DR8072A embedded router board offers dual 2.5 GbE, WiFi 6 connectivity

We’ve previously found Qualcomm IPQ8072A quad-core Cortex-A53 networking processor in WPQ873 embedded SBC with support for WiFI 6, three GbE ports, one 2.5GbE port, and support for 5G M.2 modems.

The design was adapted from Qualcomm HK09 reference design, and now another company, Wallys  Communications, has launched another board based on HK09. DR8072A embedded router board is somewhat similar to WPQ873, but does come with two 2.5GbE ports instead of just one, one extra Gigabit Ethernet port, among other smaller changes.

Qualcomm IPQ8072A boardDR8072A specifications:

  • SoC – Qualcomm Atheros IPQ8072A quad-core ARM 64 bit A53 @ 2.2GHz part of Qualcomm Networking Pro 600 Platform
  • System Memory – 1x 512MB, DDR4 2,400 MHz 16-bit interface
  • Storage – 256MB NAND flash, 8MB NOR flash
  • Networking and Wireless Connectivity
    • Ethernet
      • 4x Gigabit Ethernet RJ45 ports
      • 2x 2.5 Gbps Ethernet RJ45 ports
    • WiFi
      • On-board 4×4 2.4GHz MU-MIMO OFDMA 802.11b/g/n/ax, up to 1182 Mbps, max 17dBm per chain
      • On-board 4×4 5GHz MU-MIMO OFDMA 802.11a/n/ac/ax, up to 2475Mbps, max 17dBm per chain
      • 8x U.FL connectors
  • USB – 2x USB 3.0 ports
  • Expansion – Mini PCIe socket with PCIe 3.0 interface
  • Debugging – 20-pin JTAG debug interface, 4-pin serial port
  • Misc – 2x RGB LEDs, reset button
  • Power Supply – 12V via DC jack connector
  • Power Consumption – TBD
  • Dimensions – TBD
  • Temperature Range – Operating: -20ºC to 70ºC; storage: -40ºC to 90ºC
  • Humidity – Operating: 5% to 95% (non-condensing); storage: Max. 90% (non-condensing)

DR8072A embedded router boardTwo features from WPQ873 board have not been integrated into Wallys’ embedded router board: an M.2 socket for 5G modems, and Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity using QCA4024 chip. So instead, you might be able to use a 5G mini PCIe card.

I haven’t been able to ask Wallys Communication about software support before the week-long Labor Day holiday, but usually, this type of board supports the Qualcomm SDK with QCA binary drivers and the older OpenWrt Barrier Breaker distribution.

That’s about all the public information we have about the DR8072A board, but you should be able to ask for additional details via the product page. Pricing has not been made public (yet), but for reference, WPQ873 sells for $785, so it may be in that ballpark.

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8 Comments
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bernstein
bernstein
2 years ago

Just half a gig of ram? Way to much processing power for such a paltry ram… Especially given the expected price. They should include at least 2gigs…

itchy n scratchy
itchy n scratchy
2 years ago

Given the fact it has a whopping 256MB of storage?

TLS
TLS
2 years ago

I guess you don’t know much about routers, eh?

Paul M
Paul M
2 years ago

It almost feels like there needs to be a tertiary storage device like an SDHC slot to supplement a basic OS in the onboard nand. And the RAM is one fifth or even a tenth of what I’d expect for a router/firewall. This seems more like the spec for a smart switch than a router.

TLS
TLS
2 years ago

OpenWRT and most other router OSes don’t even need 256MB.
This is not Intel hardware, nor Windows, so no need for that much RAM or storage in most instances.

Harry
Harry
2 years ago

Your, linksys like wrt 54g with default openwrt reply, is weak.

Routing protocols such as bgp need more ram. Also, router this days is not only routing protocols, but also require vxlan, mpls, vrf, namespaces, ipsec, wireguard, pppoe, and LOTS of other software, doubled and quadrupled to multiple tenants.

And If you consider learning stuff, you will likely find out there is new stack, such as Cumulus Linux, which allows cool management in bulk (no affinity with them) which is likely needing much more ram.

rektide
2 years ago

gorgeous board that looks like peak platform. dual 2.5 or 5 gbit ethernet sounds ideal. it’d be nice to double as a router with wan & lan, where dual 2.5gbit is a minimum. alas the pricing on this shit is going to be comically ridiculous. you don’t want some company’s quasi-secure limited commercial os with “optional” subscription plan? congrats you are now in oculus “paynus $500 more” territory[1]. also your ram is way meh for the price and your cpu is a thoroughly middling almost 10 year old core thanks a lot real unclear what the deal is. one side… Read more »

Joe K
Joe K
2 years ago

RAM and CPU is definitely uncompetitive, but the addition of true 4×4 dual band MU-MIMO is nice. Now if we could just lose the mPCIe for M.2, get a quad antenna 5G module, double the onboard storage, add mSD, add dual SIM slots…
Well okay, I guess we just need a new board.

Khadas VIM4 SBC