The Pine64 Star64 is an anticipated single board computer (SBC) with a form factor like the previous Pin64 model B boards like the Quartz64 Model A with a StarFive JH7110 quad-core 64-bit RISC-V CPU.
Both 4GB and 8GB of RAM, two Gigabit Ethernet ports, a WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2 module, USB 3.0 ports, a PCIe slot, and a GPIO header for expansion are included with the Star64 SBC.
The Pine64 team mentioned one potential application for the PCIe x4 slot: using a PCIe to SATA adaptor to build a NAS with several discs. Debian and Fedora are already being transferred to the RISC-V CPU, which is not unexpected as they are the same operating systems that are anticipated to first run on StarFive's own VisionFive 2 SBC. The software for the StarFive JH7110 SoC is currently a work in progress.
Both the Star64 and VisionFive 2 SBCs have many of the same capabilities, however, the Pine64 board offers access to the PCIe interface via a PCIe x4 slot rather than an M.2 socket and comes with a wireless module for WiFi and Bluetooth, while the VisionFive 2 board is entirely devoid of.
Star64 preliminary specifications:
- SoC –
StarFive JH7110 quad-core 64-bit RISC-V (SiFive U74 – RV64GC) processor @
up to 1.5 GHz with
- Imagination
BXE-4-32 GPU supporting OpenGL ES 3.2, OpenCL 1.2, Vulkan 1.2
- 4Kp30
H.265/H.264 video decoder
- 1080p30
H.265 video encoder
- System
Memory – 4GB or 8GB LPDDR4
- Storage
– MicroSD card slot, eMMC flash module socket, QSPI flash
- Video
Output
- HDMI
2.0 port
- 4-lane
MIPI DSI connector + touch panel connector
- Camera
I/F – 2-lane MIPI CSI camera connector up to 4Kp30
- Audio
– 3.5mm audio jack
- Networking
- 2x
Gigabit Ethernet RJ45 ports
- On-board
RTL8852BU WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2 module and 2x u.FL antenna connectors
- USB –
1x USB 3.0 port, 3x USB 2.0 Type-A ports, 2x USB 2.0 interfaces via
headers
- Expansion
- 40-pin
colour-coded GPIO header
- PCIe
x4 slot
- Misc –
Power button, fan header, 3-pin UART/debug header, DIP switch for boot
configuration (flash, SD, eMMC, UART)
- Power
Supply – 12V DC via power barrel jack or 4-pin header; on-board PMIC
- Dimensions
– 133 x 80 mm
Pine64 Star64 is anticipated to be made accessible to developers only in a few weeks, even if the price has not yet been disclosed. This makes sense given that the platform still needs a lot of development to be useful. Pine64's official statement has a few additional facts and queries.
Via CNX Software
