Slashdot Mirror
A New Raspberry Pi 3 Model A+ Has Arrived With Bluetooth 4.2 and Dual-Band Wi-Fi For $25 (pcworld.com)
Raspberry Pi has introduced a new version of one of its most popular models just in time to stuff your stocking: the Model A+. And this time around, it's even more attractive. From a report: The Raspberry Pi 3 Model A+ costs $25, $5 more than the previous generation, but has a lot more going for it. Just like the top-of-the-line Model B+, the new Model A+ has a 1.4GHz 64-bit quad-core processor, and you'll also get dual-band Wi-Fi (2.4GHz + 5 GHz), a feature that was missing from the previous A+. And you'll have to use it, since the A+ doesn't have an Ethernet port. It does, however, have Bluetooth 4.2 on board. For $10 less than the $35 Model B+, you'll also only get a single USB port (versus four on the B+) as well as 512MB of RAM (versus 1GB on the B+). But otherwise, the devices are identical, with a full-size HDMI port, CSI camera port, DSI display port, stereo output and composite video port, and a micro SD port. The Raspberry Pi 3 Model A+ isn't the cheapest Pi model available -- the Zero costs $5 and the Zero W costs just $10 -- but it rounds out the options nicely. The new model is available now through Raspberry Pi retailers.
Do they still have all IO on 1 usb 2.0 bus?
I had been using the A+ form factor for my robotics projects, as they pulled about 0.230 amps peak, or 0.115 amps during normal operation. If you could smooth out that brief 0.230 spike at boot, you could run an A+ off of a 250ma solar panel (a little larger than the size of a playing card) in direct sunlight.
The A+ has been discontinued for years - probably since at least mid-2015, maybe even late 2014.
It's good to see it back, I never had use for the extra 3 USB ports that the B+ provided, especially now that bluetooth and wifi are built in, solves most of the reason to own the B+. The square formfactor is both smaller on the X axis, and because it doesn't have that 4xUSB-A riser, is quite a bit more flat on the Y axis, which makes it ideal for homebrew embedded projects.
Curious to see how the power usage is on the new A+, I doubt it will chill out at 0.115 like the old single core device did, but it's probably still lower than the B+ by at least 15%, which is a big plus for robotics projects.
moox. for a new generation.
It supports 802.11ac!
I think gays refer to that as "docking..."
I was very excited by this, until I saw the RAM reduction. I guess this particular board is intended for embedded applications more so than the B+ being designed as a tiny desktop? I'm having trouble seeing where this fits in, considering a single USB port, but still full HDMI? Maybe just for a wall display that is wireless networked only? That RAM reduction seriously hinders a lot of graphical applications that would use the HDMI port in the first place.
Any advice on a UK supplier? I've been interested in the Pi series for years but every retailer I find shafts the buyer on price or bundles in a thousand accessories that I don't want.
All I want is to be able to pay RRP for the Oi by itself, where can I do that?
Are there any small devices with fast multicore ARM CPUs and good IO? Let's say at least 2Gbps of network interface bandwidth to at least two Ethernet ports, and at least one proper storage interface (SATA, PCIe, M.2). For not too much more than the price of a Raspberry Pi?
For people who need it, they don't want dongles. Especially Ethernet used in PiHoles.
an I5/4core w/Iris graphics, CPU turbo 2.5 GHz on all cores, 8 GB DRAM as sticks, SSD as NVMe, two GBit ethernet ports, Wi-Fi 6, dual DP, one HDMI (for the lamos), and, of course, Windows 10 Core with WLS. Oh, at $20.
Few days ago I just built a light version of EmulationStation (https://github.com/raelgc/EmulationStation/), which uses at least 1/3 less then Retropie version (but well, several features were removed, no free lunch). Wondering it can work well splitting the RAM between video and CPU for most of the emulators.
Sure, if I pay twice or trice as much, you get more.
By that logic, I should get a Summit. Because what's not to like?
