The Raspberry Pi 4 has been launched globally, but South African fanatics will have to pre-order and wait a little longer to get their hands on these microcomputers
RS Components South Africa has announced that the latest offerings from the Raspberry Pi Foundation have recently received the approval stamp of the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) and are now available for pre-order.
The first of the fourth generation Raspberry Pi that will be available is the Pi 4 Model B. Eben Upton, founder of Raspberry Pi, said the latest offering was a comprehensive upgrade that touched almost every element of the platform.
“For the first time, we provide a PC-like level of performance for most users, while retaining the interfacing capabilities and hackability of the classic Raspberry Pi line. What’s changed with Raspberry Pi 4 is that, in addition to being a device for learning about computing, it’s also much more suitable than its predecessors for use as a general-purpose classroom computer,” he added.
Brian Andrew MD of RS Components South Africa said that he was excited to welcome the latest Raspberry Pi offering to its customers.
“It is undeniable just how popular Raspberry Pi’s have become over the years. These microcomputers have come a long way, and here in South Africa, the popularity continues to gain traction. We want to advise all our customers that we are hard at work to make sure we get the Pi 4’s as soon as possible. Now that we have ICASA’s go ahead, it is just a waiting game because of the high demand globally. We are expecting stock on September 2019,” he said.
This new OS is based on the upcoming release of Debian 10 Buster and provides a modern user interface and updated web browser Chromium 74. Other improvements include the adoption of the Mesa V3D graphics driver that offers OpenGL-accelerated web browsing and the ability to run 3D applications in a window.
The Raspberry Pi Foundation has also released new accessories for the Pi 4 Model B, including a new case, a USB Type-C power supply, a micro USB to USB Type-C adapter, and micro HDMI cables. Notable upgrades include Gigabit Ethernet, support for up to 4GB of LPDDR4 RAM, dual-band Wi-Fi, as well as 4K60 hardware HEVC, decode support.
