What Is the Most Powerful Single

For such small boards, SBCs can pack a lot of power, but just which of these tiny computers is the most powerful?

Single-board computers are complete computers with components that have been built to fit on a single circuit board, making them suitable for embedded applications and prototyping, to name a few uses.

Most SBCs aren't really designed to be powerful, placing more of an emphasis on cost and size, but there are certain boards that are quite powerful for their size.

Released in June 2019, the Raspberry Pi 4 Model B is currently the most powerful single-board computer from the Raspberry Pi company. It features several notable upgrades over the previous Raspberry Pi Model 3B+. It can be hard to find in stock due to the high demand from makers and hobbyists, but at the official price the Raspberry Pi 4B is still a wonderful SBC that offers an amazing price-to-performance ratio.

It comes with a quad-core processor clocked at 1.5 GHz and offers four different RAM sizes, from 1GB to 8GB. It can run two 4K displays at the same time and features a 40-pin GPIO header that makes it possible to use this SBC for electronics and embedded development.

Low-cost and fairly powerful, it also has fairly low power consumption. The Raspberry Pi 4's biggest advantage is the after-sales support and the large community that is currently unmatched by that for any other SBC.

On the downside, there is currently limited availability of stock, resulting in heavily inflated prices from unofficial sellers. The Pi 4 also lacks any onboard storage or a dedicated socket to add it.

Raspberry Pi 4 Key Specs:

Processor

Broadcom BCM2711 SoC featuring quad-core Cortex-A72 64-bit @1.5GHz

Memory

1GB, 2GB, 4GB or 8GB RAM

Ports

40-pin GPIO connector, 2 x micro-HDMI (up to 4K@60Hz), 2 x USB 3.0, 2 x USB 2.0, 2-lane MIPI DSI display port, 2-lane MIPI CSI camera port, microSD slot

Connectivity

2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz IEEE 802.11ac wireless, Bluetooth 5.0, BLE, Gigabit Ethernet

Power

5V/3A power via USB-C port and GPIO; Power over Ethernet (PoE) capable

The Odroid-N2+ is a 2020 upgrade from the original Odroid-N2 by Hardkernel. It is a direct competitor to the Raspberry Pi 4B and sports a number of improved features that make it a more capable but also more expensive board. It comes in a form factor that is larger than the Raspberry Pi 4 and contains an eMMC socket for adding onboard storage.

Coming in 2GB and 4GB RAM versions, the Odroid-N2+ is based around a hexa-core Amlogic S922X system-on-chip featuring a quad-core Cortex-A73 @2.4GHz and dual-core Cortex-A53 @2.0GHz. A large metal heat sink is integrated into the case to minimize throttling and optimize performance. In addition, it features a Mali-G52 GPU (graphics processing unit).

At $83 for the 4GB RAM version, the Odroid-N2+ has a high performance-to-cost ratio. Along with a microSD card slot, there's a socket for eMMC module storage. It also features an RTC battery holder to keep the board's real-time clock running when the power is turned off.

The biggest downside is that it lacks onboard Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, so you will need to use dongles to add wireless connectivity. The USB 3.0 ports also share a single root hub, which may cause issues with data transfer rates.

Odroid-N2+ Key Specs:

Processor

Hexa-core Amlogic S922X system-on-chip with quad-core Cortex-A73 @2.4GHz and dual-core Cortex-A53 @2.0GHz; Mali-G52 GPU

Memory

2GB or 4GB RAM

Ports

40-pin GPIO connector, 1 x HDMI 2.0 (up to 4K@60Hz), 4 x USB 3.0 ports, 1 x USB 2.0 OTG, eMMC module socket, microSD card slot

Connectivity

No onboard Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, Gigabit Ethernet

Power

12V/2A via DC power jack connector

The Banana Pi M5 is a single-board computer released by the Banana Pi Team in 2020 and is meant to compete with the Raspberry Pi 4 Model B. It is about the same size as the Raspberry Pi 4 and has similar specs, with a few differences. Be sure to check out our comparison of the Banana Pi M5 and the Raspberry Pi 4B to see how these devices stack up to each other.

Along with a microSD card slot, the Banana Pi M5 benefits from 16GB of onboard eMMC storage. Reset, power, and U-boot switches are also a welcome addition and may well prove useful. Unlike the Raspberry Pi 4's mixture of USB 2.0 and 3.0 ports, the Banana Pi M5 has four USB 3.0 ports.

One major downside is that there's no onboard Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, so you’ll need to use an external module to add wireless connectivity. The processors are also older and less powerful than that of the Raspberry Pi 4B and the other SBCs featured here.

