Raspberry Pi mini-puter TOO BIG and EXPENSIVE for you? Think AGAIN A new Raspberry Pi model has arrived, and it's even smaller and cheaper than the original, while being in most respects just as good. However it does come down to just one USB port. The A+ was spotted in the wild over the weekend, only for a product page at Element14 describing the computer to disappear. RS Online's …
no, it was on element14 so that explains the higher than expected price.
Take a look at other lines on that site, they are 20% - 50% higher than other sites - even bricks and mortar locations in Aus that already include the antipodean tax.
I use them for emergency purchases my normal suppliers cannot meet quick enough and accept the hit in the budget!
Yes it's an 'upgrade' of the A not a clone of the B+ but using the same approach as the 'upgrade' of the B to B+ ... i.e. I think the differences between the B and B+ are the same differences between the A and A+ ... so better power regulation (brill), microSD slot (brill), more GPIO pins (brill) and a board re-layout (meh).
The $ price tag has always been a bit of a misnomer as that is the total BUILD inc PROFIT price not the retail price which needs to include Delivery + VAT.
Still, a nice upgrade and very useful for embedded systems which require more grunt than an Arduino/Teensy/etc but at a comparable price.
Good luck with all that 3D, camera and video decode with the $7 UNO.
But to be a little less sarcastic, you get what you pay for. If the UNO does what you want - use it. If the A+ does what you want, use it. Don't use the wrong device for a job, because you will pay the wrong price.
@ John Hughes 1 "Good luck with all that 3D, camera and video decode with the $7 UNO."
Since you quoted "$7", then I can assume that your post was misdirected at my previous post. Please read my post in context of the Saif quotation that I so thoughtfully included. My post was clearly clarifying Saif's claim that the $20 Pi was "cheaper" than an Arduino Uno. But I guess he's never visited eBay and knows nothing about the actual selling price of perfectly functional knock-off Uno R3s. $20 + S&H is not "cheaper" than $7 (or $10) with free S&H. That was the only point that I was addressing. I did not even touch the technical / performance point that you have subsequently rebutted. So your rebuttal was misdirected.
Remedial Reading Classes for you!
re: reading comprehension.
Rather ironic that you got my name wrong then....it's written next to the post, and contains the name 'James' not 'John'
But my point was that you cannot compare a $7 UNO with a $20 Pi, simply because they are completely different devices. In fact one has to wonder why you brought the subject up as they are so completely different. Rather like comparing a Reliant Robin with a F430. I suppose they are still both cars, according to some definition of car.
So what's actually changed?
B+ was great because of the extra USB. But A+ still only has 1?
So other than yet another new form factor (annoying - B+ has struggled to catch up to B on variety of cases, so A+ will no doubt be worse), extra GPIO, slightly better audio and micro SD, its basically the same as original A.
I assume the original A will be more popular than A+ for a while in that case?
With the smaller form factor, microSD option and additional GPIO pins I'm guessing that the A+ is intended for integrating with hardware projects rather than as a cheap desktop machine as the Pi was originally pitched at. Considering how many people seem to be using it for that *anyway* it doesn't seem a bad idea for them to go that way with it
Form factor has been made smaller
Power requirements have been reduced
GPIO increased
Better audio
uSD
Best thing? It's now $20 (before tax/delivery). I am not aware of anything remotely this powerful in this price range. Remember, decent 3D, 2D, camera ISP, 1080p30 H264 encode/decode, 1Ghz (overclocked) processor, well supported Linux distro (plus others), great community.
For $20.
I think that is a pretty good deal.
And I think you are wrong about the A being more popular, I expect sales of it to fall to zero. This is so much better. The ONLY reason to still buy an A is if you already have a case for an A. And since cases cost from about $5 you may as well just buy a new one for the new form factor. TBH, if case compatibility is the only argument you can come up with, the A+ is clearly already a success!
The reasons for 1 USB is that the SoC only supports 1. To add more, you have to add a USB hub to the board which means much more expensive - basically the old model B. You want more USB? Get a B+. It's only $15 more.
The lower power consumption, and weight/size reduction will be useful for anyone wanting to use it for robotics projects (the "A" was already very popular for this).
It is tempting to think the "B" (or "B+") is always better, but it does depend on what you want to do with it, sometimes the "A" was better, I think for most of those times the "A+" is quite the upgrade.
According to reports from the Pi people on their official forum the A+ does support back-powering via USB. The B+ doesn't but A+ does. Presumably a consequence of not having the Ethernet/USB chip and associated circuitry.
http://www.raspberrypi.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=63&t=91267
I really like the fact that some are manufactured in the UK. It used to be the Maplin mob still bought Chinese made ones because they were cheaper. I'd go out my way to support the UK makers and buy it online rather than popping down Maplins, money grabbing barstewards.
So are they ALL manufactured in the UK these days?
Possibly ... and Made in UK is somewhat of a cachet on Alibaba ...
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/free-shipping-raspberry-pie-2-Raspberry-pi-2-generation-B-512M-memory-green-plate-imported-UK/1550832366.html
So assuming you don't get hit with customs handling charge + vat then its cheaper to export from and then re-import in to the UK.
This post has been deleted by its author
Seeing that f is next to d on the keybaord, and being an American, I thought it was a typo with the author intending to type "good". Since goof seems to have similar meaning as good. maybe that is how it first started?
In American English*, to goof means to make a mistake, or to be a goof is to be silly.
* That term is probably considered an oxymoron to Britons.
My employer, in a fit of trying to support UK industry, bought four of the original boards with a with to using them in some of our products.
Unfortunately, they failed largely for mechanical reasons when subjected to appropriate tests as they lacked sufficient mounting holes. Now mounting holes are the most noticeable feature!
Pity, we are now gobbling up Beagle Boards.
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