I'm learning electronics and IT as a hobby. I was never familiar with SBCs and never used Linux in my life. This year I discovered your channel, and after watching your review of Rock 3C, I've decided to buy it, because I thought this would be a good SBC for a begginer as myself. And I was right. Now I've learned a lot about Linux, build a home meteo station, home server, camera surveillance system, and some other automation projects. All in 3 months. Thanks a lot for this. Now I'm waiting to recieve Orange Pi 5 Plus to make some other projects I have in mind. Thanks again.
Great to hear that you have been busy and learning with the Rock 3C. :) It is a nice piece of hardware, with much potential as you have demonstrated. I wonder what you will do with the Orange Pi 5 . . .
I love hearing about a newb getting to love this area of tech. I wire-wrapped my first SBC in 1986 - a Z80, a static RAM chip, an EPROM, a clock oscillator and not much else. Ah, the Bad Old Days... There was a time about 20 years ago that I began to worry that smart black boxes and surface mount components would remove all curiosity for understanding and experimenting with computers and electronics. I very glad that I was proven wrong!
Well, the inclusion of the RISC-V boards is kind of like an extra "special mention". Chris did say he agonised over whether to include such "diehard" boards in this list, but the clever solution is, indeed, to make it a "top 6" rather than a "top 5" - to make space for their inclusion, as an "added extra" bonus. If going RISC-V is too risky - pardon the pun - of a move for you, then you can ignore that entry, and still have a "top 5" list. Also note that that entry cheats a little in that it's two boards for one slot in the list. But, against, it's like an extra "honourable mention" for RISC-V, while recognising that, for most people, RISC-V is not mainstream yet. Chris does put a lot of thought and effort into his videos. There are good reasons for everything, I'm sure.
Chris I got to say your video production quality is brilliant. It's like looking at something expertly crafted. The placement of the SBC's, they are placed at a 90-degree angle the spacing between the SBC's are perfect, the lighting is perfect. It looks like I'm looking at a 3d render! Each and every one of your videos are consistent. I haven't seen anyone with as much quality than you have on UA-cam or on TV!
I used to buy computer books for every popular OS/program and I read them all. Some I read cover to cover and others I used for reference of how to do something. I also had video tapes of "how to computer" and later CDs. This was when internet was still dial up. Your channel reminds me of those books and other digital media and I love it.
The industry has come a long way in a year with plenty of decent SBCs to suit most budgets. Thanks for sharing Chris and looking forward to the future instalment of this series 👍
An excellent overview of the state of play regarding the major trends in the realm of SBCs! I agree with the choices... I have to admit that the Orange Pi 5 Plus is a little bomb in terms of components and especially connectivity. Unfortunately, in Canadian dollars, the entry-level price is $200, without any accessories, and $245 for a starter kit... a price that quickly dampens the desire to buy. Thank you for this excellent review!
thanks for making this video, 5/6 of them equipped with 3.5mm audio jack, the only 1 most want to buy without it - Pi has an ironic sense of making SoC computers.
Wow those Kdenlive times are *_interesting_* to say the least (15:25). The RPi 5 got its -ss whipped! And the RPi 5 didn't even show much faster than the Pi 4 and they both got BLOWN AWAY by the Orange Pi 5. WOW! Not just faster as you said but more than 2x as fast. I'd like to see more comparisons between these to see why there is such a HUGE difference in this test.
Yeah it's quite a difference still than even the new RPi5 it seems at least on paper. As far as HARDWARE, the OPi5 does seem superior to the RPi5, but that software and community support is hard to beat for RPi5, and should close the gap as time goes on...at least you'd think...?
I'm excitedly awaiting my PI5 I pre-ordered, however it's astounding just how powerful and capable these SBC's are now, my first computer was a ZX Spectrum to put it in perspective. To me what makes the Pi ecosystem especially special and also relevant for industrial, robotics and space applications is it's large user base, well coded software libraries and software stability, this is worth it's weight in gold.
Just got mine. It's so much faster than the 4. I really want to use Ubuntu but it looks like it still needs some work on streaming videos. Rpi is works great but doesn't have remote desktop and Ubuntu does.
It's kind of astonishing, but at the time of writing (Jan 4) the Pi 5 is actually available, at a normal price.. I'm waiting just a little bit to see if there's something new happening on the m.2 side (via the PCIe slot) than has already been shown, but I'll probably complement my Raspberry collection with a Pi 5 soon. As for the past.. wow, a ZX Spectrum! My 2KB RAM Nascom-1 says hi 🙂
Thank you for this list. I would suggest that you add a note describing the PoE capabilities of each SBC. I have found that PoE is a very convenient way of powering a SBC. Thanks again.
*an SBC (because "ess-bee-see" starts with a vowel sound) "A" vs "an" is determined by the _sound_ that follows, not the letter, and it doesn't matter what the letters in an initialism stand for.
Maybe one more category of SBC buyers -- Home Lab creators. I used to use old PC MBs, but increasingly look for low power SBC's for network infrastructure. Love your channel.
In the world of hardware, software is king. After playing with other boards and then RPis, the experience is sooo much better on RPi, the software more polished, the bugs less present, the community more helpful… for me, when it comes to non-x86/64, it’s RPi or nothing.
@@sergiodeplata it's one thing to have a working operating system. It's another to have working/optimized apps. If you want to do anything beyond some web browsing, stability becomes a huge issue. I've tried Debian, Armbian, DietPi, the lot.
I've just eaten the banana & it was very nice too! Excellent reviews of the 6 SBC's, the most important thing for me is good software support! The choice as to which one to buy depends on my requirements, I'll have to check my spreadsheet for that :) Thanks Chris I really appreciate the hard work that you've put into this video! Scissors are us.
Even though the Orange Pi 5 has better performance in some aspects but I'll go with Raspberry 5, it's the combination of community, active development and popularity. Thanks Chris!
@@aladdin8623I agree when it comes to satisfy my own desires, but if I wanted to build something I could rely on long term I would look for a well-supported product. RISC-V is very promising and I hope it grows more and more in the near future.
