A lot of smaller projects, dedicating an entire computer to a small project (e.g. a web server) is most of the time overkill. This is where Single Board Computer systems (SBCs) turn out to be extremely useful like the Raspberry Pi. The perfect SBC is, and most of the time, the Raspberry Pi. However there are various options to the Raspberry Pi that have small advantages over the Pi depending on what project you’re diving into.

What are these alternatives? Well we’ve put together a list for you with the best alternatives for 2020.

#1: Udoo x86 II Extremely

It is a highly effective SBC that may simply double as a desktop PC because of its quad-core Intel Pentium N3710 2.56 GHz processor and 8GB of RAM. The primary draw back of all this energy is, nicely, put merely, the value.

At $267, you are a board that prices as a lot as an inexpensive laptop computer. However you do get a monster of a board that may deal with some heavy-duty workloads.

Udoo x86 II Extremely

#2: ODROID-XU4

At $49, we’re a worth that is just a little saner than the Udoo x86 II Extremely, but it surely’s nonetheless dearer than a handful of Raspberry Pi boards. Nonetheless, this board is highly effective, energy-efficient, and might run varied flavors of Linux, together with the Ubuntu and Android.

#3: LattePanda Alpha 864

Powered by an Intel Core m3 processor, 8GB RAM and 64GB eMMC, M.2 interface SSD help and wealthy GPIO extension ports, in addition to being able to run Home windows 10, this can be a excellent platform for builders.

Once more, that is much less a disposable SBC — it prices $409, and that is with no Home windows 10 license — and extra a desktop alternative for individuals who do not want the footprint of a desktop system.

It additionally comes with twin OS help so you may run Linux alongside Home windows 10.

LattePanda Alpha 864

#4: Banana Pi R64

What’s superior about this board is the 4 Gigabit LAN ports that help you rework this $68 board right into a customized open supply router operating OpenWrt. Including an non-obligatory 802.11 ac 4×4 dual-band Wi-Fi module (priced at round $40) opens up doorways into IoT and gateway units.

Banana Pi R64

#5: NanoPC-T4

A giant bottleneck within the Raspberry Pi design is the microSD card storage. The NanoPC-T4 eliminates this by incorporating the NanoPC-T4 has a 16 GB eMMC onboard, together with an M.2 2280 connector, permitting for top velocity PCIe SSD storage for use. This makes the board extraordinarily versatile for high-end duties, and an incredible platform for machine studying and AI.

#6: Raspberry Pi Compute Module 3+

It is a Raspberry Pi board aimed toward industrial functions and companies. Consider it as a Raspberry Pi 3B+ (it options the identical Broadcom BCM2837B0 CPU) however with out the USB and HDMI ports.

It additionally options eMMC flash, which replaces the bottleneck that microSD playing cards create, and comes with help for 2 cameras, two shows, and additional GPIO pins.

#7: ODROID-C1+

A small $35 board that’s simply as at dwelling because the brains of a house leisure set high field as it could be as a prototyping board. Its small measurement and low energy consumption make it an incredible selection for wearables and embedded controllers, the place measurement and weight are essential issues.

#8: VoCore2

A coin-sized Linux laptop that’s completely open-source, and prices beneath $20.

It is a small, low-cost, completely open-source (each the {hardware} and software program are open supply) SBC that is superb because the brains for low-cost initiatives resembling IoT or constructing your individual customized router.