-07-14 03:19 · Score: 1

yes as long as your power supply is good it can supply lots of power to all teh ports see
http://www.raspberrypi.org/for...

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who where what when now?
Re:More power to the USB ports? by monkeyhybrid · 2014-07-14 03:20 · Score: 1

With a good 2A+ PSU, it seems the B+ can now supply up to a total of 1.2A over USB (compared to ~600mA with the older model B).
Re:More power to the USB ports? by amiga3D · 2014-07-14 03:41 · Score: 1

I believe they said they fixed the USB power problems.
Re:More power to the USB ports? by drinkypoo · 2014-07-14 03:53 · Score: 1

So, still not up to the 2000mA that we expect from a modern USB2 port, then. Users will likely need a powered hub, so adding more ports was a waste.

--
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
Re:More power to the USB ports? by dbc · 2014-07-14 06:06 · Score: 1

I assume you mean 4 x 500mA, or 500mA per port. So do you really have 500mA peripherals plugged into *every* USB port? Or are you expecting the Pi to support the USB charging spec? 'Cuz there are better ways to charge your phone...
Re:More power to the USB ports? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 07:01 · Score: 0

Presumably they want a port with at least 700mA. That way you can plug a Pi into your Pi so you can bitch about its power issues while you bitch about its power issues.

Great for GPIO and USB by kriston · 2014-07-14 02:47 · Score: 1

Great for GPIO, power supply, and USB. My only real concern is that the ethernet port is on USB. If you're like me and prefer the stability of ethernet, be advised that using ethernet will not only be slower but it will tax the CPU since USB relies on CPU power to operate. Not that this would be much different from using USB WiFi adapters, but it's something to keep in mind about the Pi.

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Kriston

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 02:56 · Score: 0

there are similar platforms for $35-$40 that have twice the ram, twice the clock frequency, twice the processor cores. sure, they don't have the same periphery, and it comes down to what you want to do with it, but raspbian on the pi with 512mb of ram and a single core at sub 1ghz is -painful-.

Dur by wonkey_monkey · 2014-07-14 03:02 · Score: 0

There are now four USB ports which means you don't need a hub to work with a mouse, keyboard and WiFi dongle.

Oh, good, thanks for that. I was having trouble imagining what "four" was, but now I know it's at least "three."

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systemd is Roko's Basilisk.

Re:Dur by dgatwood · 2014-07-15 06:24 · Score: 1

The external hard drive is #4.

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Check out my sci-fi/humor trilogy at PatriotsBooks.

Re:Cue the anti not-invented-in-the-us hatred by amiga3D · 2014-07-14 03:04 · Score: 2

Don't read so much into it. Maybe people just have opinions. Relax.

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 03:07 · Score: 0

Name one and provide a link. Bet you can't...

Model C by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 03:09 · Score: 0

I'm not really sure why they called it B+, they should have went with C.
This board is hugely different from Model B and even more so than A. Model A only has a slight difference from Model B.

Very confusing indeed.

Re:Model C by wisewellies · 2014-07-14 03:33 · Score: 2

Isn't it following the old BBC Micro model names - model A, model B, model B+ etc.? The next one should be the 'Master'...
Re: Model C by KevReedUK · 2014-07-14 13:43 · Score: 1

Probably because it's using the same SoC as the B model. IIRC the A and B variants were different not only in the layout/ports, but also the underlying SoCs (CPU, GPU, RAM combination). This would suggest that the major model identifier will be used to indicate the underlying SoC, while suffixes like '+' will be used to indicate layout/ports. This is, however, just a somewhat educated guess on my part...

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Just my $0.03 (At current exchange rates, my £0.02 is worth more than your $0.02)

Hardware Evolution Blues by adosch · 2014-07-14 03:22 · Score: 1

Although I appreciate the changes in the B+ model and board layout changes, it does kind of suck that the natural improvement evolution of the Raspberry Pi is wiping out the 'coolness' I have with the three (what seems to feel like) aging Raspberry Pi original model B's (256MB version) I own from back in ~2011 into early 2012.

I'm still trying to appreciate them for what they are, so I'll still get the mileage out of them. $35 isn't a high price tag, but to upgrade 'X' of them all to chase small features is going to create very unstable 12oz beer bottle coasters over time with little used market re-coup costs.

Ill-named? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 03:23 · Score: 3, Funny

FYI: in Hungary, B+ is the abbreviation of "f*ck you". So you've made our day.

Re:Ill-named? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 06:36 · Score: 0

Hungarian born exchange students should have plenty of fun in the education systems giving those letter grades..