@@aladdin8623 I am more likely to go Opi5 as its very near 100% mainline really we are just waiting as Collabora & Arm are in collab for all Mali opensource so guess that should be soon as have seen some Panthor repos with a Rev3. My interest is ML and the RK3588(s) Gflops/watt are almost 2x more effcient than the Pi5 and that is not taking into account the MaliG610 where VC7 just isn't worth comparing and also a NPU. When so much is AI nowadays it strange Raspberry brought out such a poor performing ML board as SBC are perfect ML devices. RiscV very exciting and there was a 16 core really interesting Sophgo SG2380 and that could tempt me as there is any empty niche somewhere between a RK3588(s) & a Mac Mini giving approx 4+ Gflops/watt that was advertised minus ram $120 but some time away yet. www.cnx-software.com/2023/10/21/sophgo-sg2380-16-core-sifive-p670-risc-v-processor-20-tops-ai-accelerator/
They all have their niche markets per price for what ever developmental projects one can think of. With the added value of add ons' that are available or becoming available these days, coupled with software advancements, these project boards will no doubt see a larger increase in usage in the enthusiast scene for sure, but more so in the science and technology/University scene in such learning programs like the STEM field in the future, which is great for the SBC manufacturers imo.
I'm still waiting for my RP5. Can't wait to work on it! This 2023 been a great year for SBC. Maybe my next one will be a RISC V board? We'll see as it greatly improved and I'm sure that you'll review new ones pretty soon I bet. :)
Enjoy your new Pi when it arrives. I think you will like it! There is something cool about the Pi 5 and its performance that is very hard communicate in a video.
I purchased the Orange Pi 5 with RK3588S. Running from flash it was good enough for desktop use. Web-browsing hickups occasionaly. Now have Orange Ubuntu on NVMe. Incredible. Also own the LycheePi RV with Allwinner D1. Amusing toy with good build quality.
Just to make sure no one is confused, the Lichee RV is a couple of years old now and has a single core single issue 1.0 GHz CPU and 0.5 or 1.0 GB RAM. The Lichee Pi 4A reviewed in the video is around 15x more powerful in CPU and available with up to 16 GB RAM. Sipeed do make good quality boards that come out usually close to the announced dates and have quite good manufacturer support by Chinese SBC standards -- they are responsive on Twitter, for example.
for the orange pi 5 lineup you didn’t mention the orange pi zero 2w, which is in the form factor of the raspberry pi zero 2w with more ram and usb c instead of micro usb ports. it is a different chipset but with the more ram you can do many rpi zero 2w projects where ram is the limiting issue.
About to switch from a Rock 5b to an Orange Pi 5 Plus...but this is mostly because I preordered one with 32GB of RAM. Looks like the list is in the right order.
Loved the video, Chris. I myself may have swapped 1 & 2 around, but we all have our own opinions. I am very keen on seeing where Risk will take us though and will AI come into play on SBC's, who knows? Thanks for sharing with us.
Google "Q-engineering Deep learning with Raspberry Pi and alternatives in 2023" (Sorry, but YT does not like links.) Keep in mind that even the fastest SBC on the list (Jetson Orin) only has 20 TOPS, which is like 1/20th of the entry-level consumer GPU RTX 4060.
Thanks for this good summary. For me these SBCs have different usage: 1st family for specific usage as automation or video monitoring video (Rock 3C). 2nd family for large storage with 2 ethernet ports. 3rd family for desktop usage. For me the Pi 5 should be the best with an integrated nvme support. After usinf PI 2, 3 and 4, actually I use a Raspberry PI Zero W for jobs scheduled in crontab and Local Web server. And it enough for me.
Greetings Chris and thankyou for another excellent video. I was initially surprised that the Agon Light had been excluded but then remembered that video only included SBCs reviewed in 2023. Any prospect of an Agon review soon ?
Looks like some of the pins on the Lichee Pi 4A's header (20 pin GPIO?) got bent a bit. - 10:10 More proof that using male header pins on a SBC is a bad idea. Really easy to short those out.
Thank you for always giving us such very informative videos. You always make it easy for us to understand the market place and power of SBCs and other devices hardware related.
I have a RPi 5 on pre-order, and I simply can't wait! My only criticism would be that I wish they would go back to full size HDMI. Those micro HDMI ports are a nightmare. Hopefully Argon or other accessory companies are hard are work on a case/breakout board to give us full size HDMI while also supporting the OEM cooler. Thanks again for another great video!
Me three. I don't use two screens with a pi so it's a total wash for me to have two worse connectors that need a special cable over 1 good one that needs no extra hardware. @@ExplainingComputers
I was really hoping they would have added some sort of alternative connector for storage, in my opinion they should scrap the SDCard alltogether and put either eMMC or a connector for NVME storage on there. Yes i know at some point there will be a "HAT" for that, but it always seems like, if you want POE, and flash storage, and be able to put it in a nice looking, not too bulky box, you are out of luck. Also...Why no 2.5GBit ethernet port. I will probably just keep my Rpi 4 and hope they add those things to the Rpi 6...
100% agreement on the HDMI connectors. I've broken several plugs on that - the micro HDMI plugs are tiny, and combined with the stiff HDMI casing the forces are strong. This typically happens when I try to install the Pi in narrow spaces, which I do because.. that's where I need them. I had one connected to my parents' TV, for example (simple video conferencing for old people). I hate, hate, hate those micro HDMI connectors. Even mini HDMI would be better (my first Asus Transformer had one), but I would take one single full size HDMI before two smaller ones 10 out of 10 days. I've never needed two HDMI ports, on any computer ever (I'm a big screen person, not a dual monitor person). And on an SBC? Crazy.
Very informative video. I agree that a balance of decent CPU spec and good Software support is very important and the RPi 5 does this at a reasonable price. I look forward to more videos, Thank you Chris.
Great choices. If I was in the market for something to replace my RPi4, I would have to go with the RPi5. The Orange Pi family would be a close second.
Great video, congrats on 1M subscribers, nice to see ARM and X86 boards on the list. Great to buy these for fun projects it’s also a great way to support these manufacturers.
