• MeanEYE@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    13
    ·
    10 months ago

    I’ve been hearing about this on a regular basis but between scalpers and damn things going to industry users we are left with exactly nothing, pumping up the price to unreasonable levels. Just get one of the compatible boards which have better hardware and plentiful supply.

    • Aux@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      6
      ·
      10 months ago

      The problem with alternatives are:

      • RPi HATS don’t work;
      • RPi cases don’t work;
      • RPi hardware like screens don’t work;
      • RPi software doesn’t always work;
      • Existing RPi tutorials and guides are not compatible;
      • User made 3D printed stuff for RPi is also not compatible.

      Raspberry Pi has a huge and diverse ecosystem. We’re stuck with it.

      • MeanEYE@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        3
        ·
        10 months ago

        Understandable, but considering I can get RPi software compatible board with 4 gigabit ethernet ports and fiber optics + expansion slot and is available whenever I want to purchase it, then in some cases it’s a no-brainer. Really depends on use case. Some hardware will work, other might not, it depends. Screens will work if they go through HDMI or S-Video. Hardware should work if it uses USB. GPIO pins are a different matter.

        Even if it doesn’t work for majority of cases, I’d be willing to play with it and try to make it work with board I can purchase than a board that’s never in stock. And to be honest I even hate Chinese sites like AliExpress but some options are better than none and some manufacturers from China are offering a lot of options.

    • grue@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      2
      ·
      10 months ago

      Just get one of the compatible boards

      The main selling point of a Raspberry Pi is that the “compatible” boards often… aren’t. Instead of the well-supported, plug-and-play experience you get with a Raspberry Pi, with other boards even people like Jeff Geerling often struggle to get them to work. Also, the Raspberry Pi has excellent documentation, a large community for support, etc., whereas with alternative boards you end up having to hunt around for documentation and download firmware off obscure Chinese websites and whatnot.

      • MeanEYE@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        3
        ·
        edit-2
        10 months ago

        I’ll have to dig deeper as I don’t use RPi anymore or its clones. Like I said in my other comment, some hardware might work, other might not but I know for sure I gave up on original RPi because if I have to hunt one down for more than a year with constant promises in increased production, then it’s no longer a product and we simply have to move on to something else.

        Edit: Also many things that were stated in that video are simply not true but they are coming from not understanding Linux as a platform and by their own admission they are not a developer towards whom these boards are usually targeted. Understandable frustration, but I wonder if it’s really that difficult as claimed to make these work. Randomly flashing images from internet is rarely going to result in a successful boot if you don’t understand how things work.