For geeks, the Raspberry Pi is perhaps one of the most suitable toys. Though small, it is fully functional as a complete computer, offering endless possibilities.
The newly released Raspberry Pi 3 can be considered an almost perfect upgrade, with stronger performance and built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, yet the price remains unchanged. Let’s see how it performs through this review:
The Same Flavor
If you have researched the Raspberry Pi series, you won’t be particularly excited when you see the Raspberry Pi 3, as it looks almost identical to the older version. Even when compared side by side, you wouldn’t notice any difference from the Raspberry Pi 2.
Upon closer inspection, you will find that some components on the circuit board have been removed, but apart from that, there isn’t much to note. In fact, looking similar to its predecessor isn’t a big issue, and the overall layout being the same makes it easier for people to get started.
That said, we shouldn’t demand too much from the appearance design of a mini-computer; after all, it’s not a smartphone.
It’s worth noting that when you unbox it, you will only find the Raspberry Pi 3 itself and a brief instruction manual, with no power cable, no protective case, and no storage card—these need to be prepared separately. However, you only need a micro-USB cable as a power source, and a regular micro-SD card will suffice.
How to Get Started
The Raspberry Pi is relatively easy to use, though its ease of use cannot be compared with that of a smartphone. If you bought the standard version, the first thing to do is to create a storage card with the system image.
The Raspberry Pi community has a wealth of resources; you can find resources for whatever you want to do with it. You can even find the XBMC media center, easily turning the Raspberry Pi 3 into an ultra-cheap set-top box in just 30 minutes.
Entering Linux
If you don’t want to just use it casually, you need to learn more about Linux, as this is the “official” system of the Raspberry Pi. One difference between Linux and other systems is that it often relies on you entering commands instead of clicking colorful icons.
If you’re not mentally prepared, the learning curve will definitely frustrate you. However, to master the Raspberry Pi, familiarity with Linux is essential.
The real highlight is a mechanism called Noobs, which is a set of files you can write to the micro-SD card that help you automatically install the system and all available tools, including Minecraft.
The Raspberry Pi 3 also features a browser called Epiphany, which may not be as fast as those on our laptops or tablets, but it is significantly faster than the Raspberry Pi 2. Of course, some patience is still required.
The Raspberry Pi 3 has all the interfaces we need—four USB ports, one Ethernet port, and one HDMI. Its native support for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth capabilities opens up more possibilities.
Core Upgrades
Besides Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, the most important update of the Raspberry Pi 3 is its performance. The Raspberry Pi 2 B has a quad-core Qualcomm 900MHz processor, 1GB RAM, and VideoCore IV GPU. The new version has a Broadcom BCM2837 1.2GHz quad-core processor, 1GB RAM, and VideoCore IV GPU.
You might not think it’s impressive, but the Raspberry Pi 2 uses a very old Cortex A7, which today is only found in the slowest smartphones. The Cortex A53 in the Raspberry Pi 3 is significantly stronger by comparison.
Additionally, the GPU specification has increased from 250MHz to 400MHz, and the RAM has increased from 450MHz to 900MHz. The improvements are quite apparent. Based on benchmark results, the Raspberry Pi 3 scores over 700 points higher than its predecessor, making it one of the best mini-computers available.
Interestingly, the performance boost also enhances the gaming capabilities of the Raspberry Pi. You can now play more games on the Raspberry Pi 3, and even run an N64 emulator without issue.
Overall Review
Recently, a large number of mini-computer products have emerged, some of which are significant for IoT developers, but the rest are just clones of the Raspberry Pi.
To this day, no other similar product can reach the height of the Raspberry Pi, providing astonishing hardware performance and extensive network support.
As mentioned at the beginning, the Raspberry Pi 3 is a perfect upgrade—it has significantly improved performance compared to its predecessors and includes built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth modules. What else could you possibly be dissatisfied with?
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