Even though I can get audio out from the GPIO pins and analog video from a solder-on solution. I wouldn't have blamed you if you knocked Raspberry Pi 5 down to number 2 for getting rid of the audio jack. It just seems wrong. Great Video once again!
I do agree with RPI5 being on top, at least until the mainstream support for the RK3588 is fully finalized thats how things are. Im interested on cheap SBC lately like the 1GB Zero 3/2W for making my own routers/wifi APs but it seems the wifi on both of these drop like crazy :/, or the 2GB Orange PI 3B for a nas with a M.2 to sata adapter.
I agree that the RPi5 is the best in the market due to the ok performance but more importantly the fantastic software support and experience. There is little value in an SBC that's fast but crashes frequently or doesn't support the software you need to run.
Hey, Chris: How about a explanation of GPU hardware? SBC's have integrated graphics which appear to perform quite well. Meanwhile, the desktop/gaming segment is pushing for higher and higher frame rates for reasons that I do not understand. Why do I need a 100+frame/second frame rate when the human eye cannot comprehend above 30-40/sec?
Somehow in first person shooters human comprehends difference between 30 and 60. And after that 60 vs >100FPS quite easily even when in theory eyes do not get it ;)
Pre orders have been available for a month now and shipping has begun. The RPi team have also said that they are ring fencing all manufacturing for individual consumers for 3 months before opening production to bulk & industry buyers, so they should be widely available soon enough.
@@MINKIN2 Raspberry Pi sold out and screwed the hobbyists that made them famous - selling vast quantities of product to corporations so the 'little man' couldn't buy them. I have zero trust they will do the right thing here again.I would love to be wrong, but I am pretty sure I won''t be. Fencing manufacturing sounds like an Eben 'I should go into politics' line.
Chris you make outstanding entertaining videos Absolutely love your channel friend Wish you all the best, and look forward to seeing your amazing ensemble cast in the future. Mr Scissors, Stanley the Knife and everyone else.
Actually the latest release of the RPi OS was released days after the RPi5's release. I have downloaded it and upgraded my RPi4 to the latest OS. Regarding applications, I have had no problem with any of the applications that I was running on the RPi4. Check again because the RPi OS based on Debian 12 Bookworm is there. I do agree with you on the OPi 5 especially the OPi5 Plus. I think the Orange Pi 5 family makes a valid challenge to#1 position. My take would be to reverse the positions, RPi5 #2 OPi5 #1. Just my thoughts
What do I think about your list?? It can be broken down into two parts: 1: it was interesting and there was a good selection a board that and you told us why you thought each one deserved ot's place.... 2: like a lot of people, you skipped a number. I find that highly annoying. Just because you have a tie doesn't mean that you skip a number....it may be tradition, but so is the top five countdown instead of a top six. You went wild with the number, why not go wild and not conform to society and offer a number 4 position?? Other then that, it was a very enjoyable video!! I look forward to next week's video!! I still think your severely underrated....
Howdy, Christopher, Sir!!! Judson & Buddy of OHIO here! Well?! - Thursday is my 58th birthday! Yup!!! - I’m OLD - Like you!!! LOL I was hoping to buy myself a RasPi 5 for my birthday! (Woot woot!) - but I hear I may have to hope that I live to be 59! - HAHAHA!!! Either way??? “Fingers Crossed”!!! Lol Cheers! - Judson & Buddy!! - God Bless You All!!! :-)
You've done your homework. I appreciate the list. It does give a person a list to reflect on and wonder how much more can we advance? Out of your list , I prefer the Odyssey. It has more options.
The Odyssey indeed has a lot of options, both in terms of software and connectivity. Even ignoring the GPIO, it offers a lot more than a similarly priced mini PC.
Been using the previous model for years as a web browsing PC for Grandma. Went with passive cooling and popped into Seed's blue case. Running W11 Pro fine on an NVME. As heat rises I just place it bum / heat sink up on the desk. I also used it for a while as my only PC after the main one died during covid. Some super light gaming worked fine like World of Warcraft Classic with discord chat open too. Would love to see an updated model with the next gen or two of Intel chip as I otherwise adore all the connectivity and storage.
More than 5…. You had 6 levels and then.. you had two on one level! So 7 SBCs. I love your videos as they are well done, informative and complete.. thank you.😊
Hi! I am interested in the Raspberry Pi Zero format, and all the new clones that are coming out these days. Any chance you can make a video about that? Thanks for the great content.
@@ExplainingComputers That's great news! Very interested to see if there is a model that can support UA-cam playback at a decent level, while at the same time be powered from a usb port on a TV. My hopes aren't that high, but it would be perfect for travelling :)
I feel that a NVME connector and SATA connector are now becoming a minimal requirement for SBCs, as it is more convenient and reliable for storage than a micro-SD card, and in term of RAM a quantity of 8 Gb (or more) would be ideal for using SBC as a small computer, and advanced NAS usage. For 2024 I hope SBCs will have these specifications, otherwise users will prefer mini ITX motherboard, mini-PCs which offer better features and flexibility.
*an NVMe (because enn-vee-em-ee starts with a vowel sound) "A" vs "an" is determined by the _sound_ that follows, not the letter, and it doesn't matter what the letters in an initialism stand for.
Thank you for the excellent content and video production. Also, thank you for the humor. However, I already have three bananas downstairs and recently ate the fourth one. Cheers!
When I needed a media server I went for one of those tiny ASUS PN64-E1’s as the server system. The best thing is the spectrum of choice depending on one’s needs.
A Pi 5 has just dropped through my letterbox! That's a rarely documented feature, easily sent through mail. As a piece of electronics, it's a work of art. Some resistors and capacitors are now so small, you need a magnifying glass. We now take technology for granted but this is a serious piece of technology.
Package small enough to drop through a letterbox? That's good. I ordered a single SD card from a shop a while back.. it came in a 30x30x20cm card box which I had to drive down to the post office to pick up. Deep inside the box was that little SD card, in a plastic wrapper which could have gone in an envelope instead.
