Rockchip’s RK3399 processor is a 6-core chip with two ARM Cortex-A72 CPU cores, four Cortex-A53 cores,and ARM Mali-T864 graphics. It was first unveiled in early 2016, but computers like the Asus Chromebook Flip C101 that are powered by the chip only really started to hit the streets in 2017.

Soon you may be able to buy a computer with an RK3399 chip for as little as $60.

That’s roughly how much the upcoming RockPro64 will sell for when it hits the streets sometime around March 15th, 2018 (the final pricing hasn’t been set yet, but it’s expected to be between $59 and $65).

Think of the RockPro64 as a sort of souped-up Raspberry Pi. It’s a little larger than Raspberry Pi’s computers, but it’s still a tiny computer with an integrated processor, memory, and I/O ports, along with GPIO pins. While it’s designed as a dev board for hackers/makers/developers, it could be used as a general purpose computer with support for Linux and Android operating systems.

The little computer measures about 5.2″ x 3.1″ x 0.74″ and an entry-level model has 2GB of RAM, a microSD card reader for storage (and support for an eMMC flash storage module), Gigabit Ethernet, USB 3.0 Type-C and Type-A ports, two USB 2.0 ports, a 40-pin GPIO header, a PCIe 4x slot, and HDMI 2.0 output, among other things.

WiFi and Bluetooth aren’t built in, but there’s an SDIO socket for connecting a wireless module.

There will also be higher-priced models including one with 4GB of RAM that will sell for about $79 and launch in March, and a Rockpro64-AI model coming in August for $99.

What makes the AI version more expensive is the processor: this model will ship with the recently announced RK3399Pro processor which has the same basic specs as the original, but which also includes a Neural Processing Unit that can be used for speedier image recognition and other machine learning-related tasks.

The RockPro64 isn’t the only single-board computer with an RK3399 processor, but it’s certainly one of the most affordable.

As noted by CNX-Software, the Orange Pi RK3399 development board has the same processor, but that model sells for $109 at AliExpress. And the upcoming AAEON RICO-3399 board is expected to cost at least as much.

via CNX-Software

Support Liliputing

Liliputing's primary sources of revenue are advertising and affiliate links (if you click the "Shop" button at the top of the page and buy something on Amazon, for example, we'll get a small commission).

But there are several ways you can support the site directly even if you're using an ad blocker* and hate online shopping.

Contribute to our Patreon campaign

or...

Contribute via PayPal

* If you are using an ad blocker like uBlock Origin and seeing a pop-up message at the bottom of the screen, we have a guide that may help you disable it.

Subscribe to Liliputing via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 9,543 other subscribers

6 replies on “RockPro64 single-board computer with Rockchip RK3399 coming soon for $60 and up”

  1. It is nice to see prices coming down to reasonable levels for the RK3399 boards.

    The RK3399 is a capable SOC so with sub-$80 prices there will be a lot activity around them. Linux kernel support should be good (due to earlier Chromebooks). I imagine these speedy Cortex-A72 cores are even suitable for heavier workloads (like video editing with KDEnlive, editing big documents in LibreOffice…etc).

  2. I zoomed into the first picture in this post and noticed a 3-pin battery connector labelled VBAT on the top right corner of the board; next to the RTC battery connector. I sure hope the board includes an on-board battery charging circuit with gauge. That would be impressive at this price point.

    1. Yeh, I noticed that too. I’m looking for a board like this to make a portable gaming device, but unfortunately the port layout on this board makes it very unusable for such a project. I wish project board makers would focus on putting all the ports on one side of their boards.

  3. RK3399 is stuck between a RPi3 and a chromebox (in price and performance). I don’t think I have a use for one, when I already have an RPi3 and a chromebox. As a chromebook it is a great device, but on wall power it will be second fiddle to an Intel powered chromebox. If I need i2c/SPI/UART/GPIO I just use the RPi3.

Comments are closed.