14 DAY TRIAL // The Raspberry Pi Foundation has officially launched an upgraded version of the Raspberry Pi 4 with 8GB of RAM, and it is available today for just $75.
The organization explains that the BCM2711 chip allows for up to 16GB of RAM on the Raspberry Pi 4, so it decided to partner with Micron to make an 8GB version available this year.
Needless to say, the upgrade to 8GB on the Raspberry Pi 4 has also come with other changes on the board.
“To supply the slightly higher peak currents required by the new memory package, James has shuffled the power supply components on the board, removing a switch-mode power supply from the right-hand side of the board next to the USB 2.0 sockets and adding a new switcher next to the USB-C power connector,” the Raspberry Pi Foundation explains in a post.
64-bit operating system with a new name
In addition, the group also announces a 64-bit beta version of its very own operating system, which has been renamed from Raspbian to Raspberry Pi OS for an approach that make more sense going forward.
The 64-bit version is specifically built to take full advantage of the 8GB upgrade on the Raspberry Pi 4, but of course, there are several other operating systems out there that can be used, including Ubuntu itself.
Raspberry Pi OS 64-bit, however, comes with the same set of apps and desktop environment as the 32-bit image, but it uses the Debian arm64 port specifically for today’s new Raspberry Pi 4 version.
“As our community grows, we want to make sure it’s as easy as possible for new users to find our recommended operating system for Raspberry Pi. We think the new name will help more people feel confident in using our computers and our software,” the Raspberry Pi Foundation says.