Risc? X86? arm!!!!! Great review. Top notch. Decided to buy a rock3 for CNC. $40? $77!+cdn!. Arm only has multi-stacks. Won't harp though. Thanks,jpk 🙏
Thanks for comparing the OPi 5 model. I like the M.2 slot option but is the eMMC speed comparable? I was thinking about cancelling my RPi 5 order & switching to OPi 5.
Woohoo! I guess I am a "diehard". :-) I have the Starfive vision 5 2 (from the kickstarter early bird) ... the RISC-V boards work, but there some things need a bit patience and time reading forums and documentation. Being able to use a NVMe SSD is a great feature. I've also messed about a little with bare metal RISC-V (32bit) on an FPGA... Haven't had time to try yet, but I believe it wouldn't be hard to spend a week or more using RISC-V 64 and Debian for a week or more.
Whilst I’m happy to see so many boards still being released it’s a shame that we are getting away from that old £35 price tag now. I have to say I jump at any chance to get a RPi as it just covers all the bases with software hardware and community, the other boards whilst good just don’t seem to want to do anything more to update after the board is released. But I could be wrong on that last point
Agreed. It is sad that the market has tended towards the more expensive boards. I guess in part due to rising component prices, but also more resource intensive OS.
Thank you for covering SBCs! Do you know whether there's an online database of SBCs (perhaps crowdsourced) that can help folks find a board that works for them? I'm having a hard time finding boards with 2 ethernet ports and would love a way to easily search and filter. Related, I'm also searching for boards that are fully supported by the vanilla Linux kernel and the main distros directly (say from Debian or Armbian). I'd rather not rely on ISOs built by the board manufacturer for security and longevity reasons. Thank you!
Phewey, I bought the best available! Or, strictly speaking, 2 of the best available - a 4 Gig version and an 8 Gig, plus accessories, which will arrive in January 24. I have long wanted to build a thing - technical term - that measures the distance a car is from me on my bicycle as it overtakes and then takes a photo or films a short segment if the vehicle is too close! My RaspberryPi 4 should be more than good enough for that. I will assume many cars will trigger the filming and store the result, over several hours cycling. I don't care that you can buy cameras film for hours and you can clip 'incidents' after they happen, when you arrive home and say "This was too close". It is unscientific. I want a techy, independent, verifiable way to measure the distance vehicles pass at ... with film or photos of the worst offenders
A fair list Chris, and one which you could add community / overall support, which I think would only solidify the standings you gave. The Raspberry Pi is second to none when it comes to documentation, ethos and sheer engagement - which is often exemplified by Eben Upton, and perhaps personally, it's made in Wales, which was also where my first computer back in 1982 was made, the Dragon 32. Thank you Chris, excellent as always - have a good what remains of the weekend Sir!
I'm learning electronics and IT as a hobby. I was never familiar with SBCs and never used Linux in my life. This year I discovered your channel, and after watching your review of Rock 3C, I've decided to buy it, because I thought this would be a good SBC for a begginer as myself. And I was right. Now I've learned a lot about Linux, build a home meteo station, home server, camera surveillance system, and some other automation projects. All in 3 months. Thanks a lot for this. Now I'm waiting to recieve Orange Pi 5 Plus to make some other projects I have in mind. Thanks again.
Great to hear that you have been busy and learning with the Rock 3C. :) It is a nice piece of hardware, with much potential as you have demonstrated. I wonder what you will do with the Orange Pi 5 . . .
I love hearing about a newb getting to love this area of tech. I wire-wrapped my first SBC in 1986 - a Z80, a static RAM chip, an EPROM, a clock oscillator and not much else. Ah, the Bad Old Days...
There was a time about 20 years ago that I began to worry that smart black boxes and surface mount components would remove all curiosity for understanding and experimenting with computers and electronics. I very glad that I was proven wrong!
6 boards instead of 5, you rebel.
LOL
Well, the inclusion of the RISC-V boards is kind of like an extra "special mention".
Chris did say he agonised over whether to include such "diehard" boards in this list, but the clever solution is, indeed, to make it a "top 6" rather than a "top 5" - to make space for their inclusion, as an "added extra" bonus. If going RISC-V is too risky - pardon the pun - of a move for you, then you can ignore that entry, and still have a "top 5" list.
Also note that that entry cheats a little in that it's two boards for one slot in the list. But, against, it's like an extra "honourable mention" for RISC-V, while recognising that, for most people, RISC-V is not mainstream yet.
Chris does put a lot of thought and effort into his videos. There are good reasons for everything, I'm sure.
@@klaxoncow WTF kind of pointless long winded response is that? why the need for the useless lecture?
@@ShadowzGSDHave you ever been on Twitter/X? 😂
@@Zerzayar FB is as much as i do, can't be bothered with the others
Chris I got to say your video production quality is brilliant. It's like looking at something expertly crafted. The placement of the SBC's, they are placed at a 90-degree angle the spacing between the SBC's are perfect, the lighting is perfect. It looks like I'm looking at a 3d render! Each and every one of your videos are consistent. I haven't seen anyone with as much quality than you have on UA-cam or on TV!
Thanks for this, much appreciated. I had a three hour shoot for this thumbnail! So many variations.
I used to buy computer books for every popular OS/program and I read them all. Some I read cover to cover and others I used for reference of how to do something. I also had video tapes of "how to computer" and later CDs. This was when internet was still dial up. Your channel reminds me of those books and other digital media and I love it.
:)
The industry has come a long way in a year with plenty of decent SBCs to suit most budgets.
Thanks for sharing Chris and looking forward to the future instalment of this series 👍
An excellent overview of the state of play regarding the major trends in the realm of SBCs! I agree with the choices... I have to admit that the Orange Pi 5 Plus is a little bomb in terms of components and especially connectivity. Unfortunately, in Canadian dollars, the entry-level price is $200, without any accessories, and $245 for a starter kit... a price that quickly dampens the desire to buy. Thank you for this excellent review!
thanks for making this video, 5/6 of them equipped with 3.5mm audio jack, the only 1 most want to buy without it - Pi has an ironic sense of making SoC computers.
