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The Sipeed Longan Pi3H is a tiny coimputer that measures just 65 x 31mm (2.6″ x 1.2″), making it about the same size and shape as a Raspberry Pi Zero.

But while the latest Raspberry Pi Zero model has micro USB and mini HDMI ports, Sipeed’s Pi3H has full-sized USB and HDMI ports… and even a full-sized RJ45 port for Gigabit Ethernet. The board still has a Raspberry Pi-compatible 40-pin header though.

At the heart of the Longan Pi3H is an Allwinner H618 processor, which is a 1.5 GHz quad-core ARM Cortex-A53 processor with Mali-G31 MP2 graphics.

Other features include support for 2GB to 4GB of LPDDR4 memory, up to 32GB of eMMC storage, and a microSD card reader for storage, and built-in support for WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.4.

Ports include:

  • 1 x HDMI 2.0
  • 1 x USB 2.0 Type-C
  • 2 x USB 2.0 Type-A
  • 1 x RJ45 (Gigabit Ethernet)
  • 1 x microSD card reader

Sipeed says you can use a 5V USB-C power adapter with the Pi3H, or connect a power supply to 4 pins on the board.

The Sipeed Longan Pi3H supports multiple operating systems including Android 12, Debian, and Armbian.

While the full-sized ports are unusual in a board this small, another strange thing about the Longan Pi3H is that it’s not truly a single-board PC like the Raspberry Pi Zero. Instead it’s actually a combination of a carrier board and an even smaller LM3H module.

That module measures just 46 x 25mm (1.8″ x 1″) and contains the processor, memory, and optional eMMC storage. Putting those functions on a module opens the possibility of replacing a defective module or upgrading in the future to a module with more memory or storage.

Theoretically you might even be able to upgrade to a module with a faster processor in the future, but that’s contingent on Sipeed ever releasing one.

Sipeed is taking pre-orders for the Longan Pi3H through its AliExpress store with prices ranging from $18 to $35 + shipping:

  • LM3H module with 2GB RAM / no storage for $18
  • Pi3H (module + carrier board) with 2GB RAM / no storage for $24
  • Pi3H (module + carrier board) with 4GB RAM / no storage for $30
  • Pi3H (module + carrier board) with 4GB RAM / 32GB eMMC for $35

The board is expected to begin shipping in mid-February. For now, you can find more information in the AliExpress product page, as well as some documentation and downloads at the Sipeed website and necessary Linux kernel patches at Sipeed’s GitHub page for the Longan Pi 3H SDK (although the company says it wants to merge support for the board into the mainline Linux kernel in the future).

via @SipeedIO and CNX Software

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  1. So SiPEED distributes its system files on Baidu or MEGA? We all know the dangers of Baidu, but what about MEGA? Is MEGA connected to the nasty stuff out of New Zealand and Hong Kong once connected with Kim Dotcom and Megaupload?

    IMHO [General Advice]: Unless you want Pooh-Bear perched on your shoulder watching everything you do all the time – maybe you should avoid the likes of Baidu and/or MEGA.

    Until such time as there is mainstream kernel support for this device and a safe truly open-source distro that is community supported – then you may want to steer-clear of the SiPEED Longan Pi3H, for anything except purely experimental purposes on a bastioned LAN. Especially at today’s HIGH prices for the product.

    Also, how ’bout some sort of M.2 card storage option? Does that even make sense for the SiPEED Longan Pi3H?

    Conclusion: Nice looking piece of hardware 🙂 I wish success! Sucess IS possible SiPEED given how Rasperry Pi has FAILED us at all levels for years…

    Reply

  2. Wow !
    But no wifi ?

    P.S. I got my PI Zero 2W running with Raspian some months ago connected to
    wifi with almost no effort and indeed I needed a micro HDMI to HDMI cable. And
    I couldn’t connect a mouse and a keyboard at the same time.

    But point is, the OS was relly sluggish even though the Zero 2W is supposed
    to multiply speed by 3.

    So what can you do with such a card: run Homeassistant maybe or some other server that you want local ?

    To do some interesting micro sized projets it seems that the Raspberry Pico is interesting to play with. Next step having a really small PC I’d go directly to a second hand PC from Lenovo, DELL or other.

    Reply

    1. The problem with the RPi Zero 2W (and all RPi Zero) is the amount of RAM. No matter how fast the SoC gets, 512MB is already too short to run a full featured OS even in text mode only. If you develop on a RPi 4 with 4 or 8GB of RAM and then pass the finished solution into a RPi Zero with a minimal OS install supporting that solution, might be enough but it’s getting short already. But working directly on it? That’s why these alternatives are interesting, they have a lot more RAM.

      Reply

  3. If Sipeed has done work in regard of Armbian support kudos to them, but right now there’s no official Armbian support for any board with the H618. There is support for the Orange Pi Zero 2 based on the H616 though, and some unofficial Armbian builds for the OPi Zero 3 (H618 based) by a chinese developer have appeared in GitHub. The H618 is reported to be a small development of H616 so it’s probable that in the future official support might change. If really mainline kernel support is to happen in Q4 2024, this might be interesting as an cheaper alternative for the RK3566 based boards.

    I have an Orange Pi Zero 2W, which is also H618 based and also has the RPi Zero format, and at first glance it seems to be just be a different version of the OPi Zero 3. But the Zero 3’s unofficial Armbian images I mentioned above do not work, so it seems it isn’t Zero 3 compatible. For now I’m limited to the Orange Pi supplied images… situation I don’t like.

    Reply

  5. What’s the point of even following the Pi Zero form factor at this point? The SOC is on a daughter-board, and the IO ports are enormous. And the SOC is on the opposite side of the board. That’s quite the compromise.

    You wouldn’t be able to use this in any existing cases, because the ports are too large, and because the bottom of the board is obstructed by the SOC daughter board. You’d need to mount it on risers to give it more clearance.

    You wouldn’t be able to use this on any expansion PCBs that are designed to accept a Pi-Zero, because even if you used risers to mount it higher, the SOC would be facing FR4 PCB material, which is going to trap heat and roast the chip.

    What’s the concept here, Sipeed? I don’t get it.

    Reply

    1. I wonder if you can still use Zero-shaped HATs with it. With the SOC on the other side of the board, it’s the ports that might prevent the board from sliding down far enough on the pins to make a connection. If such boards still fit, that might be their thinking, even though as you say any case or enclosure that goes around both sides is not going to fit.

      Reply