The Banana Pi BPI-Forge1, also known as the ArmSoM Forge1, is an industrial SBC (single board computer) powered by the Rockchip RK3506J triple-core Cortex-A7 processor designed for Smart Audio, HMI, and factory automation applications.
The Forge1 is equipped with 512MB RAM, 512MB NAND flash, two Fast Ethernet ports, a MIPI DSI display connector, USB Type-A and Type-C ports, an audio jack, a 40-pin GPIO header partially compatible with Raspberry Pi HATs, and a 14-pin header with speaker output, microphone input, RS-485, and CAN Bus.
Banana Pi BPI-Forge1 specifications:
- SoC – Rockchip RK3506J
- CPU
- 3x Arm Cortex-A7 core up to 1.5 GHz
- Arm Cortex-M0 real-time core
- GPU – 2D GPU only
- No VPU, no NPU
- CPU
- System Memory – 512MB DDR3L
- Storage
- 512MB SPI NAND flash
- MicroSD card
- Display Interface – 2-lane MIPI DSI connector up to 1280 x 1280@ 60FPS
- Audio
- 3.5mm audio jack
- Speaker and Mic via expansion header
- Networking – 2x 100Mbps Ethernet RJ45 ports
- USB
- 1x USB Type-C port for power (PD) and programming
- 1x USB 2.0 host port
- Expansion
- 40-pin GPIO header with UART, SPI, I2C, I2S, PWM, 5V, 3.3V, and GND (mostly) compatible with the one on Raspberry Pi SBCs
- 14-pin header with Speaker, Mic, RS485, and CAN Bus
- Misc
- MaskROM key
- LK8563S RTC
- Power Supply – 12V/2A
- Dimensions – 92 x 60 mm
- Temperature Range – -40°C to 85°C
The company provides a Linux SDK for the Rockchip RK3506J SBC based on Buildroot and Linux 6.1.99 running on the Cortex-A7 cores, plus RT-Thread RTOS running on the Cortex-M0 core.
The documentation provides more information about the hardware, for example, the pinout of the 40-pin and 16-pin headers, and instructions to get started with the serial console, the RTC, audio recording and playback, and the CAN Bus. It’s still a work in progress as the specs are incomplete, instructions for MIPI DSI and RS-485 are missing, etc… Having said that, it’s still better than what we have with the Forlinx FET3506J-S RK3560J system-on-module, which lacks any public documentation.
The Banana Pi BPI-Forg1 can be purchased on AliExpress for about $24, and a 7-inch display (resolution not provided) is offered for $52 as an option. The Rockchip RK3506J and the Forge1 SBC will remain in production until at least May 2035, or in other words, that’s a 10-year life cycle commitment.
Updated: The article was initially published on March 26, 2025, and updated following availability on AliExpress
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
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Can someone help me understand who the target customer for these is?
An A7 fanboy with only 23$ in his bank account.
“Smart Audio, HMI, and factory automation applications.”. The end of the first paragraph. A tripple-core A7 will be enough for these tasks. Could possibly even work just give with a single A7 core.
The problem is the incomplete kernel..
Low-power, maybe solar-powered devices probably.
For low-power devices, licheerv-nano would be more suited, lower powered and even cheaper.
This chip is more interesting in this SBC format, and for <$10:
https://wiki.luckfox.com/Luckfox-Lyra/
How cool, we had Orange Pi PC 10 years ago for 15€ and it was more powerful than this. It even had a proper GPU :).
Now, when they give you that they charge you 3 times, but salaries now aren’t 3 times higher than 10 years ago neither life’s cost.
But x86 Mini PC’s are cheaper and much more powerful than 10 years ago.
Welcome to the SBC world! 😀
In EU, we didn’t even pay VAT or duties for Orange Pi PC 10 years ago. It did actually cost $15 to buy. 🙂