Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W Review

Introduction to Raspberry Pi

Raspberry Pi is a small SBCs developed by Raspberry Pi Foundation and Broadcom in the UK. The basic aim of producing the raspberry pi series was for education. It aimed at teaching computer science at a basic level.

Although, the raspberry pi series started to sell outside its targeted domain. Nowadays, it is being used in domains such as robotics, weather monitoring, etc.

The prominent features of the raspberry series are:

Low cost
Open design
Modularity

It has adopted High-Definition Multimedia Interface and USB devices. Right now, raspberry pi is among the best computers in Britain.

According to statistics of May 2021, above 40 million boards have been sold. The majority of these boards are being made at the Sony factory in Pen coed(Wales). The remaining ones are being made in China and Japan.

There are three major series of Raspberry Pi. Each series has multiple generations. These series are:

Raspberry Pi
Raspberry Pi Zero
Raspberry Pi Pico

Raspberry Pi Zero has further generations named Raspberry Pi Zero, Raspberry Pi Zero W, Raspberry Pi Zero WH, and Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W.

This article will review the latest generation of Raspberry Pi Zero, i.e., Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W, and compare it with the previous Raspberry Pi Zero 1.

Raspberry Pi Zero 2

Raspberry Pi Zero 2 was originally launched on October 28, 2021, by Raspberry Pi. Unlike the previous generations, Raspberry Pi Zero 2 is 64-bit capable, costing around $15.

It is the latest product that comes in the affordable range of SBCs. It has replaced the original board, and a form factor-compatible successor of the previous generations.

The Raspberry Pi Zero 2 board consists of multiple components. It has a 64-bit Arm Cortex-A53 CPU with a clock speed of 1 GHz. Right in the center of the board is a Raspberry Pi RP3A0 SiP (System-in-Package). This SiP joins the BCM2710A1 die Broadcom with 512MB of LPDDR2 SDRAM.

The processor of Raspberry Pi Zero 2 is an up–gradation of the original single-core Raspberry Pi Zero. It provides 40% excessive and five times faster single-threaded performance.

As far as the connectivity is concerned, Raspberry Pi Zero 2 provides Bluetooth 4.2 and 2.4 GHz 802.11 b/g/n wireless LAN. It also supports BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) and modular compliance.

External connections are also an important feature in any system. For this purpose, the Raspberry Pi Zero 2 board provides:

A microSD card slot
A USB OTG port
A CSI-2 camera connector
A footprint for a HAT-compatible 40-pin GPIO header
A mini HDMI

Coming towards the physical domain, the Raspberry Pi Zero 2 is fitted in the commonly-used Raspberry Pi Zero cases.

Raspberry Pi Zero 2 is a perfect product for smart homes, IoT domains, security cameras, Bluetooth speakers, etc.

Power is another major consideration in the case of any such product. Raspberry Pi provides an official Raspberry Pi Micro USB Power Supply for Raspberry Pi Zero 2.

Technical Specification of Raspberry Pi Zero 2

Following are the technical specifications of Raspberry Pi Zero 2:

Raspberry Pi Zero 2 Compliance

It has undergone many extensive testing procedures, and it fits perfectly into many local and international standards and has many relevant certificates and conformity documents.

These documents are divided into three categories, namely Public documents, restricted documents, and confidential documents.

The Public documents are available publicly for free download. In contrast, the restricted documents require the Raspberry Pi account and administrative credentials.

Furthermore, the confidential documents require the Raspberry Pi account, administrative credentials, and a signed confidentiality agreement.

Raspberry Pi Zero 2 has the following compliance approvals:

FCC Grant of Equipment Authorization
FCC Grant of Equipment Authorization Digital Transmission System
Industry Canada ISED Canada-CB – Radio Device Authorization
RaspberryPi_Zero2W_CE_Declaration_of_Conformity
Thailand Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission Authorization

Raspberry Pi Zero 1 vs. Raspberry Pi Zero 2

Following is a detailed comparison of Raspberry Pi Zero 1 and Raspberry Pi Zero 2:

Raspberry Pi Zero 2 proved advancement and up–gradation of the original Raspberry Pi Zero (1). Now let’s compare both generations based on the technical specifications and financial analysis.

Although Raspberry Pi Zero 1 and Raspberry Pi Zero 2 have the same physical dimensions, Raspberry Pi Zero 2 is heftier than Raspberry Pi Zero 1. This is because Raspberry Pi Zero 2 utilizes thick copper layers for heat conduction away from the processing unit. Therefore, it is capable of running heavy workloads and sustains higher performance.
By introducing Raspberry Pi Zero 2, the performance gap has been bridged. Raspberry Pi Zero 2 utilizes the 1 GHz Broadcom BCM2710A1 SOC.
The SOC and SDRAM are integrated as s SiP (System-in-Package). Raspberry Pi Zero 2 provides almost five times excessive-performance fir for multi-threaded workloads than its previous generations.
Almost all specifications are similar in connectivity except that Raspberry Pi Zero 2 uses Bluetooth 4.2, whereas Raspberry Pi Zero 1 uses Bluetooth 4.1.
As far as the price is concerned, the Raspberry Pi Zero 1 costs around $10, whereas Raspberry Pi Zero 2 costs around $15. These prices may vary from seller to seller. Hence, Raspberry Pi Zero 2 costs $5 more than Raspberry Pi Zero 1.

Despite all the advantages of Raspberry Pi Zero 2 over Raspberry Pi Zero 1, Raspberry Pi has not discontinued Raspberry Pi Zero 1.

The market is facing supply shortages due to worldwide semiconductor shortages, but these are estimated to restock in 2022.

In short, Raspberry Pi Zero 2 provides a better experience and can handle a lot more excessive workloads compared to Raspberry Pi Zero 1.

Hence, in light of all the above pieces of evidence, Raspberry Pi Zero 2 would be a perfect choice for any project.