RasPi CM4 Announced!

[Flavor]

We are. I'm hoping for it to really pick up again next month. We've been really bogged down with other day-to-day things (and some real life things).

There are some kinks we need to work out. The new CM4 draws a lot more power than the Zero or CM3 ever did. I'm not sure that people will be happy with the lower playtime, so we need to try to figure out some other ways to increase the playtime.

[illogicGate]

In my experiments with the RPi 4 (not the compute module (yet)), clocking down the cpu and/or even disabling 1-2 core yields HUGE power savings while still being nearly as fast as the old chip, maybe there can be a "portable" mode set when it's not on external power that knocks some of the edge of the power requirements?

There are a lot of other possible venues for saving mAh, but until I get the CM4 in my grubby claws, I'm not going to poke too much at it yet.

[Flavor]

In my experiments with the RPi 4 (not the compute module (yet)), clocking down the cpu and/or even disabling 1-2 core yields HUGE power savings while still being nearly as fast as the old chip, maybe there can be a "portable" mode set when it's not on external power that knocks some of the edge of the power requirements?

There are a lot of other possible venues for saving mAh, but until I get the CM4 in my grubby claws, I'm not going to poke too much at it yet.

We did some testing like this, too.  I wonder if you could message me with the settings you used, so we could see if that yeilds much different results for us here.

Thanks!

[GameBro Advance]

You could also go the route of inventing an entirely new high-density battery chemistry and use your new billionaire status to fund further development on the project...

[Flavor]

You could also go the route of inventing an entirely new high-density battery chemistry and use your new billionaire status to fund further development on the project...

Oddly enough, a local company tried to work with us to help them on a project like this.  I hope they can do what they're trying to do, but we weren't the guys to help them.

[illogicGate]

In my experiments with the RPi 4 (not the compute module (yet)), clocking down the cpu and/or even disabling 1-2 core yields HUGE power savings while still being nearly as fast as the old chip, maybe there can be a "portable" mode set when it's not on external power that knocks some of the edge of the power requirements?

There are a lot of other possible venues for saving mAh, but until I get the CM4 in my grubby claws, I'm not going to poke too much at it yet.

We did some testing like this, too.  I wonder if you could message me with the settings you used, so we could see if that yeilds much different results for us here.

Thanks!

Certainly... when I get home, dealing with some family complications and will be out of town for another week at least and sadly all my Pi related goodies, notes and other stuff is at home.

As soon as I get access to it again, I'll pipe it over!

[FableGod]

Have you seen this build yet? It is a CM4 inside of a Switch Lite housing. I'd definitely buy something like that if you could design the Freeplay CM4 around it... I still cannot believe there has been no Chinese CM4 handhelds on the market yet and we are relying on hobbyists to bring things to market... what is taking so long for good CM4 handhelds?

https://www.raspberrypi.org/forums/viewt...8&t=289529

[Flavor]

I have seen that project. He is not actually using a switch light shell. He is building his shell entirely from scratch. It’s a cool project, but I’m concerned more and more that he isn’t going to be able to actually produce any of them.

We looked into using an actual switch light shell, but there are some reasons that it’s probably not feasible.

[FableGod]

We are.  I'm hoping for it to really pick up again next month.  We've been really bogged down with other day-to-day things (and some real life things). 

There are some kinks we need to work out.  The new CM4 draws a lot more power than the Zero or CM3 ever did.  I'm not sure that people will be happy with the lower playtime, so we need to try to figure out some other ways to increase the playtime.

I have seen that project. He is not actually using a switch light shell. He is building his shell entirely from scratch. It’s a cool project, but I’m concerned more and more that he isn’t going to be able to actually produce any of them.

We looked into using an actual switch light shell, but there are some reasons that it’s probably not feasible.

I see, that is a big shame then... hopefully we will see a Freeplay CM4 sooner rather than later!

[BigCat]

Hey guys, the CM4 may have just been made irrelevant.

A new SBC has been created and improves upon the Pi Zero format and FAR outperforms it.
Could possibly be as simple as swapping out your current Zeros/CM3s,
(minus the DSI ribbon/HDMI adapter deal mentioned by ETA Prime). Let me know what you guys think.

Showcased by ETA Prime: 'The Raspberry Pi Zero Killer! Radxa Zero First Look'
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huAKEbyPcBc

Official Forum:
https://forum.radxa.com/t/introduce-the-radxa-zero/6550

(if youre not the link clicking type, simply look up ETA Primes channel, you can find the video posted July 28, 2021)




I'd be much more ecstatic to keep the GBA form factor for its size and retro aesthetic, rather than sacrifice both to make a Switch knockoff. Especially considering Switches can already be used to emulate games and are still currently found on store shelves. That strikes me as redundant, and therefore imo cost inefficient when you might as well just buy the switch if thats what you want.