A new year brings new technology in the form of single-board computers (SBCs). The best SBCs are the ones that are suitable for any given application, including IoT projects. This means a powerful board outfitted with the fastest tech may not be ideal for remote monitoring, wherein a low-power platform with efficient sensors is more than enough to handle the load. That being said, overkill performance never hindered project development, and “future proofing” is an excellent excuse for going overboard with the latest hardware, no matter the application. This roundup will look at the top development boards for IoT applications, or any for that matter, that have hit the market over the last year or two and are widely utilized by engineers and makers alike.
Raspberry Pi 4 Model B
Raspberry Pi 4 Model B. Click for a larger image. (Source: Raspberry Pi)
The Raspberry Pi 4 Model B is still the flagship board of the Raspberry Pi Foundation and has been the core component of a myriad of projects spanning from robotics to automation systems. The Pi has solidified itself as the default board that most think of in terms of project versatility, price, and performance. The Pi 4 Model B packs a Broadcom BCM2711B0 (4 × 1.5-GHz Cortex-A72) SoC with a Broadcom VideoCore VI GPU and up to 8 GB of DDR4 RAM. Connectivity options are plenty and include dual-band 802.11ac/b/g/n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.0, Bluetooth Low Energy, and Gigabit Ethernet. Ports and connectors include the standard 40-pin GPIO header, 2 × micro-HDMI 2.0 ports, 2 × USB 3.0 ports, 2 × USB 2.0 ports, 3.5-mm audio/video, CSI, and DSI.
Arduino Uno Mini Limited Edition
Arduino Uno Mini Limited Edition. Click for a larger image. (Source: Arduino)
The Arduino Uno is another favorite board among engineers and makers for its versatility and simplicity. Arduino recently released a miniature-form–factor version with the Arduino Uno Mini Limited, which is based on the ATmega328P (2-KB SRAM, 32-KB flash, 1-KB EEPROM) microcontroller and offers a footprint of just 34.2 × 26.7 × 8 mm. The Mini retains the same GPIO as the Uno with 14 × digital, 6 × analog, 6 × power, and LED pins. It also packs a 16-MHz ceramic resonator, a USB-C connector, and a reset button. The Arduino Uno Mini Limited Edition celebrates selling over 10 million Uno boards and comes individually numbered in a unique collector’s box.
Asus Tinker Board 2
Asus Tinker Board 2. Click for a larger image. (Source: Asus)
The Tinker Board 2 was designed to give the Raspberry Pi 4 a run for its money in terms of raw hardware performance, but it comes at a cost, as the board retails for $129, while the Pi 4 can be found for as low as $30 (depending on the model). Asus outfitted the Tinker Board 2 with a Rockchip RK3399 SoC with a dual-core ARM Cortex-A72, quad-core ARM Cortex-A53, and Mali-T860 MP4 GPU, with up to 4 GB of RAM and 16 GB of storage.
Like the Pi, the Tinker Board 2 packs a 40-pin header for connecting a host of add-ons and an HDMI port, USB Type-C port, and a 22-pin MIPI DSI header for connecting cameras. Connectivity options include RTL8211F-CG GbE LAN and an M.2 slot for accommodating 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac wireless and BT 5.0 (2T2R). Asus has also included several ports for connecting peripherals, including 3 × USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A ports and a USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C port.
Raspberry Pi Zero W
Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W. Click for a larger image. (Source: Raspberry Pi)
The Raspberry Pi Zero W remains as one of the more affordable ($15) SBCs on the market and is a drop-in replacement to the original Zero W. The board is outfitted with an RP3A0 SiP with a quad-core 64-bit ARM Cortex-A53 CPU and a Broadcom BCM2710A1 die with 512 MB of LPDDR2 SDRAM. It also has a micro-SD card slot, a CSI-2 camera connector, USB On-The-Go port, and an unpopulated footprint for a HAT-compatible 40-pin GPIO header. Connectivity options include 2.4-GHz 802.11 b/g/n wireless LAN and Bluetooth 4.2, as well as support for Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) and modular compliance certification.
PocketBeagle
BeagleBoard PocketBeagle. Click for a larger image. (Source: BeagleBoard)
BeagleBoard’s PocketBeagle is everything you could expect from a BeagleBone SBC, only in a smaller package. The board has been stripped of almost everything except the processor, GPIO, and power-regulation circuitry to make the PocketBeagle as small as possible. The board features Octavo Systems’ OSD3358 SoP with an ARM Cortex-A8 AM335x processor, 512 MB of DDR3 RAM, Texas Instruments TPS65217C power management IC, Texas Instruments TL5209 low-dropout voltage regulator, and 4 KB of EEPROM, all packed into a 21 × 21-mm BGA package. What’s more, the PocketBeagle is outfitted with a pair of 32-bit/200-MHz PRUs, 72-pin GPIO headers, micro-USB port, and micro-SD slot for additional storage expansion.
