Long time waiting since the release Raspberry Pi 4 until the Raspberry Pi Foundation has released the replacement, the new Raspberry Pi 5 that arrives in 2023. And it has arrived with very interesting new features that we are going to tell you about, in addition to more performance than its predecessor and the same size.
However, I personally think that I would have liked more if the CPU was based on the open RISC-V ISA, and not on the closed ARM ISA. Furthermore, this would have greatly benefited the RISC-V ecosystem, since many developers would be interested in this platform, and would compile and package more software... However, this has not been the case...
Raspberry Pi 5 technical specifications
| SoC | Broadcom BCM2712 (16nm node) with:
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| RAM | 4/8 GB LPDDR4X |
| Connectivity and ports | Wireless connectivity:
Ports:
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| Others |
The turn on and turn off button RTC (Real Time Clock) Various optional accessories |
| Models |
Raspberry Pi 5 (4 GB RAM): 59,95 euros Raspberry Pi 5 (8 GB RAM): 79,95 euros |
| Price |
With 4 GB RAM: 59,95 euros ($60) With 8 GB RAM: 79,95 euros ($80) |
| Availability | Late October |
Analysis of the new features of the SBC Raspberry Pi 5
Now we are going to break down what this Raspberry Pi 5 presents, highlighting its advantages and disadvantages:
Chip news
El new SoC that has been integrated is the Broadcom BCM2712, manufactured by TSMC with the 16 nm node. This chip represents a significant improvement over its predecessor, offering CPU performance that is up to 2x greater in some cases. Recall that the 4 Pi 2019 had a 72 GHz ARM Cortex-A1,5 quad-core SoC (accelerated to 1,8 GHz), while the new Raspberry Pi 5 uses a quad-core chip as well, but this time with cores ARM Cortex-A76 at 2,4 GHz. Despite this, consumption remains within fairly decent margins, rising from 8W on the Pi 4 to 12W on the Pi 5.
On the other hand, the new input and output subsystem will now have higher bandwidth. This will allow the Raspberry Pi 5 to connect directly to two 4K @ 60 FPS monitors thanks to the new GPU, and will also have double the bandwidth for the USB 3.0 ports. And that's not to mention that the SoC also has a PCIe lane to connect peripherals of this type, such as NVMe M.2 SSD storage media to PCIe 2.0 x1.
Eben Upton, project leader, especially highlighted in this launch the RP1 SoC designed by the Raspberry Pi Foundation and manufactured by TSMC with node 40LP, specifically designed by the same team as the RP2040 microcontroller. This chip, in which the foundation has invested 15 million dollars to develop, is responsible for improving the bandwidth in various input and output interfaces, such as the USB 3.0 ports, the Ethernet ports, the GPIO interface and also the outputs. Camera and display MIPI, making it easy to connect webcams or small touchscreens to the Raspberry Pi. This chip will now be in charge of managing the interface for SD cards, as well as the connection with the SDRAM, offering double the MT/s than its predecessor.
The integrated wireless connectivity adapter can be connected via WiFi 5, and Bluetooth 5.0 (with BLE), it is not bad at all, but it is true that there are more advanced communication protocols, such as WiFi 6 and 6E, or Bluetooth 5.3, which we will not be able to enjoy in this new SBC. Of course, in exchange we have some improvements to reduce the power consumption of this chip and to improve its performance.
Feeding management has also been improved with a new Renesas chip which allows supplying up to 20A of current to power the new cores and guarantee optimal performance, in addition to powering the rest of the SBC systems and peripherals connected to it.
SBC Design
El new PCB design It is similar to the previous SBC plates of this foundation, retaining more or less the same format and size. There are some changes, however, such as the removal of the composite video connectors, which are still available through a small special connector on the board, as well as the removal of the headphone port.
On the other hand, they have been incorporated two FPC connectors which function as four-track MIPI interfaces, allowing the connection of cameras and displays. While the Gigabit Ethernet connector has returned to its original location, in the lower right corner of the board, that is, reversing the position it had on the Raspberry Pi 4 model. In addition, a Power over Ethernet (PoE) connector has been added. four-pin, which allows power through the network cable itself (RJ-45).
This plate also incorporates holes to allow users can install heatsinks or fans for the main SoC, and thus cool the unit in case they want to squeeze the most out of it. Something that also happened in the predecessors.
In addition, highly requested features have been included, such as a real-time clock that can be powered by a rechargeable lithium-manganese battery or an external supercapacitor, along with an on/off button that supports both hard shutdown (hard) as soft shutdown (soft), in addition to events for the ignition. Without a doubt something they should have done since the first edition of the SBC...
Accessories
Between the accessories available for the Raspberry Pi 5, we have the following (although more will arrive from third parties):
- New box, based on the design of the previous one, and with slots for heat dissipation.
- Heatsink/fan for cooling, priced at $10 for the active cooling system (with fan) or $5 for the passive one (sink only).
- New 27W power cable.
- Cables for cameras and screens.
- PoE+ Hat, for power over Gigabit Ethernet LAN (RJ-45) cable.
- Connectors for the use of NVMe SSD and other M.2 accessories.
- Lithium battery to maintain RTC when SBC is turned off.
Operating system and software
And, finally, there is not only new hardware, the Raspberry Pi 5 will also have new software features. The Raspberry Pi Foundation has announced the launch of the new Raspberry Pi OS (previously called Raspbian OS) codenamed "Bookworm". This official Raspberry Pi operating system, based on Debian 12, will include improvements such as the transition from the X11 graphical server system to Wayfire Wayland, and will support both the Pi 4 and the Pi 5, so if you have a Pi 4 as well you can try it...
Source - Raspberry Pi Foundation