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by amiga3D · 2014-07-14 03:27 · Score: 1

I'd be interested in seeing a computer board with usb, gpio and hdmi and audio that runs linux for about the same price. Got a link?

children whining about lack of cpu/ram on the rpi by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 04:00 · Score: 1

The RPI shouldn't be seen as a general purpose computer. You're not supposed to use it for office productivity or as a development environment. It's meant to be the glue between traditional application development and embedded application development.

20 years ago, I was playing Doom on a 386 with 4 megs of ram and a 14.4k modem. A 500mb hard drive was extravagant back then. We installed games off floppy disks that contained 1.44mb of data each. Mechwarrior 2 required nearly 30 of them. I was astonished- a game that took up 30mb on the hard drive? Insane.

In the late 90s, I was writing full fledged java applications on computers with 32mb of memory. A large server might have hundreds of mb of main memory and a huge disk array that could contain gigabytes of storage. This can now fit in the palm of your hand and costs 30 bucks. It's a computer you can wipe your ass with, and it's more than I had 15 years ago. Sure, you can't run some multi-tiered GWTProblemFactorySpringHibernate monstrosity with a full oracle install and business intelligence software in the background, but why would you want to do that?

The arduino, which is overkill for most simple microprocessor applications, has KILOBYTES of ram and no debug output unless you wire up an LCD screen to it.

It has 500mb of ram, runs java and has pre-installed mbps internet connectivity. It even has video ports for debugging and GPIO ports for interacting with traditional microcontrollers. The specs of the RPI are ridiculously extravagant for what you should be using it for.

Oh great by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 04:11 · Score: 0

All those cases are now useless.

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by CastrTroy · 2014-07-14 04:18 · Score: 3, Insightful

I think the problem that people run into is that it's somewhere in the middle of where they want a device to be. For people who want true low power computing, Arduino is the way to go. Some people want to be able to run an actual desktop operating systems, hook up standard off the shelf peripherals and run a home server, or hook it up to their TV. This is what Mini ITX or Intel NUC machines do pretty well.

The problem is that the Raspberry Pi looks like the second kind of device, because you can install Linux on it, plug in USB devices, hook it up to your TV, and do many other desktop / media centric things. However, due to certain constraints like the slow processor, small amount of RAM, slow I/O, and insufficient power for USB, it seems to fall short of what many people envision using it for. I guess you can blame the customers because they bought something that wasn't really meant to fulfill their needs. But you also have to look at the way the device is marketed and designed. Why put all these USB ports if you can't actually hook up a bunch of USB peripherals? Why put an HDMI port on the thing if you don't have the power to drive a 1080 desktop environment? Why run full Linux when you don't have enough power to run most Linux applications?

Don't get me wrong, I think the RPi is a great little machine, but I think that many people get disappointed with it because from the person who's inexperienced with it, it looks very much like it's trying to be a full desktop replacement, but then get disappointed when they find out that it's really just great for running embedded machines.

--

Anthropic principle: We see the universe the way it is because if it were different we would not be here to see it.

Broadcom BCM2835 USB problems not fixable by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 04:33 · Score: 5, Informative

Did they fix the USB problems ?

The B+ redesign fixed the power problems, but not the core data loss.

The core problems of USB can't be fixed in B+, because the new board still uses the same old Broadcom BCM2835 SoC with its minimalist (only partial) USB controller. That's the reason for USB events being dropped when the ARM is busy and can't service the USB interrupts fast enough.

That SoC was never intended to support full USB operation on a general purpose computer, only light applications like plugging a flash drive into a set top box. Its use in Roku 2 is typical.

As a consequence of the SoC, the core USB problems won't disappear until a new SoC is chosen for a next generation Raspberry Pi.

Re:Broadcom BCM2835 USB problems not fixable by thygate · 2014-07-14 08:43 · Score: 1

mod parent up please

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by Dragonslicer · 2014-07-14 04:37 · Score: 1

Underdimensioned? Which one is it missing, height?

Re:Cue the anti not-invented-in-the-us hatred by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 04:53 · Score: 0

I like how you linked to the itunes store location. Nicely concealed insult.

Dual Gbit LAN Please by TheTrueScotsman · 2014-07-14 06:42 · Score: 1

With (true) dual Gbit LAN, I would use a boatload of these. Never mind, there are (more expensive) alternatives.

Re:Dual Gbit LAN Please by bobbied · 2014-07-14 07:46 · Score: 2

With the existing LAN connection being USB based, I don't think they will fix this for you anytime soon.
If you wanted to go Fast Ethernet (100BT) then there are loads of options for you at this price point, many which can be had for next to nothing at garage sales if you know what you are looking for. Finding some used router that can run OpenWRT (or other firmware) will serve you much better than a Pi for any application I can imagine where you'd need two Gigabit NICs.

