Single-board computers have grown quite popular recently for their cost and energy efficiency. These fully-packed powerhouses can assist you in getting a lot of things done. But are they good at the motherboards? What makes the two different? Which one should you pick? Before you get drunk confused about the computers, let’s take a quick look at the two below:
The Integrated Design Of SBCs
Single Board Computers (SBCs), as the name suggests, are designed with everything on a single board. Think of it like a board that has everything, like the RAM, Processor, and Graphics Card, all installed on it. You can’t remove them. You can’t replace them.
SBCs often come with slots for memory (eMMC or MicroSD), but also have connectivity options like Type C, USB 3.0, and so on. So, you can connect an External Hard Drive or Internal Hard Drive to them. They also have all the connectivity options and come with various ports for Ethernet, HDMI, etc.
The Expandable Design Of Motherboards
Motherboard is like a clean slate for you. You will have to buy and install the components, like the Processor, RAM, and GPU, separately. However, each motherboard has a separate chipset, which will decide the support for the components it can offer. A motherboard usually has necessary connectivity options, or at least, ports for you to easily add them (like Bluetooth, Hard Drives, Ports and Peripherals)
Future-Proofing Of SBCs Vs Motherboards
If you have the latest chipset for the motherboard, it is upgradable. You can expect it to work for at least 5 years in the future without any issues. But that’s not the case with the SBCs. Due to their power-efficient design and integrated components, you can’t upgrade them. They will need replacement.
However, with the specifications, like the ones found in rock 5 model b, you can expect the SBCs to last for multiple years, anywhere from 2-7 years. But it is highly debatable, as future technology can change rapidly.
The Best Way To Decide Which One To Buy
First, you need to forget about upgrading them in the future. For all we know, future tech can be completely different. What you need to consider first is the budget. SBCs tend to offer a lot more in the budget you could have for the CPU with the motherboard.
If you have industrial-level work for AI, Machine Learning, Graphics, etc., then SBCs will get the job done. But they aren’t future proof, and you might have to replace them anywhere in 2-5 years.
As for motherboards, you can start with a low budget and gradually replace and upgrade each component. So, even if you don’t have a top-end PC, you can upgrade to it eventually. So, if you love customizability and expandability, Motherboards would be a better choice.
Don’t forget that the point of SBCs is to be efficient in power, cost, and productivity. The point of motherboards is to be highly customizable. As long as you keep these factors under consideration, you won’t have much of an issue selecting the right one.
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