20 SEPTEMBER 2019 |COMPUTERSHOPPER|ISSUE 379
us awarning thermometeronscreen. The Pi 4
was noticeablywarm to the touch, too.
There’s agood reason forthis: the Pi 4, as
with its predecessors,has been built for
continuous operationwiththe performance
to run at asprint when neededto improve the
experience,rather than runningcontinuous
high-loadtasks. If you really wanted to push
the Pi forlonger,you can fit it with apassive
heatsinkor even atiny air cooler.
Ultimately,while raw power isn’t what
the Pi is about, the ability to give that extra
burst of power when neededmakes the new
computer much nicer to use.Using the Pi 4as
adesktop computer with the Chromium
browser,wewrotethis entire review without
turningto our normalPC once.Yes, the Pi 4
is alittle slower than regularWindowsusers
will be used to,but not disastrouslyso: the
faster processormakes the Raspbian
desktop feel smootherthan ever.
Even if you’re only developingprojects
on the Pi 4, this increasedspeed and
responsivenessmakes this afar easier
computer to work on, and the sluggishnessof
some of the older computers has gone.HI-DEF
As well as supporting4K displays, the Pi 4
now has hardwaredecodingfor4Kvideos
(up to 60fps).It’s somethingthat the rival
Asus Tinker Board (Shopper 360) could do
all the wayback in 2017,althoughthat
computer could only work at 30fps. The
downsideis that no matter what we tried,
we couldn’t get 4K video to playsmoothly
in Raspbian.4K video decodingis being
targeted forKodi at launch,with updates to
Raspbiancomingin the future.
As well as boostingthe CPU, RaspberryPi
4has also overhauledthe Pi 4’s network
connections.ForWi-Fi there’s an 802.11ac
chip capableof delivering,in our tests,
throughputsof 95.5Mbit/s:that’s fast
enoughto get the most out of most
people’s internet connections.If you do
want more bandwidth,such as forcopying
files over your home network,the GigabitEthernetport now runs at full speed.
Using iPerf,wemeasuredthroughputat
896Mbit/s,which is really as fast as you can
get out of GigabitEthernet.To round things
off,there’s also Bluetooth 5.0.
If you need abit more storage,then the
two USB 3.0 ports on the rear mean that fast
external drives can now be connected; the
older Pi modelsused the older USB 2.
standard.Youalso get two USB 2.0 ports,
which are handy forperipherals,such as a
keyboardand mouse.PLUGANDPLAY
Beyond these changes,the Pi 4keeps the
importantthings the same.So, it still boots
from the microSDcard inserted intothe
reader in the back, and you can install the
OS easily using the NOOBSsystem.
On the main board, you still get the
40-pin GPIO header,which you can use for
building your ownelectronics projects.
There’sthe standardCSI camerainterface
and DSI displayinterface,soyou can use
the official RaspberryPi cameraand display
in any of your projects.PROCESSORQuad-core1.5GHzBroadcomBCM2711•
USBPORTS1xUSBType-C(power),2xUSB3,2xUSB2•
STORAGEMicroSDcardslot•DISPLAYNone•
OPERATINGSYSTEMRaspbian•WARRANTYOneyearRTB- DETAILSwww.raspberrypi.org•PARTCODEPi4ModelB
SPECIFICATIONSThesefeaturesreally highlightthe beauty
of the RaspberryPi system, as these standard
interfaces make it easy to transfer projects
from an older Pi to the new one.And the
numberof projectsthat you can follow to
help you learn grows every year.
No review of the Pi should forget to
mentionthe importanceof the community
and the level of help that you can get.
Whetheryou’re just startingout or you need
some help with somethingmore advanced
that you’re workingon, the Pi system is
hugely well supported, and it’s usuallyeasy
to find the help you need.THERIGHT BALANCE
It’s worthremembering that forproject
work, the older RaspberryPi 3and Model B+
remain decent enoughcomputers. If you’ve
got one runningaspecific project,then
there’s probablyno great need to upgrade.
However,ifyou’re new to Pi or use one a
lot, the Pi 4has along list of advantagesover
the previous models.
The faster processorand quicker
networkingmake it snappierand quickerto
use,which makes using Raspbianfeel that
much nicer: it turns the Pi from ahobbyist
board intoafully fledgeddesktop computer.
Dual HDMI outputsand the USB Type-C
power input neatly round the computer off.
Yet, forall the changes,the Pi Foundation
hasn’t messedwith the basics, letting you
fluidly move from an older generationto the
new one withouthaving to changeyour
projects.Taking RaspberryPi to new heights,
the Pi 4isn’t just agreat projectcomputer,
it’s agreat desktop computer full stop.
DavidLudlow⬆The attractivecase has
been especiallydesignedforthe Pi 4