idle temp to 36 degrees with
the CPU stress-test temp at
46 degrees. We have been
advised of an imminent
firmware fix that will
address these thermals.
Another new feature on the
Pi 4 are the dual micro-HDMI
ports offering dual screens at
4Kp30, or a single screen at
up to 4Kp60. Video is also
decoded by a dedicated chip,
so there’s no hit on CPU
performance. But why is this
necessary? Well, to be honest
it isn’t something that most
users will take advantage of.
But 4GB users who may be
using their Pi 4 as a desktop
replacement can enjoy an
extra screen. Typically coders
and writers employ two
screens for reference and
work.
To use the Raspberry Pi 4
we need to be running the
very latest version of
Raspbian; older versions will
not work with the Pi 4 but the
latest Raspbian will work on
every model of Raspberry Pi.
Based upon Debian Buster
culprit. Watching a video at
720P in a window is
bearable; make it full-
screen and 1080P and it
becomes a slideshow. There
is a future update planned
to address these launch
issues, so we shouldn’t have
to wait long for a fix.
The questions that the
Raspberry Pi 4 raises are
“Who is this board for?” and
“Why do we need this much
power?” To be blunt, the Pi 4
does offer a lot of power, but
most makers will not take
full advantage of it. The Pi 4
offers entry-level desktop
performance and for $60- $95 that should be
applauded. But for most
hobbyists who make
GPIO-based projects, robots,
or who are learning to code,
then sticking to a Pi 3B+
and using the latest
Raspbian release will offer
all the latest Debian Buster
features at no extra cost.
Anyone looking to upgrade
their Raspberry Pi would be
wise to wait for a while
(unreleased at the time of
writing), the latest Raspbian
is impressive and nimble. It
booted on our Pi 4 in just
under 18 seconds and, after
a few hiccups, detected our
dual-screen setup, giving us
3840x1080 of screen for
projects – lovely stuff!
The Raspbian desktop is
very usable with Pi 4 and it
feels just like a traditional
desktop computer. We ran
our usual Sysbench single-
and quad-core CPU stress-
test, and the Pi 4 shaved
almost 30 seconds from the
Pi 3B+ single-core test: 119.3
seconds for Pi 3B+, 92.7
seconds for Pi 4. In the
quad-core tests the Pi 4
scored 23.3 seconds versus
the Pi 3B+ time of 31.8
seconds. The Pi 4 also blazed
through our Octane
benchmarks with a score of
7274, 2.6 times quicker than
Pi 3B+.
But where the 1GB version
will struggle is with
resource-heavy apps –
Chromium is the mainVerdic t
Truly powerful with great support, the
Pi 4 offers so much, but it needs a
little time to work out some hiccups.until Debian Buster and the
Pi 4 software gains a little
maturity. Don’t get us wrong- the team have done
marvellous work with the Pi
4, but the software hiccups
need to be ironed out before
consumers get their hands on
one.
If you have been waiting to
run your own low-power
Linux home server, then the
Pi 4 is the board of your
dreams! There’s lots of power,
gigabit Ethernet, USB 3.0 and
Debian stability. The other
bonus for all users, no matter
what version is purchased, is
the immense library of
support anddocumentation
provided bytheRaspberryPi
Foundation. Les Pounder
The new USB and Ethernet
por ts are in dif ferent
positions to earlier boards,
breaking compatibility
with older cases. Under
the control of “Big Case”.It may look similar to
those before it, but looks
can be deceiving. This
board packs real power!Featuring t wo micro-HDMI
por ts, the Pi 4 of fers a true
dual-display solution – but these
por ts are too tight for adapters.The BCM54213 handles gigabit Ethernet
on the Pi 4, and the VLI chip is used for
USB. No shared LAN75 14 chip any more.