ODROID-C4
Hardkernel ODROID-C4. Click for a larger image. (Source: Hardkernel)
Hardkernel’s ODROID-C4 improves on the performance of the now-defunct C2 with a smaller size and a similar layout to the Raspberry Pi 4. The board comes equipped with an Amlogic S905X3 chip with a quad-core Cortex-A55, 4 GB of DDR4 RAM, and Mali-G31 GPU. Strangely, the C4 packs no wireless capabilities but does come equipped with Ethernet, HDMI 2.0 (output at 4K/60 Hz), and 4 x USB 3.0 ports. Hardkernel kept the standard Pi-compatible 40-pin header but skipped the DSI and CSI connections. That said, the board does come equipped with an eMMC and micro-SD slot for storage upgrades.
Banana Pi RK3588 BPI-R2 Pro
Banana Pi RK3588 BPI-R2 Pro. Click for a larger image. (Source: Banana Pi)
Banana Pi has released new details on a new board in the BPI-R2 Pro category that has a similar layout to Raspberry Pi’s Compute Module 3. The platform requires a carrier board to access all of its features and includes a Rockchip RK3588 SoC, which packs four ARM Cortex-A76 cores and four Cortex-A55 cores at 1.8 GHz in ARM’s new DynamIQ configuration. The board also features an ARM Mali-G610 MP4 GPU, up to 8 GB of LPDDR4C RAM, and 128 GB of eMMC. Expansion options include PCI 3.0, SATA 3.0, 2 × USB 3.1 Type-C, 2 × Gigabit Ethernet ports, 3 × USB Type-A ports, a micro-SD slot, and 3.5-mm jack and ribbon connectors. What’s more, the new board offers 8K 30-fps video encoding in the H.265, VP9, AVS2, and (at 30 fps) H.264 codecs, with Caffe, TensorFlow, TFLite, ONNX PyTorch, Keras, and Darknet support.
LattePanda 3 Delta
LattePanda 3 Delta. Click for a larger image. (Source: LattePanda)
The LattePanda 3 Delta merges a full-fledged PC with a development board for the best of both worlds. The board uses Intel’s N5105 quad-core Celeron processor with an ATmega32u4 co-processor and can take advantage of Windows 10/11 and Linux distributions. Included are 8 GB of LPDDR4 RAM, 64 GB of eMMC, and an Intel UHD GPU capable of driving 4K HDR video at 60 fps. Connectivity includes Wi-Fi 6, Gigabit Ethernet, and 4G/5G with optional add-on modules. The LattePanda 3 Delta also includes many ports, including HDMI 2.0b, eDP (display port), DP 1.4 (via USB Type C), and a 3.5-mm jack. It also features 2 × USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports, a USB 3.2 Gen 2 port, a USB Type-C port, and an additional USB 2.0 header.
Seeed Odyseey (X86J4125800)
Odyssey mini computer. Click for a larger image. (Source: Seeed Studio)
Seeed Studio’s Odyssey (X86J4125800) is another great board that can take advantage of Windows 10 and the Grove ecosystem for increased applications. The board is designed around an Intel Celeron J4125 CPU and a Microchip ATSAMD21G18 co-processor. It features an Intel UHD 600 GPU and 8 GB of LPDDR4 RAM but does not come with any eMMC, although 8 GB is optional. However, the Odyssey does feature a pair of M.2 PCI-e slots, a micro-SD slot, Wi-Fi (dual band), dual Gigabit Ethernet, and BLE 5.0. Additional connectivity options include HDMI 2.0, 2 × USB 2.0 ports, a USB 3.1 port, a USB 3.1 Type-C port, and a 40-pin GPIO header.
UDOO Bolt V8
UDOO Bolt V8. Click for a larger image. (Source: UDOO)
Udoo’s Bolt V8 is another board that blurs the lines between PC and SBC and can even run AAA video game titles with the on-board processing power. The V8 comes outfitted with an AMD Ryzen V1605B with a Microchip ATmega32U4 co-processor, as well as an AMD Radeon Vega 8 GPU. It also packs a pair of SO-DIMM slots for up to 32 GB of DDR4 dual-channel RAM and 32 GB of eMMC storage. Additional features include a pair of M.2 slots, Gigabit Ethernet, a Wi-Fi/Bluetooth combo module, 2 × USB 3.0 ports, 2 × USB 3.1 Type-C ports, 2 × HDMI 1.4 ports, and 2 × DisplayPort (alternate mode via USB Type-C).
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