Until recently, Orange Pi PC was probably the most cost efficient ARM hardware, but with the launch of Raspberry Pi Zero, and to some extent C.H.I.P computer, they had some competitors in the ultra low cost space, so Shenzhen Xunlong Software developed two more cost effective Orange Pi boards, with Orange Pi One selling for $9.99 with Ethernet, and Orange Pi Lite for $12 with WiFi, also referred to as versions B and A.
Orange Pi One & Lite (preliminary) Specifications:
- SoC – Allwinner H3 quad core Cortex A7 @ 1.2 GHz with an ARM Mali-400MP2 GPU up to 600 MHz
- System Memory – 512 MB DDR3
- Storage – micro SD card slot
- Video & Audio Output – HDMI
- Connectivity
- Orange Pi One – 10/100M Ethernet
- Orange Pi Lite – WiFi
- USB
- Orange Pi One – 1x USB 2.0 host ports, 1x micro USB OTG port
- Orange Pi Lite – 2x USB 2.0 host ports, 1x micro USB OTG port
- Camera – CSI Interface
- Expansions – 40-pin Raspberry Pi compatible header
- Debugging – 3-pin UART header for serial console (unpopulated)
- Misc – Power button; Power and status LEDs
- Power Supply – 5V/2A via power barrel
- Dimensions – 69mm × 48mm
The new board should be software compatible with Orange Pi PC and support both Linux distributions and Android, with the main advantage of Orange Pi One is that it’s a complete system with both video output and networking, contrary to Raspberry Pi Zero lacking networking, and C.H.I.P lacking HDMI output, at least without some extra hardware adding to the cost.
There’s no word about availability, and pricing most likely does not include shipping, but since Orange Pi PC shipping is in the $3 to $4 range, I’d expect Orange Pi One to ship for around $13 to anywhere in the world, or slightly cheaper than the $14+ I had to pay for C.H.I.P on Cyber Monday, and which will only be delivered in June 2016 or later. [Update: Orange Pi One can now be bought on Aliexpress for around $13 shipped]
Thanks to Thomas for the tip!
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
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