Raspberry Pi Zero Alternative: Nano Pi NEO Air
Product Introduction:
FriendlyARM`s NanoPi NEO Air is a single board computer with similar concept as the known Raspberry Pi Zero. The board Offers a cheap solution for IoT Projects, Robotic Developers and DIY hobbyist. The NanoPi NEO size is very compact measuring Only 40×40 mm.
Jumping to hardware specs the board is equipped with an Allwinner H3 quad-core ARM Cortex-A7 processor with 512MB RAM and 8GB EMMC flash, suitable for most computing applications. Compared to the previous NanoPi NEO model, this board doesn’t have an on-board Ethernet LAN, its was removed and replaced with on-board WiFi & Bluetooth module. Users that still need USB Host and video output interfaces can use the GIPO2 header pins (shown in board layout). That explained, the NanoPi NEO Air board is sold at a retail price tag of $17.99 (including shipping) and can be found at FirendlyARM store link posted below.
NanoPi NEO Air | Board Layout
NanoPi NEO Air specifications:
- SoC: Allwinner H3 quad core Cortex A7 @ 1.2 GHz with an ARM Mali-400MP2
- Connectivity: On-board WiFi 802.11 b/n & Bluetooth 4.0 (Dual mode)
- USB: micro USB OTG port, X2 USB Hosts through the GPIO2 Header
- IPX Antenna Socket (External Antenna Interface)
- System Memory: 215 MB , 512 MB DDR3 RAM
- Storage: micro SD card slot
- Internal Storage: 8GB eMMC
- Power Supply: 5V/2A (via micro USB port).
- Audio: SPDIF trough GPIO2 Header
- Power and status LEDs
- DVP Camera Interface
- OS/Software: u-boot, Ubuntu Core
- Dimensions: 40 x 40 mm
Expansion headers:
- GPIO1: 24pin double row header – UART,SPI, I2C,GPIO
- GPIO2: 12-pin single row header – USBx2, IR,SPDIF, I2S
- 4-pin header for serial console debugging
Package Content:
- 1x NanoPi NEO Air
- 1x User Guide
Recommended Accessories:
- TTL To RS232 Module (+$3.95)
- NanoPi NEO Heat Sink (+$2.97)
- NanoPi NEO 3D Printed Housing (Blue) (+$2.97)
- 4-layer Dual Stack Acrylic Case for Cluster DIY (+$12.87)
- 5V 3A Universal USB Port Power Adapter (+$8.97)
- Mini USB Wi-Fi (+$6.97)