Both are VideoCore IV chipsets, but where the Pi 2 is clocked at 250MHz, this new one is 400MHz. This is an architecture boost from 32-bit to 64-bit, and gets you better performance for your clock speed. Very big.įirst, while the CPU only gains 300MHz, it also updates its architecture from a Cortex-A7 set to a Cortex-A53 one. Both have 1GB RAM and both use a fourth-generation VideoCore CPU.įrom a glance you could dismiss this as a connectivity upgrade, but the performance boost is big. The Raspberry Pi 2 has a quad-core 900MHz CPU, the Pi 3 a quad-core 1.2GHz one. In typical Raspberry Pi Foundation style, the Raspberry Pi 3 doesn’t aim for hardware upgrades that’ll just look good on a spec sheet and mean little in terms of real performance. Related: Best laptops Raspberry Pi 3 vs Pi 2: Hardware Of course, for many people something like the Amazon Fire TV Stick has already offered an all-too-tempting alternative.įor those with aspirations greater than basic projects, both Raspberry Pis have a GPIO pin set and a camera interface. This is a massive benefit if you want to use the Pi as a mini media centre. It has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, where you’d need to use USB adapters to add that to a Pi 2. However, on the wireless side the Raspberry Pi 3 embarrasses the Pi 2. Given their size, it’s impressive that these circuit board computers have the same connections as a large laptop of a few years ago. Whatever memory card you use acts as the hard drive here. You get four USB 2.0 ports (3.0 is above its pay grade), a Ethernet connector, full-size HDMI port and a microSD slot. Related: A guide to PC sticks Raspberry Pi 3 vs Pi 2: Connectivity

But the measurements and connector placements are near-identical. We’ve been using the old version on-and-off for a year and have always used it as a naked board, often lifted off the ground by the sheer number of cables plugged into the poor thing. One commendable thing is that it looks like the Raspberry Pi 3 will fit cases made for the Raspberry Pi 2 B. It may not have a $1bn design team behind it, but it’s iconic.

It’s tempting to say Raspberry Pi is all substance, no style, but it (more-or-less) single-handedly made circuit board PCs a thing normal people recognise. Whatever you do with a Pi, it feels very much your own.

If you want one of those, you’ll have to buy or make one yourself. It’s a green PCB with a bunch of connectors, and no case. The Raspberry Pi 3 looks and feel exactly like the Raspberry Pi 2 B.

Jarvis desktop layout for rpi3