I can only agree.
Wow those Kdenlive times are *_interesting_* to say the least (15:25). The RPi 5 got its -ss whipped! And the RPi 5 didn't even show much faster than the Pi 4 and they both got BLOWN AWAY by the Orange Pi 5. WOW! Not just faster as you said but more than 2x as fast. I'd like to see more comparisons between these to see why there is such a HUGE difference in this test.
Yeah it's quite a difference still than even the new RPi5 it seems at least on paper. As far as HARDWARE, the OPi5 does seem superior to the RPi5, but that software and community support is hard to beat for RPi5, and should close the gap as time goes on...at least you'd think...?
I'm excitedly awaiting my PI5 I pre-ordered, however it's astounding just how powerful and capable these SBC's are now, my first computer was a ZX Spectrum to put it in perspective. To me what makes the Pi ecosystem especially special and also relevant for industrial, robotics and space applications is it's large user base, well coded software libraries and software stability, this is worth it's weight in gold.
So many people in these comments with a Pi 5 on pre-order! So many exciting times to come . . .
Just got mine. It's so much faster than the 4. I really want to use Ubuntu but it looks like it still needs some work on streaming videos. Rpi is works great but doesn't have remote desktop and Ubuntu does.
*its large user base
*its weight
its = possessive pronoun
it's = contraction of "it is" or "it has"
It's kind of astonishing, but at the time of writing (Jan 4) the Pi 5 is actually available, at a normal price.. I'm waiting just a little bit to see if there's something new happening on the m.2 side (via the PCIe slot) than has already been shown, but I'll probably complement my Raspberry collection with a Pi 5 soon.
As for the past.. wow, a ZX Spectrum! My 2KB RAM Nascom-1 says hi 🙂
Thanks for including a low-end board. A modern take on I/O without having to pay for a dodecacore processor :)
Thank you for this list. I would suggest that you add a note describing the PoE capabilities of each SBC. I have found that PoE is a very convenient way of powering a SBC.
Thanks again.
*an SBC (because "ess-bee-see" starts with a vowel sound)
"A" vs "an" is determined by the _sound_ that follows, not the letter, and it doesn't matter what the letters in an initialism stand for.
Good list that goes over the features. Hopefully this can give more exposure for the non-Pi boards to get them some more community support.
Love this channel - thanks for keeping us up to date in this space! (Atari ST user)
Thanks for your support. :)
Greetings Chris. That's one comprehensive list ! Great vid.
Always look forward to your SBC analysis.
Really happy with my Orange Pi 5 running Armbian 23.8 😀
It's fast and capable enough as a "backup" desktop computer.
I have aprecieted your videos every Sunday.
Thanks for your support. :)
Those two RISC-V boards do look interesting. The RockChip RK3588 also looks like an interesting SoC. Thanks for putting this up.
The banana addition was perfect. I’m slightly disappointed it didn’t have a name…perhaps Barry? 😅
Yes, the banana should indeed have been called Barry. Sadly it has now been eaten. Well, sadly for Barry. I was quite happy about it. :)
Always a fan of fruit-based computing.
Maybe one more category of SBC buyers -- Home Lab creators. I used to use old PC MBs, but increasingly look for low power SBC's for network infrastructure. Love your channel.
Good morning, the time change again. Interesting update of the SBCs, thanks
Yes, the clocks keep bounding around. Loki's fault I believe.
Another very professional well produced video, very interesting topic, thank you for posting
Great video Chris! - I'm looking forward to getting a Raspberry Pi 5 soon! :)
Another excellent video, Chris. I have a RPi 5 on order. For me, it's the wider support that tipped the balance over the competition.
Brilliant video. Thank you. Love the inclusion of the Risc CPUs.
In the world of hardware, software is king. After playing with other boards and then RPis, the experience is sooo much better on RPi, the software more polished, the bugs less present, the community more helpful… for me, when it comes to non-x86/64, it’s RPi or nothing.
Discover Armbian and the situation will reversed.
@@sergiodeplata it's one thing to have a working operating system. It's another to have working/optimized apps. If you want to do anything beyond some web browsing, stability becomes a huge issue. I've tried Debian, Armbian, DietPi, the lot.
Indeed. For now, Raspberry Pi software support and community is still the best by a wide margin in the SBC world.
I've just eaten the banana & it was very nice too! Excellent reviews of the 6 SBC's, the most important thing for me is good software support! The choice as to which one to buy depends on my requirements, I'll have to check my spreadsheet for that :) Thanks Chris I really appreciate the hard work that you've put into this video! Scissors are us.
Greetings Alan. :)
Yay, an EC video! Sunday complete. ❤
Greetings!
Even though the Orange Pi 5 has better performance in some aspects but I'll go with Raspberry 5,
it's the combination of community, active development and popularity.
Thanks Chris!
The matured raspberry seems like a vastly explorerd area in that regard. I agree. But i find the RISC-V boards more exiting.
@@aladdin8623I agree when it comes to satisfy my own desires, but if I wanted to build something I could rely on long term I would look for a well-supported product.
RISC-V is very promising and I hope it grows more and more in the near future.
Indeed!
Remember this company (Raspberry things) did not deliver anything during the last 4 years. And Raspberry is stuck with Broadcom.
@@aladdin8623 I am more likely to go Opi5 as its very near 100% mainline really we are just waiting as Collabora & Arm are in collab for all Mali opensource so guess that should be soon as have seen some Panthor repos with a Rev3.
My interest is ML and the RK3588(s) Gflops/watt are almost 2x more effcient than the Pi5 and that is not taking into account the MaliG610 where VC7 just isn't worth comparing and also a NPU. When so much is AI nowadays it strange Raspberry brought out such a poor performing ML board as SBC are perfect ML devices.
