The Raspberry Pi has come a long way since hitting the scene in 2014. Since then, it has found its way into a plethora of applications. From basic tinkering and educational purposes to specialized scientific and manufacturing applications, it has become a go-to for those looking at an affordable means of getting things done. Meanwhile, in the last six years, the Raspberry Pi has become a full-fledged computer. The latest compute module has just been announced, and it has many new modern features.
The newly redesigned board has even more options now. Starting at only $25, many would be hard pressed to find a lower-cost solution. From DDR4 memory to 4K HEVC decoding, this little board has a lot going for it. How about a 64-bit processor to use modern apps? They now have Wi-Fi options as well, including the latest Bluetooth. Wi-Fi can be achieved using either the built-in antenna or a separate antenna kit.
Compute Module Specifications
- Broadcom BCM2711 quad-core Cortex-A72 (ARM v8) 64-bit SoC @ 1.5GHz
- H.265 (HEVC) (up to 4K/60 FPS decode), H.264 (up to 1080p/60 FPS decode, 1080p/30 FPS encode)
- OpenGL ES 3.0 graphics
- Options for 1GB, 2GB, 4GB or 8GB LPDDR4-3200 SDRAM (depending on variant)
- Options for 0GB (“Lite”), 8GB, 16GB or 32GB eMMC Flash memory (depending on variant)
- Optional fully certified radio module: 2.4 GHz, 5.0 GHz IEEE 802.11 b/g/n/ac wireless; Bluetooth 5.0, BLE; On-board electronic switch to select either external or PCB trace antenna
- Dual HDMI interfaces, at resolutions up to 4K
- Single-lane PCI Express 2.0 interface
- Dual MIPI DSI display, and dual MIPI CSI-2 camera interfaces
- Gigabit Ethernet PHY with IEEE 1588 support
- 28 GPIO pins, with up to 6 × UART, 6 × I2C and 5 × SPI
Compute Module 4 IO Board
A Compute Module 4 IO Board has also been released. This addon board aims to provide some of the options available with the 32 variants being offered for the compute module. Essentially, this version includes a number of the optional ports listed for the basic board. The IO board will sell for $35, so the two combined comes to $60.
Compute Module 4 IO Specifications
- Two full-size HDMI ports
- Gigabit Ethernet jack
- Two USB 2.0 ports
- MicroSD card socket (only for use with Lite, no-eMMC Compute Module 4 variants)
- PCI Express Gen 2 x1 socket
- HAT footprint with 40-pin GPIO connector and PoE header
- 12V input via barrel jack (supports up to 26V if PCIe unused)
- Camera and display FPC connectors
- Real-time clock with battery backup