Even in backwater Africa they have digital TVs/displays now. At least at the places where they are able to write images to microSD cards and generally run such a SBC.
I would welcome a more modular approach. $1-5 per stackable card module, where the stacking connectors are the high-performance bus. A power card, a CPU card, and a digital IO card that just offers the exernal version of that bus (something universal like ThunderBolt / DisplayPort, that allows displays, audio, networking, and input devices) on a lot of connectors, an analog IO card (for simple sensors and actuator control, including motors, and audio), a vector processor (GPU) card, ... and a bucket of cheap sensors (which are already available).
You’d still end up with $25 for something usable, but without any of the limitations.
The question is: Is there a bus like this? (We could come up with one, and make it open and patent-free. In fact, make it "IP"-hostile, cause fuck those lazy non-working imaginary property leeches!)
Shut up, Chris.
Yeah, but Android runs on Java and Android is good right? Right? My GNU/Friend told me people who don't use Android are sheeple. You're not a sheeple are you?
The biggest selling point for the A+ is its low power consumption (700ma) which is the lowest of them all including the Zero model strangely enough. I've been using them for applications where this is important (running off batteries for example) where CPU horsepower isn't. Now I fear the new model will require a 3 amp power supply to feed all those new features just like its larger brother.
This can't run Java, it's in the same "toy" class as the Arduino and C/C++ toy project boards.
All you need for Java is a few cores, preferable i3 or better, a few GB of ram, [at least 8 ] , and a few 100GB of disk space for helper libraries and classes.
for "hello world" type programs, this is the way to go. Anything beyond that, it's useless.
Ah, patience grasshopper... One must use the right tool for the job. Java is a resource hog that gives you platform independence, while C/C++ is where one gets performance... Who in their right mind runs Java on anything in this class of computer and expects to get performance? Code in C/C++ young one, it won't hurt you, unless it is a tool you do not have in your tool box, then you must suffer.
Wise developers obtain many tools, and use the right one for the job at hand. What job are you trying to do? Which is the right tool? Consider carefully.
"File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
Anyone writing a greenfield project in Java in 2018, that isn't also targeting Android, or doing Big Data processing, needs to get their head checked
moox. for a new generation.
Comment removed based on user account deletion
With a 64-bit processor, why can't they at least standardize on 3-4GB of RAM minimum?
.
== WolfriderV6 == I'm willing to admit that *I just might* be wrong... Are you??
Pi 3C or Pi 4. SoC 2.7GHz quad core ARM w/ discrete graphics and memory, 8GB RAM, USB 3.x, separate from Ethernet, support for two monitors supporting at least 1080P each, etc.
With my luck, they’ll hire someone away from Apple, and the next Raspberry Pi will be a small incremental improvement, but the whole thing will come encased in solid lucite, so you can’t use the GPIO pins, there’ll be no USB 3 or even 2 ports, but instead a proprietary connector that only THIS ONE THING uses, but Apple will sell you a dongle for 79 dollars, that allow you to plug USB-C things into it. Of course, if you have no USB-C hardware, you can buy an adapter for THAT... you get the idea. OH, almost forgot. It’ll cost 700 dollars. And have a raspberry with a bite taken out of it as the new logo.
People will call it the Apple Pi.
If this goes the way of most Raspberry Pi products. You won't be able to buy one at the advertised price for the next two years.
that has more ram, SATA, faster CPU, USB3.* etc.? What has always kept be from getting a Pi was the fact that it always seems so intentionally kneecapped, I'd like to see what can be done at the $100 price point instead considering what I can get in a phone these days at that point which comes with cellular antenna, 720p screen, cameras , a suite of sensors, battery etc. what I should be able to get as just a mobo should be incredible.
Eh, if you were to release a phone mobo as a computer : fast CPU, fast enough/reliable storage, a GPU with some megapixels etc., some weird I/O (meant for the sensors and battery and stuff), SD card, and then you're stuck with a single USB 2.0 port.