RiscV very exciting and there was a 16 core really interesting Sophgo SG2380 and that could tempt me as there is any empty niche somewhere between a RK3588(s) & a Mac Mini giving approx 4+ Gflops/watt that was advertised minus ram $120 but some time away yet. www.cnx-software.com/2023/10/21/sophgo-sg2380-16-core-sifive-p670-risc-v-processor-20-tops-ai-accelerator/
They all have their niche markets per price for what ever developmental projects one can think of. With the added value of add ons' that are available or becoming available these days, coupled with software advancements, these project boards will no doubt see a larger increase in usage in the enthusiast scene for sure, but more so in the science and technology/University scene in such learning programs like the STEM field in the future, which is great for the SBC manufacturers imo.
Who knows better than you do! By now, you are the SoC guru of all time!
Great roundup of SBCs. Thanks!
I'm still waiting for my RP5. Can't wait to work on it! This 2023 been a great year for SBC. Maybe my next one will be a RISC V board? We'll see as it greatly improved and I'm sure that you'll review new ones pretty soon I bet. :)
Enjoy your new Pi when it arrives. I think you will like it! There is something cool about the Pi 5 and its performance that is very hard communicate in a video.
I purchased the Orange Pi 5 with RK3588S. Running from flash it was good enough for desktop use. Web-browsing hickups occasionaly. Now have Orange Ubuntu on NVMe. Incredible.
Also own the LycheePi RV with Allwinner D1. Amusing toy with good build quality.
Just to make sure no one is confused, the Lichee RV is a couple of years old now and has a single core single issue 1.0 GHz CPU and 0.5 or 1.0 GB RAM. The Lichee Pi 4A reviewed in the video is around 15x more powerful in CPU and available with up to 16 GB RAM. Sipeed do make good quality boards that come out usually close to the announced dates and have quite good manufacturer support by Chinese SBC standards -- they are responsive on Twitter, for example.
for the orange pi 5 lineup you didn’t mention the orange pi zero 2w, which is in the form factor of the raspberry pi zero 2w with more ram and usb c instead of micro usb ports. it is a different chipset but with the more ram you can do many rpi zero 2w projects where ram is the limiting issue.
Sir, you are the absolute reference for good and concise information. Thank you very much!
About to switch from a Rock 5b to an Orange Pi 5 Plus...but this is mostly because I preordered one with 32GB of RAM. Looks like the list is in the right order.
Loved the video, Chris. I myself may have swapped 1 & 2 around, but we all have our own opinions. I am very keen on seeing where Risk will take us though and will AI come into play on SBC's, who knows? Thanks for sharing with us.
Greetings Brian.
Google "Q-engineering Deep learning with Raspberry Pi and alternatives in 2023" (Sorry, but YT does not like links.)
Keep in mind that even the fastest SBC on the list (Jetson Orin) only has 20 TOPS, which is like 1/20th of the entry-level consumer GPU RTX 4060.
Who manicures your fingernails? Seriously, your hands look great.
I do them myself. I am aware, as one my my friends once said, that due to my videos here, I have become a hand model! :)
Thanks for this good summary. For me these SBCs have different usage: 1st family for specific usage as automation or video monitoring video (Rock 3C). 2nd family for large storage with 2 ethernet ports. 3rd family for desktop usage. For me the Pi 5 should be the best with an integrated nvme support. After usinf PI 2, 3 and 4, actually I use a Raspberry PI Zero W for jobs scheduled in crontab and Local Web server. And it enough for me.
The Orange Pi 5 Plus is #1 in my book. This thing is a beast.
Greetings Chris and thankyou for another excellent video. I was initially surprised that the Agon Light had been excluded but then remembered that video only included SBCs reviewed in 2023. Any prospect of an Agon review soon ?
Thank you, ExC. Absolutely wonderful summary of the latest and greatest SBC's. LOVE this channel!
Looks like some of the pins on the Lichee Pi 4A's header (20 pin GPIO?) got bent a bit. - 10:10 More proof that using male header pins on a SBC is a bad idea. Really easy to short those out.
Thank you for always giving us such very informative videos. You always make it easy for us to understand the market place and power of SBCs and other devices hardware related.
You had me at the 🍌
I cannot compete with the pigeon! :)
Great review. I want one of each 🎉
I have a RPi 5 on pre-order, and I simply can't wait! My only criticism would be that I wish they would go back to full size HDMI. Those micro HDMI ports are a nightmare. Hopefully Argon or other accessory companies are hard are work on a case/breakout board to give us full size HDMI while also supporting the OEM cooler. Thanks again for another great video!
I totally agree about the micro HDMI -- horrible connectors.
Me three. I don't use two screens with a pi so it's a total wash for me to have two worse connectors that need a special cable over 1 good one that needs no extra hardware. @@ExplainingComputers
I was really hoping they would have added some sort of alternative connector for storage, in my opinion they should scrap the SDCard alltogether and put either eMMC or a connector for NVME storage on there.
Yes i know at some point there will be a "HAT" for that, but it always seems like, if you want POE, and flash storage, and be able to put it in a nice looking, not too bulky box, you are out of luck.
Also...Why no 2.5GBit ethernet port.
I will probably just keep my Rpi 4 and hope they add those things to the Rpi 6...
....and no one will be able to buy for years into the future....
100% agreement on the HDMI connectors. I've broken several plugs on that - the micro HDMI plugs are tiny, and combined with the stiff HDMI casing the forces are strong. This typically happens when I try to install the Pi in narrow spaces, which I do because.. that's where I need them. I had one connected to my parents' TV, for example (simple video conferencing for old people). I hate, hate, hate those micro HDMI connectors. Even mini HDMI would be better (my first Asus Transformer had one), but I would take one single full size HDMI before two smaller ones 10 out of 10 days. I've never needed two HDMI ports, on any computer ever (I'm a big screen person, not a dual monitor person). And on an SBC? Crazy.
Very informative video. I agree that a balance of decent CPU spec and good Software support is very important and the RPi 5 does this at a reasonable price.
I look forward to more videos, Thank you Chris.
I like the performance of the Orange Pi 5 Plus. But I still have a place for my Raspberry Pi. Best to have both 😁
Great choices. If I was in the market for something to replace my RPi4, I would have to go with the RPi5. The Orange Pi family would be a close second.
