The Raspberry Pi 5 is now available with a 16GB RAM option, marking a new level of performance for the popular single-board computer. However, this upgrade comes with a price tag of $120, bringing it closer to the cost of some mini PCs.
Raspberry Pi 5 vs. Intel-Powered Mini PCs
At $120, the 16GB Raspberry Pi 5 faces competition from mini PCs with Intel Alder Lake-N or Twin Lake processors. While mini PCs may offer more out-of-the-box features, the Raspberry Pi 5 still holds several advantages:
- Compact Size: Credit card-sized form factor.
- Low Power Consumption: Ideal for energy-efficient applications.
- Versatile Use: Can be used for media centers, file servers, retro game consoles, and general-purpose Linux PCs.
- DIY Projects: Perfect for hardware projects and prototyping.
- Educational and Industrial Adoption: Widely used in educational and industrial settings.
Pricing and Options
The Raspberry Pi 5 is available at various price points, including:
- 2GB version: $50
- 4GB version: $60
- 8GB version: $80
- 16GB version: $120
For $120, you get the Raspberry Pi 5 board (no case) with a 2.4 GHz BCM2712 quad-core ARM Cortex-A76 processor and 16GB of RAM.
Benefits of 16GB of RAM
The 16GB RAM option is aimed at users with higher-performance workloads. This additional memory enables users to:
- Run larger LLMs (large language models)
- Perform more complex computational fluid dynamics
- Handle heavy-duty multitasking
- Use more demanding Linux distributions like Ubuntu
Source: Raspberry Pi Official Website
