PICO3566: A powerful alternative to the Raspberry Pi CM3+ with more connectivity options

Boardcon introduced a new single board computer. PICO3566 is the so-called unit of account. This one is particularly compact and flat, but doesn’t have any connections, for example to output the image in the classic format. This unit of account is suitable for use in combined end products – commonly referred to in a development case Resorted to carrier plates.

The Boardcon PICO3566, also designed as a replacement for the Raspberry Pi CM, gets its name from the form factor and also from the SoC used, so the RK3566 is used with four Cortex A55 cores with a maximum clock frequency of 1.8GHz. Compared to the Raspberry Pi CM3+, this should result in much higher computing power.

The PICO3566 should be available with 2, 4, or 8 GB of RAM, and customers can also choose between 8, 16, 32, 64, and 128 GB of eMMC memory. An HDMI 2.0 port can be clicked, which means it can also output 4K material at up to 60fps. MIPI DSI as well as MIPI CSI is available for connecting cameras. Gigabit Ethernet can be utilized, and even SATA hard disk storage can be used.

The 67.6 x 32mm board comes with 66 GPIO ports, with support for I2C, SPI, and UART, among others. Android 11 and Debian 11 can be used as the operating system. There’s currently no word on pricing or availability, though it’s unlikely that Boardcon will be aimed primarily at regular, private customers.

I’ve been a journalist for over ten years, mostly in the technology field. I’ve worked at Tom’s Hardware and ComputerBase, among others, and since 2017 I’ve also worked at Notebookcheck. My current focus is particularly on microcomputers and single board computers like the Raspberry Pi – that is, embedded systems with many possibilities. In addition, there is a soft spot for all kinds of wearable devices especially smartwatches. I work full time as a laboratory engineer, which is why I’m not far from science connections or complex measurement interpretation.