Two new boards in the Raspberry Pi form factor have appeared from Geniatech. Equipped with Amlogic processors, the XPI-S905X2 and XPI-S905X3, as spotted by CNX Software, claim 4K video playback capability.
On paper, they don’t sound hugely powerful, with quad-core Cortex A53 and A55 CPUs depending on which model you choose, and a Mali G31 MP2 GPU for pushing all those pixels. RAM is a choice between 1GB and 2GB, and storage is taken care of by up to 32GB eMMC flash or a Micro SD slot.
The boards are similar in form factor to the Raspberry Pi 3 (85 x 56mm), with a single HDMI output, three USB 2.0 ports and a single USB 3.0, plus what’s listed as a micro-USB (but looks like a Type-C) for power. There's an optional wireless board for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, or you could use the built-in gigabit Ethernet RJ45. There's a 40-pin GPIO header which claims compatibility with the Raspberry Pi, based on our experience of other Raspberry Pi alternatives this is not always totally accurate.
All the new boards are capable of playing back 4K60 video in the VP9 Profile 2, HEVC MP-10, ACS2-P2, and H.264 AVC formats, while the most powerful (sporting an S905X4 chipset) can manage AV1 at 4K120 too.
You get a power adapter and passive cooling fin in the box, and the boards use Android 9 as their OS, though it shouldn’t be too hard to get Linux up and running, as other Geniatech boards support that option.
The boards are available for sale, some in limited quantities, from the Geniatech store. The wireless module adds $5 to the price.
