Raspberry Pi Unveils Cheaper and Smaller Model A+ Development Board

The Raspberry Pi Foundation has unveiled a new, smaller version of the original Model A, called the Model A+. The new model will be sold for $20 (approximately Rs. 1,230) and has the same basic configuration as the original Model A while borrowing a few new features from the recently launched Model B+.

The newly announced Model A+ uses the same Broadcom BCM2835 SoC and has the same 256MB of RAM as the Model A, but switches from an SD card slot to a microSD slot, adds 14 new general purpose input-output (GPIO) pins for connecting additional sensors and peripherals, and features improved audio circuitry with a dedicated low-noise power supply. The board's physical width has been reduced from 86mm to 65mm and it consumes less power as well.

The Broadcom BCM2835 offers a 700MHz ARM11 CPU core, FPU, and Vidcore IV GPU. 1080p HD video output is supported via HDMI. There is just one USB port along with a 10/100 Ethernet port and 3.5mm audio/composite video output.

The $20 price is a new low for the Raspberry Pi Foundation, which hopes to get its miniature computers into the hands of students, hobbyists and entrepreneurs who can come up with new uses for it to advance the field of computing. The new 40-pin GPIO layout, which preserves the original 26-pin cluster but adds 14 more pins, was introduced with the Model B+.

Raspberry Pi Model A+ boards will be produced at a Sony-owned factory in the UK and sold via online retailers there and in the United States.