96Boards compliant Rock960 board launched last year for $99 with Rockchip RK3399 processor, 2 to 4GB RAM, 16 to 32GB eMMC flash for $99 and up. However, now you can buy a Rockchip RK3399 SBC for as low as $45 plus shipping thanks to FriendlyElec NanoPi NEO4 board that comes with 1GB RAM and no built-in storage, relying instead on a micro SD card slot or eMMC socket.
So VAMRS decided to design a cheaper version of their board with Rock960 model C that still benefits from being part of the 96boards ecosystem, is equipped with 1, 2 or 4GB LPDDR4 RAM, and the OS can boot from a micro SD card or an optional eMMC flash module. The 1GB version of the board is now sold for $69 on Seeed Studio with shipping scheduled for the 1st of February 2019.
Rock960 model C preliminary specifications:
- SoC – Rochchip RK3399 hexa-core big.LITTLE processor with 2x Cortex A72 cores up to 1.8/2.0 GHz, 4x Cortex A53 cores @ 1.4 GHz, and an Arm Mali-T860 MP4 GPU with OpenGL ES 1.1 to 3.2, OpenVG1.1, OpenCL 1.2 and DX 11 support
- System Memory – 1, 2 or 4GB LPDDR4
- Storage – reserved eMMC flash socket + micro SD card
- Video Output – 1x HDMI 2.0 up to 4K@60 Hz with CEC and HDCP
- Connectivity – WiFi 802.11ac
2×2 MIMO up to 867 Mbpsup to 200 Mbps, and Bluetooth 4.2 LE with two onboard antennas, two u.FL antenna connectors - USB – 1x USB 2.0 type-C port (host only), 2x USB 3.0 ports (one OTG, one host only),
1x USB 3.0 type C port with DP 1.2 support - Expansion
- 1x 40-pin low-speed expansion connector – UART, SPI, I2C, GPIO, I2S
- 1x 60-pin high-speed expansion connector – MIPI DSI, USB, MIPI CSI, HSIC, SDIO
- 1x M.2 key M PCIe connector with support for up to 4-lane PCIe 2.1 (max bandwidth: 2.0 GB)
- Misc – Power & u-boot buttons. 6 LEDS (4x user, 1x Wifi, 1x Bluetooth)
- Power Supply – 8 to 18V DC input (12V typical) as per 96Boards CE specs; Battery header
- Dimensions – 85 x 54 mm (96Boards CE form factor)
- Weight – 120 grams
Besides the changes related to memory and storage, VAMRS also downgraded the wireless module to support 802.11ac up to 200 Mbps (no more 2×2 MIMO), and re-organized the USB ports with the USB type-C port now limited to USB 2.0, and without support for DP alternate mode, and the old USB 2.0 type-A port upgraded to a USB 3.0 port as summarized in the table below.
While Seeed Studio only sells Model C with 1GB RAM at the time of writing, all three versions can be found on VAMRS store for respectively $69, $79 and $99.The $69 price tag is actually better than it looks at first glance since the board is supposed to ship with a 12V/2A power adapter, an acrylic case, a heatsink with glue, and screws. For reference, NanoPi NEO4 board with a heatsink and a 5V/4A power supply, but no case sells for $59.98.
The cooling solution for NanoPi NEO4 – a heatsink that covers the whole bottom of the board – appears to be better though. Just like its siblings, the new board can run AOSP, Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, LibreELEC, Lakka or FlintOS, and all documentation for Rock960 model C can be found on 96boards website, where they also refer to the board as Rock960c.
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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