Radxa CM3S (Compute Module 3 SODIMM), also called the ROCK3 Compute Module SODIMM, is a system-on-module with a 200-pin SO-DIMM edge connector powered by a Rockchip RK3566 processor with up to 8GB RAM, 128GB eMMC flash, and an optional wireless module with WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 4.2.
It follows the company’s CM3 module with Raspberry Pi CM4 form factor based on the same Rockchip RK3566 SoC, but in a more compact SO-DIMM form factor with a 200-pin edge connector that’s compatible with the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 3/3+, but not compatible with NVIDIA’s Jetson Nano, Xavier NX, and Orin NX 260-pin SO-DIMM modules, and you’d need to wait for the upcoming Radxa NX5 instead…
Radxa CM3S specifications can be found below along with the ones for the Radxa CM3 and Rockchip RK3568-based Radxa CM3I system-on-modules.
Radxa CM3 | Radxa CM3S | Radxa CM3I |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| SoC | Rockchip RK3566 quad-core Cortex-A55 @ 1.8GHz | Rockchip RK3566 quad-core Cortex-A55 @ 1.6GHz | Rockchip RK3568(J) quad-core Cortex-A55 @ 2.0GHz |
| GPU | Arm Mali-G52 2EE GPU with OpenGL ES 3.2, OpenCL 2.0, Vulkan 1.1 support |
||
| VPU | 4Kp60 H.265, H264, VP9 decode 1080p100 H.265/H.264 encode |
||
| NPU | 0.8 TOPS | N/A | 1 TOPS |
| Memory: | 1GB, 2GB, 4GB or 8GB LPDDR4 |
||
| Storage: | 8GB, 16GB, 32GB, 64GB, 128GB eMMC flash 2x SATA ports, one shared with USB 3, one shared with PCIe | 8GB, 16GB, 32GB, 64GB, 128GB eMMC flash 1x SATA port shared with PCIe | 8GB, 16GB, 32GB, 64GB, 128GB eMMC flash 3x SATA ports, one shared with USB 3 host, one shared with PCIe, one shared with USB 3 OTG |
| Networking | Optional wireless LAN, 2.4GHz and 5.0GHz IEEE 802.11b/g/n/ac wireless, BT 5.0, BLE with external antenna 1x Onboard Gigabit Ethernet PHY | Optional wireless LAN, 2.4GHz IEEE 802.11b/g/n wireless, BT 5.0, BLE with external antenna 1x Gigabit Ethernet MAC (TBC) | Optional wireless LAN, 2.4GHz and 5.0GHz IEEE 802.11b/g/n/ac wireless, BT 5.0, BLE with external antenna 1x Onboard Gigabit Ethernet PHY + 1x Gigabit Ethernet MAC |
| USB | 1x USB 2.0 Host port 1x USB 2.0 OTG port 1x USB 3.0 port (5Gbps) | 1x USB 2.0 OTG port | 2x USB 2.0 Host ports 1x USB 3.0 OTG port (5 Gbps) 1x USB 3.0 port (5Gbps) |
| PCIe | 1x PCIe Gen 2 x1 (5Gbps) | 1x PCIe Gen 2 x1 (5Gbps) 1x PCIe Gen 3 x2 (16Gbps) |
|
| I/Os | 50x GPIOs with I2C, UART, SPI, PWM, ADC, etc. | 60x GPIOs with I2C, UART, SPI, PWM, ADC, etc. | 50x GPIOs with I2C, UART, SPI, PWM, ADC, etc. |
| Video Output | 1x HDMI up to 4Kp60 1x 4-lane eDP 2.7Gps per lane 2x 4-lane MIPI DSI (1.6Gbps per lane) 1x LVDS (mux with MIPI DSI0) | 1x HDMI up to 4Kp60 1x 4-lane MIPI DSI 1x 2-lane MIPI DSI | 1x HDMI up to 4Kp60 1x 4-lane eDP 2.7Gps per lane 2x 4-lane MIPI DSI (1.6Gbps per lane) 1x LVDS (mux with MIPI DSI0) |
| Camera | 2 x 2-lane or 1 x 4-lane MIPI CSI camera port | 1x 4-lane MIPI CSI RX or 2x 2-lane MIPI CSI RX 1x 4-lane MIPI_D/C PHY RX |
|
| Audio | LINE Out, I2S, PDM (for mic array) | 2x I2S, PDM (for mic array) | LINE Out, I2S, PDM (for mic array) |
| Host Connector | 3x 100-pin 0.4mm pitch B2B connectors | 200-pin SODIMM edge connector + unpopulated 100-pin 0.5mm pitch B2B connector | 4x 100-pin 0.4mm pitch B2B connectors |
| Power Input | 5V DC |
||
| Dimensions | 55 mm × 40 mm | 67.6 mm x 32 mm | 70 mm x 40 mm |
Note that some of the specifications differ depending on where you look on the Radxa website and I’ve done my best to try to be as accurate as possible, but there may be some small errors here and there. For example, the NPU is shown to be 0.8 TOPS, N/A, and 1 TOPS in the comparison table on the Wiki (filled with errors), but it’s all probably all 1 TOPS as rounded up from 0.8 TOPS…
The Radxa CM3 and CM3S will remain in production until at least September 2029 and the Radxa CM3I will be manufactured at least until September 2032.
Radxa provides Debian 11 XFCE/Server and Ubuntu 22.04 Server images for the Radxa CM3S module and ROCK 3 Compute Module SODIMM IO Board, as well as PDF schematics, mechanical drawings, and a pinout diagram on their website. An Android 12 image should also be made available soon, and a wiki with detailed instructions is being worked on.
The Radxa CM3S system-on-module is sold for $28 to $145 depending on wireless, RAM, and eMMC flash configuration, but note many variants are currently out of stock, while the IO board adds $25. Bundles can also be purchased on Aliexpress and Amazon. Further details may be found on the product page.
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.
Support CNX Software! Donate via cryptocurrencies, become a Patron on Patreon, or purchase goods on Amazon or Aliexpress
CM3S uses 1.6GHz RK3566 and it doesn’t support NPU, at least stated in the datasheet. So the Radxa Wiki is correct.
OK. I’ll update that. But the product page’s Tech Spec shows the RK3566 running at 1.8 GHz and a 1 TOPS NPU.
I’m actually a bit confused as there seem to be several variants of the RK3566 but it’s never obvious from the specs.