Re: [orca-list] Some small linux device

[Kyle <kyle4jesus gmail com>]

The Raspberry Pi 4 is good, and you can get it with 2GB, 4GB or 8GB of 
RAM. Those are probably the easiest to find and the least expensive as 
well. The OS is normally put onto a MicroSD, but there is also a way to 
make it boot from USB, which can sometimes be faster, depending on the 
boot device.


I have an older Pinebook, and they definitely at that time could have 
used improvement. I think the newer versions may have made those 
improvements, but I'm not sure, as I didn't try one yet. There is 
supposed to be a Pinebook Pro, which is supposed to offer a much better 
experience. The main advantage to these is that they are laptop 
computers complete with the keyboard and the screen. There are no 
separate parts, no cables, etc.


As for plugin devices, the Odroid N2 is certainly one of the best. This 
is what I'm using to write this message. It is a little larger than a 
Raspberry Pi, and it only ships with either 2GB or 4GB of RAM. But it 
has a 6-core processor, 4 large and 2 small, and the OS runs from an 
eMMC chip, which is closer to the size of 4 MicroSD's, 2 side-by-side 
with two more stacked on top of them. The speed advantage is 
significant, though the price is also noticeably higher. The biggest 
advantage is that although all of these machines are passively cooled, 
the N2 doesn't even seem to get warm to the touch, no matter how much 
load I put on it.


These are some of the best small and fairly cool fanless Linux devices I 
know and/or have used. Hope this helps.

~Kyle