Once again I’m in agreement with your list. Other than that, I’m going to immediately order myself a new banana! Looking forward to your next video!
Great video, congrats on 1M subscribers, nice to see ARM and X86 boards on the list. Great to buy these for fun projects it’s also a great way to support these manufacturers.
Even though I can get audio out from the GPIO pins and analog video from a solder-on solution. I wouldn't have blamed you if you knocked Raspberry Pi 5 down to number 2 for getting rid of the audio jack. It just seems wrong. Great Video once again!
I did agonize about the top two positions! :)
I do agree with RPI5 being on top, at least until the mainstream support for the RK3588 is fully finalized thats how things are.
Im interested on cheap SBC lately like the 1GB Zero 3/2W for making my own routers/wifi APs but it seems the wifi on both of these drop like crazy :/, or the 2GB Orange PI 3B for a nas with a M.2 to sata adapter.
Keen to see how they optimise various encoding functions for the Pi5's hardware.
I agree that the RPi5 is the best in the market due to the ok performance but more importantly the fantastic software support and experience. There is little value in an SBC that's fast but crashes frequently or doesn't support the software you need to run.
No "Le Potato" say it isnt so! j/k Great Video!!!
Hey, Chris: How about a explanation of GPU hardware? SBC's have integrated graphics which appear to perform quite well. Meanwhile, the desktop/gaming segment is pushing for higher and higher frame rates for reasons that I do not understand. Why do I need a 100+frame/second frame rate when the human eye cannot comprehend above 30-40/sec?
Interesting video idea. Noted! :)
Somehow in first person shooters human comprehends difference between 30 and 60. And after that 60 vs >100FPS quite easily even when in theory eyes do not get it ;)
First place is without a doubt deserved for............
Banana, we have to bite on it until RPI 5 finally arrives properly.😊
I just hope Raspberry Pi's become widely available soon. Specs mean nothing if the product isn't in the consumers hands.
Pre orders have been available for a month now and shipping has begun. The RPi team have also said that they are ring fencing all manufacturing for individual consumers for 3 months before opening production to bulk & industry buyers, so they should be widely available soon enough.
@@MINKIN2 Let's hope so!
@@MINKIN2 Raspberry Pi sold out and screwed the hobbyists that made them famous - selling vast quantities of product to corporations so the 'little man' couldn't buy them. I have zero trust they will do the right thing here again.I would love to be wrong, but I am pretty sure I won''t be. Fencing manufacturing sounds like an Eben 'I should go into politics' line.
Thanks Chris! Great video!
Nice review Chris. Thanks for another great video. 😎👍
Thanks 👍
Chris you make outstanding entertaining videos
Absolutely love your channel friend
Wish you all the best, and look forward to seeing your amazing ensemble cast in the future.
Mr Scissors, Stanley the Knife and everyone else.
I feel the Orange Pi 5 should be #1. Software for the RP5 isn't available yet and may be a long time before it can become useful. Just my opinion :)
Actually the latest release of the RPi OS was released days after the RPi5's release. I have downloaded it and upgraded my RPi4 to the latest OS. Regarding applications, I have had no problem with any of the applications that I was running on the RPi4. Check again because the RPi OS based on Debian 12 Bookworm is there. I do agree with you on the OPi 5 especially the OPi5 Plus. I think the Orange Pi 5 family makes a valid challenge to#1 position. My take would be to reverse the positions, RPi5 #2 OPi5 #1. Just my thoughts
10:33 - *_"4 USB 4"_* ports? Oops, I think you meant 4 USB 3 ports. ;-)
I think I did! My bad. :(
What do I think about your list?? It can be broken down into two parts:
1: it was interesting and there was a good selection a board that and you told us why you thought each one deserved ot's place....
2: like a lot of people, you skipped a number. I find that highly annoying. Just because you have a tie doesn't mean that you skip a number....it may be tradition, but so is the top five countdown instead of a top six. You went wild with the number, why not go wild and not conform to society and offer a number 4 position??
Other then that, it was a very enjoyable video!! I look forward to next week's video!! I still think your severely underrated....
Howdy, Christopher, Sir!!!
Judson & Buddy of OHIO here!
Well?! - Thursday is my 58th birthday!
Yup!!! - I’m OLD - Like you!!! LOL
I was hoping to buy myself a RasPi 5 for my birthday! (Woot woot!) - but I hear I may have to hope that I live to be 59! - HAHAHA!!!
Either way??? “Fingers Crossed”!!! Lol
Cheers! - Judson & Buddy!! - God Bless You All!!! :-)
Greetings -- and a happy birthday for Thursday! :) I'm 57 in January, so we are a very similar age.
Happy early birthday!!! 🥳🥳🥳
I have 'reserved' 2 RP5's with a seller down here in oz and am looking fwd to having a play with them..... eventually.
10:34 "Four USB 4"? :) You actually made me check if I missed the upgrade 🤣
You've done your homework. I appreciate the list. It does give a person a list to reflect on and wonder how much more can we advance? Out of your list , I prefer the Odyssey. It has more options.
The Odyssey indeed has a lot of options, both in terms of software and connectivity. Even ignoring the GPIO, it offers a lot more than a similarly priced mini PC.
Been using the previous model for years as a web browsing PC for Grandma. Went with passive cooling and popped into Seed's blue case. Running W11 Pro fine on an NVME. As heat rises I just place it bum / heat sink up on the desk.
I also used it for a while as my only PC after the main one died during covid. Some super light gaming worked fine like World of Warcraft Classic with discord chat open too.
Would love to see an updated model with the next gen or two of Intel chip as I otherwise adore all the connectivity and storage.
More than 5…. You had 6 levels and then.. you had two on one level! So 7 SBCs. I love your videos as they are well done, informative and complete.. thank you.😊
Six SBCs -- there was no number 4 in the list, as I had two at number 3. :)
@@ExplainingComputers my bad. I remember your saying that in the video.. thank you for the correction!
