Genuinely capable as a desktop computer; up to 4GB RAM; 4K video support; two HDMI outputs for dual-screen displays

The most expensive Raspberry Pi to date

Three years after the launch of the Raspberry Pi 3 there’s finally a completely new model of the credit card sized computer. This time around the hardware is getting a huge update – the biggest since the first version was launched in 2012.

Keeping with convention, the new model comes in the guise of the Raspberry Pi 4 Model B and is three times as powerful as the Pi 3. Overall it’s over 15 times faster than the original Raspberry Pi and puts in a better performance on the desktop than some traditional budget PCs we’ve used.

Eben Upton, the CEO of Raspberry Pi’s commercial trading arm, has described the latest model as “basically a regular PC now”, and he’s not wrong. The Pi 4 is ready to become the device it was always intended to be. However you measure it, the new model is significantly more powerful than previous iterations of the hardware and it really does stand up as an entry-level PC for day-to-day use.

Hardware

At its heart is a Broadcom BCM2711 with a 64-bit quad-core Cortex-A72 (ARM v8) processor running at 1.5GHz. While the Pi 3 B+ was only available with 1GB RAM, the Pi 4 comes in three versions, with either 1GB, 2GB or 4GB of memory.

We tested the 4GB version and it’s important to bear in mind that the amount of RAM will affect what you can do with your computer. If your plans include audio or image editing, or creating a home entertainment system that can handle UltraHD video, you should definitely get the 4GB version. Less resource-hungry projects may have lower memory requirements.

The Pi is now powered via USB C – or Power over Ethernet if you have the right kit – and finally has a pair of fast USB 3.0 ports, as well as a couple of standard USB 2.0 ports. There are also two micro HDMI ports and hardware video decoding support for resolutions of up to 4K at 60Hz. That means you can connect a pair of monitors to create a larger and more comfortable desktop workspace or plug it into a 4K TV in the living room and actually use that resolution.