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"File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
Re:Dual Gbit LAN Please by drinkypoo · 2014-07-14 09:22 · Score: 1

With (true) dual Gbit LAN, I would use a boatload of these. Never mind, there are (more expensive) alternatives.
Mikrotik RouterBoard RB750GL is probably what you're looking for. More than 2 ports, and fairly cost-competitive with R-Pi when you account for a case.

--
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 07:05 · Score: 0

I'd be interested in seeing a computer board with usb, gpio and hdmi and audio that runs linux for about the same price. Got a link?

Has all that, but $75: A20-OLinuXino-MICRO

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 07:13 · Score: 0

if you had read the whole sentence you would have seen the part "sure they don't have the same periphery"...

Re:Cue the anti not-invented-in-the-us hatred by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 07:20 · Score: 0

Perhaps you could share your parsing of "anti-not-x hatred", then.

Finally they fixed some of their screwups by gweihir · 2014-07-14 09:31 · Score: 1

Lets be honest: The Raspberry Pi is designed by amateurs and has numerous problems. Most noticeable was the hugely unreliable USB and the atrociously faked audio-out. But things like that nobody could tell whether the GPIOs are actually 5V tolerant due to missing critical portions of the data-sheet and the decision for a closed-documentation chip in the first place are at best on high amateur-level. It seems they finally fixed at least a part of their screwups.

In addition, I found the Raspberry Pi "community" to be overrun with people of high arrogance and low actual knowledge and skills.

--
Most ACs are not even worth the keystrokes to insult them. Be generically insulted by this and ignored otherwise.

Re:Finally they fixed some of their screwups by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 09:46 · Score: 0

So what alternative should we be looking at?
Re:Finally they fixed some of their screwups by gweihir · 2014-07-14 12:23 · Score: 1

That depends on what your needs are. There are quite a few offerings out there. Just remember that the Pi is overhyped and look critically at features and issues. This is not a one-size-fits all kind of question. For example, if you have a rather simple control job, an Arduino or clone may be vastly more reliable. For some applications a Beagle Bone Black may what you want and it comes with a full, detailed datasheet, just like the Arduinos do. There are other alternatives. What kind of community surrounds the device is also important. A less-flashy device than the Pi may do well here, as it does not attract all those attention-whores that then get on everybodies nerve with big mouths and small skills.

--
Most ACs are not even worth the keystrokes to insult them. Be generically insulted by this and ignored otherwise.

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 10:10 · Score: 0

30% more....

wow, 10 bucks for twice the speed, USB host and client, and more GPIOs, plus HRT access and drivers that work. Sounds like worth the 10 bucks. Sure it's missing a Mpeg decoder chip, but that's an easy solution (e.g. cape).

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by amiga3D · 2014-07-14 10:14 · Score: 1

That's actually an interesting board. Twice the price but still it has a lot to offer for the money.

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by DamnOregonian · 2014-07-14 11:30 · Score: 1

BeagleBone Black is better, hands down for every application other than a Media Center, (It can't frame 1080p video over its HDMI), or applications where 50-100mA @ 5V more, or an extra $10 on the price is a deal-breaker.

I've replaced my RPi's with them in all my embedded gadgets. The horsepower difference is well worth it.
I wish people would stop apologizing for that anemic ass ARM11 in the RPi. They need to update the CPU specs. RAM, I'm not so worried about.

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by DamnOregonian · 2014-07-14 11:32 · Score: 1

BBB retails for $45. While that is 28% more... It's still just $10.

Also, the BBB is just the successor to the BeagleBone, itself a successor/lower-price option for the BeagleBone... All of which were alive and well with active communities *long* before the RPi existed.

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by DamnOregonian · 2014-07-14 11:33 · Score: 1

*itself a successor/lower-price option for the BeagleBoard

proof-read fail on my part.

Re:RPi? That overhyped underdimensioned joke alive by DamnOregonian · 2014-07-14 11:39 · Score: 1

http://beagleboard.org/black

It used to be $45, but it has apparently gone up to $55 :/
Although, it still eats RPi lunch for anything other than being able to play media. (RPi VideoCore can flick 1080p hardware-decoded video, the BBB can't.)
Tons more GPIOs, over twice the real-world performance in computing, and 2 dedicated processors to run deterministically timed code for GPIO/peripherals (outside of the OS)

Ill-named? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-14 20:07 · Score: 0

They were probably fed up with all the whining about the Pi.

Dildo by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-15 04:32 · Score: 0

Looks like a RPI Model B+ powered dildo in Hungary would be an instant hit then!

An improvement, but not compatible with all addons by rareblog · 2014-07-16 03:38 · Score: 1

The Raspberry Pi Model B+ has several real improvements, but it is *not* compatible with all previous hardware add-ons because of the new board layout. More details here: http://romillys-robots.blogspo...

202 comments