Each Raspberry Pi mannequin ranked from worst to finest

Single-board computer systems (SBCs) cram every part you want for a pc, reminiscent of a processor, RAM, networking, and ports, onto a single circuit board. Arguably the godfather of contemporary SBCs is the Raspberry Pi.

The Raspberry Pi began life as an SBC supposed for academic functions, with the goal of getting extra younger folks into programming computer systems rather than just doomscrolling by them. Nonetheless, it rapidly grew to become a preferred alternative for tinkerers and hobbyists who may build impressive projects using a Raspberry Pi.

There have been important adjustments because the first mannequin was launched again in 2012, with new fashions launched regularly. Here is each Raspberry Pi mannequin ranked from worst to finest.

8 Raspberry Pi 2 collection

Properly, one among them needed to be final

Raspberry Pi

I really feel a bit responsible for putting the Raspberry Pi 2 collection within the worst place on this checklist. It was a extra highly effective mannequin than the unique collection, with the Raspberry Pi 2 Mannequin B having a 4-core CPU and 1GB of RAM. This was an enormous leap from the single-core processor and 512MB of RAM on the Raspberry Pi 1 Mannequin B+ and made the Raspberry Pi 2 collection the primary 64-bit mannequin.

The Raspberry Pi 2 collection nonetheless lacked on-board Wi-Fi or Bluetooth nonetheless, so that you wanted a further dongle or an Ethernet connection to deliver your Raspberry Pi 2 on-line. The true purpose why it is a lot decrease within the checklist than its lower-powered predecessor, nonetheless, is solely that it wasn’t the primary of its sort.

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7 Raspberry Pi 400 collection

A Pi 4 in a keyboard

Raspberry Pi / Pocket-lint

The unique Raspberry Pi was designed to be an reasonably priced help for educating younger folks about programming. The intent was to make an affordable pc that you would program your self and use for DIY tasks.

The Raspberry Pi 400 collection was the primary mannequin to attempt to make that course of simpler by integrating the Raspberry Pi right into a full-size keyboard. That signifies that — to begin utilizing the Raspberry Pi 400 Collection — all it’s worthwhile to do is plug in a mouse and a monitor, and also you’re able to go.

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Raspberry Pi 400 is a full Pi PC inside a keyboard.

The draw back is that, because the board is contained in the keyboard, it severely limits what you are able to do with a Raspberry Pi 400 collection. You’ll be able to’t construct the board into your venture, for instance, like you possibly can with different fashions. The Raspberry Pi 400 additionally has fewer ports and no audio jack, so whereas it’s extra handy for some makes use of, it is nowhere close to as versatile because the standalone Raspberry Pi 4.

Raspberry Pi 400

The primary Raspberry Pi to be constructed right into a keyboard, all it’s worthwhile to get going is a mouse and a monitor. The Raspberry Pi 400 is constructed across the Raspberry Pi 4.

6 Raspberry Pi 500 collection

The simplest manner to make use of essentially the most highly effective Pi

Raspberry Pi

All the problems with the Raspberry Pi 400 collection apply to the Raspberry Pi 500 collection. That is one other Pi constructed right into a keyboard, which makes it simpler to get began however in the end makes it much less helpful.

The Raspberry Pi 500 is extra highly effective than the Raspberry Pi 400, nonetheless. It incorporates a 2.4GHz processor in comparison with the 1.8GHz processor on the Raspberry Pi 400, a extra highly effective GPU, and twice the RAM.

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5 Raspberry Pi 3 collection

The Pi will get Wi-Fi

Raspberry Pi / Pocket-lint

The Raspberry Pi 3 collection is when the single-board pc actually began to grow to be one thing that might be used for a variety of tinkering tasks. Maybe the most important change was that the Raspberry Pi 3 collection included built-in Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, so you would use it for on-line functions out of the field with out the necessity for extra dongles.

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Raspberry Pi 3 B+

The Raspberry Pi 3 provides on-board Wi-Fi and Bluetooth making it way more versatile than earlier fashions. It is highly effective sufficient to run helpful software program reminiscent of Residence Assistant.

4 Raspberry Pi Zero collection

Small however mighty

Raspberry Pi / Pocket-lint

The Raspberry Pi fashions have all the time been extremely reasonably priced, however the Zero collection took issues to an entire new stage. Essentially the most highly effective mannequin, the Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W, is simply $15. This mannequin contains on-board Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, a 1GHz quad-core processor, and 512MB of RAM.

The foremost good thing about the Zero collection, apart from the value, is that they are extremely small — making them perfect for tasks the place you do not have a lot room.

Raspberry Pi Zero W

The smallest Raspberry Pi, it is the right choice for tasks the place room is at a minimal. On-board Wi-Fi makes it perfect for a variety of tasks.

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3 Raspberry Pi 4 collection

The primary 4K Pi

Raspberry Pi / Pocket-lint

The Raspberry Pi 4 collection constructed on the wonderful 3 collection however made some notable enhancements. Alongside a extra highly effective processor, it was now configurable with as much as 8GB of RAM, included USB 3.0 ports for the primary time, and had true Gigabit Ethernet.

It was additionally the primary mannequin that might help 4K by two micro-HDMI ports. Which means you possibly can run a 4K twin monitor arrange on a Raspberry Pi 4, though they’re restricted to 30Hz.

Raspberry Pi 4 Mannequin B

The Raspberry Pi 4 Mannequin B is a succesful SBC that may energy a single show in 4K at 60Hz, or twin 4K shows at 30Hz. It has greater than sufficient energy for many tinkering tasks.

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2 Raspberry Pi 1 collection

The primary piece of the Pi

Raspberry Pi / Pocket-lint

The Raspberry Pi 1 collection has the worst specs of any mannequin on this checklist. The unique model ran on a 700MHz single-core processor with solely 256MB of RAM and had no on-board Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. So why is it ranked at quantity two?

It is as a result of it modified the panorama. The Raspberry Pi wasn’t the primary SBC that ever existed however performed a big function in bringing it to the lots. The recognition of the Raspberry Pi has seen a slew of copycats, whereas the Raspberry Pi itself has continued to develop. None of it will have occurred with out the unique Raspberry Pi.

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1 Raspberry Pi 5 collection

The most effective Pi you may get

Every mannequin has improved upon the earlier generations, and the Raspberry Pi 5 is not any exception. It has a 2.4GHz quad-core processor, can help as much as 16GB of RAM, has extra highly effective graphics and may help twin 4K shows at 60Hz.

Probably essentially the most important change is that, for the primary time, the Raspberry Pi 5 helps NVMe SSDs, so that you needn’t run every part from SD playing cards.

Raspberry Pi 5

The Raspberry Pi 5 is a strong single-board pc (SBC) that launched in direction of the tip of 2023. It is nice for DIY tech tasks and even as a low-power desktop PC.