What is it?
Our first Libre Computer Board, code name Le Potato, is designed as a drop in hardware replacement for the Raspberry Pi 3 Model B and offers faster performance, more memory, lower power, higher IO throughput, 4K capabilities, open market components, improved media acceleration, removal of the vendor locked-in interfaces, and Android 7.1 support. This platform uses the latest technologies and is built upon proven long term available chips. It is supported by upstream Linux and has a downstream development package based on Linux 4.9 LTS that offers ready-to-go 4K media decoding, 3D acceleration, and more.
It can be used to tinker with electronics, teach programming, build media centers, create digital signage solutions, play retro games, establish bi-directional video, and unlock imaginations. It is available in 1GB and 2GB configurations while utilizing a large existing collaborative ecosystem of parts for creators to build new and exciting products and services.
Why is this project important?
We coined the term “extensible embedded computing space” or EECS (or Electrical Engineering Computer Science?) to describe a market that is under-developed in proportion to its size and age. Professionals, enthusiasts, educators, students, and hobbyists have been creating alternative world-changing ideas utilizing inexpensive extensible computing infrastructure.
We want this computing infrastructure to be open so that anyone can turn an idea into a product or service. We feel that the traditional barriers to entry for hardware and software, both in terms of cost and time, should be de-duplicated and scaled. We created this initiative called the Libre Computer Project to further this scalability via promoting and funding open hardware and software libre.
What technology does it use?
What about software support?
In terms of Linux and Android, we should have equivalent or better upstream and downstream support as Raspberry Pi. Linux operating systems distros will definitely favor the Raspberry Pi although this board has a greater lead on Android and can easily be supported by existing distros. Please read the software section further down for more information.