Banana Pi M5 Key Specs:

Processor

Quad-core Amlogic S905X3 with Cortex-A53 @2.0GHz; Mali-G31 MP2 GPU @600MHz

Memory

4GB RAM

Ports

40-pin GPIO connector, 1 x HDMI 2.1 (up to 4K@60Hz), 3.5 mm jack, 4 x USB 3.0, microSD slot

Connectivity

Gigabit Ethernet; No onboard Wi-Fi or Bluetooth

Power

5V/3A via USB-C

The Orange Pi 5 is an impressive single-board computer based on the powerful octa-core, 64-bit RK3588S system-on-chip. It features a capable Mali-G610 GPU and also a neural processing unit (NPU) that makes it suitable for AI applications.

The Orange Pi 5 uses big.LITTLE architecture to offer a combination of low power drain and high performance depending on which of its two main processors are used. It can output video at up to 8K@60fps, which is an improvement over the Raspberry Pi 4 and most other SBCs. In addition, the USB-C port can be used as a DisplayPort, while two of the three MIPI connectors can be used as display outputs.

One of the biggest downsides is that its GPIO header has only 26 pins compared to the 40 found on most SBCs. In addition, there's no onboard Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, so you may need to use the M.2 slot to add an expansion module for wireless connectivity, rather than for an SSD.

Orange Pi 5 Key Specs:

Processor

Rockchip RK3588S octa-core 64-bit processor with quad-core A76+ (2.4GHz) and quad-core A55 (1.8GHz); Mali-G610 GPU; 6 TOPS NPU

Memory

4GB, 8GB, 16GB or 32GB DDR4 RAM

Ports

26-pin GPIO connector, HDMI 2.1 (up to 8K@60Hz), 1 x USB 3.0 Type A, 2 x USB 2.0 Type A, USB-C 3.1 with DisplayPort 1.4, M.2 M-KEY socket expansion slot, 3 x MIPI connectors for camera or display, microSD card slot

Connectivity

Gigabit Ethernet; No onboard Wi-Fi or Bluetooth

Power

5V/3A via USB-C

This SBC shares the same Rockchip RK3588S octa-core system-on-chip as the Orange Pi 5. It also features the same powerful GPU and 6 TOPS NPU. The Khadas Edge2, however, has a few notable differences, such as more RAM, onboard Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, embedded storage, and better official support.

Along with its sleek design, key advantages of the Khadas Edge2 include 32GB or 64GB of onboard eMMC storage. An optional IO module sold separately adds even more connectivity and storage options. The Edge2's embedded operating system wizard, OOWOW, makes setup a breeze.

Downsides include the lack of onboard Ethernet and an microSD slot. Unlike the other SBCs, the Edge2 lacks a standard GPIO header: instead, there are two 30-pin IO edge connectors on the underside, which are more difficult to break out for projects. The IO module adds 16 standard GPIO pins.

The Edge2 is also the most expensive SBC of the bunch: the base model is over $100 more expensive than the Orange Pi 5. Both boards are featured in our list of the top ARM SBCs with 8+ CPU cores.

Khadas Edge2 Key Specs:

Processor

Rockchip RK3588S octa-core 64-bit processor with quad-core A76+ (2.4GHz) and quad-core A55 (1.8GHz); Mali-G610 GPU; 6 TOPS NPU

Memory

8GB or 16GB LPDDR4 RAM

Ports

HDMI 2.1 (up to 8K@60Hz), 1 x USB-C (Power Delivery only), 1 x USB-C (3.1, Display Port 1.4, and Power Delivery), 1 x USB 2.0, 1 x USB 3.0, 2 x 30-pin IO connectors, 3 x MIPI CSI connectors, 2 x MIPI DSI connectors, 7 x pogo pads

Connectivity

Bluetooth 5.0, Wi-Fi 6 IEEE 802.11 ax/ac/a/b/g

Power

5V/3A via USB-C

The Khadas Edge2 is the overall most powerful ARM-based single-board computer you can buy at the moment. With an octa-core processor, up to 16GB of RAM and 32GB of eMMC storage, as well as onboard Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, it packs a lot of power in a board that weighs only 25g and measures 82.0 x 57.5 x 5.7 mm.

Next up on the list is the Orange Pi 5 with the same SoC as the Khadas Edge2, then the Odroid N2+ before the Raspberry Pi 4 Model B. The Banana Pi M5 brings up the rear, but a more powerful Banana Pi M6 model is set for release in 2023.

If you are on the lookout for alternative SBCs, be sure to go through our list of worthy Raspberry Pi replacements to consider.

The Raspberry Pi 4 Model B is a very popular board that strives to hit the sweet spot between price and functionality, but it has been slowly edged out in terms of power by newer boards. These boards are perfect when you need something that delivers a little extra oomph for heavy computing tasks.

However, you should note that poor software support and a smaller community of users are some downsides associated with some of these alternative boards, which is where the Raspberry Pi shines. As always, your particular use case should take precedence over shiny specifications.

Tomisin is a staff writer at MUO with a penchant for breaking down complex topics into easily digestible bits. He first started writing reviews of phones and gadgets in 2016 and loves reading spec sheets and tinkering with new technology.Currently, he writes about DIY tech for MakeUseOf and looks forward to expanding his horizons.