Read the statement by Michael Teeuw here.
SBC boards that work well besides Raspberry pi 3, 4 or 5
-
@ankonaskiff17
I too am a single use per Pi person. 1 runs MM but with pages and 48 modules running on it. Pi4 8gb. 1 that is the homes DHCP server Pi4 2gb then I have one that is my DNS in house server Pi4 4gb 1 pizero running a backup dns the DHCP, DNS are all 3 on battery backup… I have a Pi3 that runs a photo show program that runs my pictures of My sons family I need to load a bunch new pictures. I also have a dedicated to my DEX Calendar LePotato. it is too slow for most anything else.
All serve their purpose very well. The Pi5 4gb to 16gb version to me is a slower PC than I use personally. But they are more than capable to run pretty much all the software you referenced… Would be cheaper than a mini / NUC.The mini aka fan less PC was a freebie. So I fixed it and run windows 11 on it but hardly ever actually use it. My laptop is my primary pc for use.
My Older windows 10 PC runs a LOT of my home related programs like cameras and laser engraver. It is my link to my 2 tb shared drive…I am an amateur at networking but I have a lot of fun playing with it all.
@sdetweil
Have you played with Zorin-OS-18 yet? That is what I have been thinking of loading on the mini PC. -
@plainbroke I have not the latest Zorin. But tried the prior releases in a vm.
Different ui, but same oh otherwise
-
@sdetweil
Just played with Zorin, It is faster by far than windows 11.
I think in time I could make it a daily useful OS.
We will see in time.
Caved, and bought a Pi4 4gb to play with these different modules… -
I feel like I am a fairly non-standard person when it comes to SBCs/mini PCs/cheap platforms, but I have run MM on a variety of hardware without issues (other than common things like issues with SD cards, OSes, etc).
It might also be useful to ask the inverse question: has anyone run across any SBCs that do NOT work with MM? For example, I believe that it will not run on the original Pi, and I think it takes heroic efforts to run MM on the Pi Zero I cannot recall if I ever tried to run MM on my Pi 2. Apart from those, I am not aware of any specific SBCs it will not run on.
I have to say, a traditional Pi 3/4/5 is a good choice for power-limited or space-limited installs. For me, I often get cheap or free old laptops with broken screens, decade-old mini PCs, etc. I take an old laptop, plug it into an old monitor, and set it on a shelf (with the laptop attached to the back of the monitor). A bit of trim around the monitor to make it look a little like a picture frame, and it passes muster. Or, an old thin client that cannot run modern windows can often be found with a behind-monitor mount (like they have at banks and such).
Still, it would be good to have people mention if they have had success with alternatives. Knowing that the LePotato, 35% cheaper than a Pi 4, works is great for example. If I ever wanted to build an MM for a family member, buying a new SBC would probably be a safer choice than what I do for my own stuff…
(I enjoy the beautiful pictures of people who get 50-inch televisions and wood frames with proper 1-way mirror glass, but my projects tend to have a budget of “how many coins did I find in the couch?”)
-
@joey
Had not thought about using laptop with dead screen to run MM or other OS on.
I have one I could work with, to try out different OS’s.
