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posted by janrinok on Friday September 13 2019, @03:14AM   Printer-friendly
from the raspberry-and-cherry-pie dept.

Submitted via IRC for Bytram

Rock Pi X Intel Cherry Trail Board to Sell for as low as $39

Most low cost (sub $100) single board computers are based on Arm processors because Intel processors are normally more expensive, but there are some exceptions with AAEON Up Board and Atomic Pi both powered by an Intel Atom x5-Z8350 processor and selling for $99 and $35 respectively.

The former follows Raspberry Pi form factor and is easy to use, but the latter requires some more work to wire power supply unless you buy an extra baseboard. There should however soon be a third option for low-cost Intel SBCs with Radxa Rock Pi X board powered by an Intel Atom x5-Z8300 Cherry Trail processor and is expected to sell for as little as $39.

Rock Pi X just showed up in Hackerboards database, and there will be two models, namely Rock Pi X model A and Rock Pi X model B with the following specifications:

  • SoC – Intel Atom x5-Z8300 “Cherry Trail” quad-core processor @ 1.44 GHz / 1.84 GHz (Turbo) with Intel Gen8 HD graphics @ 500 MHz
  • System Memory –  1 GB, 2 GB. or 4GB LPDDR3-1866
  • Storage – MicroSD card socket, eMMC flash socket
  • Video Output / Display I/F – HDMI 1.4 port up to 4K @ 30 Hz, eDP and MIPI DSI connectors
  • Audio I/O – Via HDMI, 3.5mm audio jack
  • Connectivity
    • Gigabit Ethernet
    • Model B only – 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac and Bluetooth 4.2 Classic + LE
  • USB – 1x USB 3.0 port, 3x USB 2.0 host ports, 1x USB OTG Type-C port
  • Camera I/F – MIPI CSI connector
  • Expansion – 40-pin Raspberry Pi compatible header with GPIOs, 2x ADC, 2x PWM, 2x I2C
  • Misc – RTC
  • Power Supply
    • 5V-20V up to 3A/1A Via USB-C port with QC and PD fast charging support;
    • AXP288C PMIC
    • Model B only – optional PoE support via additional HAT
  • Dimensions – 85 x 52 mm

[...] Apart from the Intel processor and the lack of an M.2 slot, the specifications are very similar to the company’s Arm-based Rock Pi 4 SBC with the differences between model A and model B being the addition of a wireless module and support for PoE for the latter.  If you’re worried about cooling, a variant of Rock Pi 4 heatsink ($7.99) will certainly be made.


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  • (Score: 3, Informative) by richtopia on Friday September 13 2019, @02:24PM (1 child)

    by richtopia (3160) on Friday September 13 2019, @02:24PM (#893651) Homepage Journal

    SBCs have evolved into many applications. As you point out, TV/Roku is one of the most popular, along with emulators and retro gaming on the television. With the CPU being derived from mobile phones most of the features are relatively free: the SOC has onboard graphics capable of outputting 4k to remain competitive in the mobile segment, so the SBC also gets that capability.

    The board described here is x86 but I would consider Intel's Atom chips an SOC too. Regarding the migration to x86 from ARM, use-cases exist. Lots of these SBCs are used as low power servers, and x86 makes life a lot easier. For example, I migrated from a SBC to an old laptop for my home server because most Docker images are built for x86-64.

    If you would like to read on another board that made a similar transition, check out the ODROID-H2 https://www.hardkernel.com/shop/odroid-h2/ [hardkernel.com] ODROID was in development of the successor to the XU4, but had a hard time securing the ARM chip. Apparently, they talked with Intel and quickly rolled out a board based on the J4105. The power draw has gotten comparable to ARM processors, and perhaps the biggest issue with the H2 board is availability of the Intel processor and the board themselves.

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  • (Score: 1) by anubi on Saturday September 14 2019, @03:57AM

    by anubi (2828) on Saturday September 14 2019, @03:57AM (#893970) Journal

    I am in the low power camp.

    For now. Arduino and Propellers as I/O.

    Personally, I am quite interested in how to repurpose Android phone hardware. Especially if I can get multiple I2C ports.

    I do not trust proprietary binary blobs. If I can't trust it, what's the purpose if reinventing the wheel? The whole reason to me to mess with this is to build something I can trust.

    --
    "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." [KJV: I Thessalonians 5:21]