How many GHz does a banana have? They're in stock everywhere
Hi! I am interested in the Raspberry Pi Zero format, and all the new clones that are coming out these days. Any chance you can make a video about that? Thanks for the great content.
Yes, I will be looking at the zero marketplace. :)
@@ExplainingComputers That's great news! Very interested to see if there is a model that can support UA-cam playback at a decent level, while at the same time be powered from a usb port on a TV. My hopes aren't that high, but it would be perfect for travelling :)
I feel that a NVME connector and SATA connector are now becoming a minimal requirement for SBCs, as it is more convenient and reliable for storage than a micro-SD card, and in term of RAM a quantity of 8 Gb (or more) would be ideal for using SBC as a small computer, and advanced NAS usage. For 2024 I hope SBCs will have these specifications, otherwise users will prefer mini ITX motherboard, mini-PCs which offer better features and flexibility.
And can we please have onboard Poe and 2½ Gbit Ethernet as standard as well.
*an NVMe (because enn-vee-em-ee starts with a vowel sound)
"A" vs "an" is determined by the _sound_ that follows, not the letter, and it doesn't matter what the letters in an initialism stand for.
Thanks for this video, I am planning to buy a Raspberry Pi 5 (SBC).
I love the unexpected humor in this episode!
Best show on you tube!
Thank you for the excellent content and video production. Also, thank you for the humor. However, I already have three bananas downstairs and recently ate the fourth one. Cheers!
I love my Raspberry Pi, and will upgrade to. 5 soon, for the very reasons you mentioned.
Excellent list!
When I needed a media server I went for one of those tiny ASUS PN64-E1’s as the server system. The best thing is the spectrum of choice depending on one’s needs.
I like and love them and your advice to people about best product for selling....
Waiting for a raspberry pi 5 to play with. Hope they come soon. Thanks for your work.
So does the rpi5 have audio stream through the hdmi connection? And can it be setup to do that?
Yes, the Pi 5 outputs audio over HDMI.
@@ExplainingComputers thanks, I just wanted to confirm
A Pi 5 has just dropped through my letterbox! That's a rarely documented feature, easily sent through mail. As a piece of electronics, it's a work of art. Some resistors and capacitors are now so small, you need a magnifying glass. We now take technology for granted but this is a serious piece of technology.
Enjoy your new Pi. :)
Package small enough to drop through a letterbox? That's good. I ordered a single SD card from a shop a while back.. it came in a 30x30x20cm card box which I had to drive down to the post office to pick up. Deep inside the box was that little SD card, in a plastic wrapper which could have gone in an envelope instead.
Risc? X86? arm!!!!! Great review. Top notch. Decided to buy a rock3 for CNC. $40? $77!+cdn!. Arm only has multi-stacks. Won't harp though. Thanks,jpk 🙏
RK3588 FtW.
Great to see two RISC-V boards in here too, they're both looking promising.
Anyone remember buying micromart? This channel takes me back to a simpler time when I used to buy parts and build rigs for mates 😊
Yes, I remember Micromart; I bought or sold one or two bits in there as I recall, back in my C64 and Amiga days.
I remember Micromart!
@@ExplainingComputers thought you might 😃
😂 a banana 🍌
Thanks for comparing the OPi 5 model. I like the M.2 slot option but is the eMMC speed comparable? I was thinking about cancelling my RPi 5 order & switching to OPi 5.
Woohoo! I guess I am a "diehard". :-) I have the Starfive vision 5 2 (from the kickstarter early bird) ... the RISC-V boards work, but there some things need a bit patience and time reading forums and documentation. Being able to use a NVMe SSD is a great feature. I've also messed about a little with bare metal RISC-V (32bit) on an FPGA... Haven't had time to try yet, but I believe it wouldn't be hard to spend a week or more using RISC-V 64 and Debian for a week or more.
Great video Chris... what would you think about a video to highlight useful accessories and add-ons for the new Pi5 as more items are available?
I love single bords computer thanks for the video ! Have a nice one
Whilst I’m happy to see so many boards still being released it’s a shame that we are getting away from that old £35 price tag now. I have to say I jump at any chance to get a RPi as it just covers all the bases with software hardware and community, the other boards whilst good just don’t seem to want to do anything more to update after the board is released. But I could be wrong on that last point
Agreed. It is sad that the market has tended towards the more expensive boards. I guess in part due to rising component prices, but also more resource intensive OS.
Thank you for covering SBCs! Do you know whether there's an online database of SBCs (perhaps crowdsourced) that can help folks find a board that works for them? I'm having a hard time finding boards with 2 ethernet ports and would love a way to easily search and filter. Related, I'm also searching for boards that are fully supported by the vanilla Linux kernel and the main distros directly (say from Debian or Armbian). I'd rather not rely on ISOs built by the board manufacturer for security and longevity reasons. Thank you!
The Risc boards are very exciting.
Phewey, I bought the best available! Or, strictly speaking, 2 of the best available - a 4 Gig version and an 8 Gig, plus accessories, which will arrive in January 24.
I have long wanted to build a thing - technical term - that measures the distance a car is from me on my bicycle as it overtakes and then takes a photo or films a short segment if the vehicle is too close! My RaspberryPi 4 should be more than good enough for that. I will assume many cars will trigger the filming and store the result, over several hours cycling.
I don't care that you can buy cameras film for hours and you can clip 'incidents' after they happen, when you arrive home and say "This was too close". It is unscientific. I want a techy, independent, verifiable way to measure the distance vehicles pass at ... with film or photos of the worst offenders
A fair list Chris, and one which you could add community / overall support, which I think would only solidify the standings you gave. The Raspberry Pi is second to none when it comes to documentation, ethos and sheer engagement - which is often exemplified by Eben Upton, and perhaps personally, it's made in Wales, which was also where my first computer back in 1982 was made, the Dragon 32.
Thank you Chris, excellent as always - have a good what remains of the weekend Sir!
Thanks for your support and kind comments. :)
I used to cheer for raspberry pi now not so much. I will try another sbc mentioned on this list.
I thought my 4 weetabix habit was maverick behaviour but then you go and do a top 6 list.