Cytron is currently selling a Raspberry Pi 4 Model B “Special Value Board” with 4GB or 8GB of RAM, whose unique feature is to be clocked at 1.25 GHz instead of 1.8 GHz.
The Raspberry Pi 4 initially launched with a 1.5 GHz BCM2711 SoC in 2019, but all recent boards are upgraded to the BCM2711C0 clocked at 1.8 GHz, first found in the Raspberry Pi 400 keyboard PC. So that 1.25 GHz version is odd, let’s check it out.
Raspberry Pi 4 “Special Value Board” specifications:
- SoC – Broadcom BCM2711C0 quad-core Cortex-A72 (ARMv8) @ 1.25 GHz max with VideoCore VI GPU supporting OpenGL ES 3.0 graphics
- System Memory – 4GB or 8GB LPDDR4-3200
- Storage – microSD card slot
- Video Output & Display I/F
- 2x micro HDMI ports up to 4Kp60 (Currently 1080p60 max. in dual-display configuration, although 2x 4Kp30 is being worked on)
- 3.5mm AV port with composite video (and stereo audio)
- 2-lane MIPI DSI display port
- Video
- Decode – H.265 up to 4Kp60, H.264 up to 1080p60
- Encode – H.264 up to 1080p30
- Camera – 2-lane MIPI CSI camera port
- Audio – Stereo audio via AV port, digital audio via HDMI ports
- Connectivity
- True Gigabit Ethernet (RJ45)
- Dual band (2.4 GHz/5.0 GHz) 802.11b/g/n/ac WiFi 5
- Bluetooth 5.0 BLE
- USB – 2x USB 3.0 ports, 2x USB 2.0 ports.
- Expansion – Standard 40-pin GPIO header fully backward-compatible with previous Raspberry Pi boards
- Power Supply
- 5V DC via USB-C connector (minimum 3A )
- 5V DC via GPIO header (minimum 3A )
- Power over Ethernet (PoE) via an optional PoE HAT
- Dimensions – 85 x 56 mm (same as other model B boards)
- Temperature Range – 0 – 50°C
Besides the lower frequency and higher capacity 4GB and 8GB RAM options (i.e., no 1GB or 2GB model), the rest is the same. Cytron claims it’s fully compatible with Raspberry Pi OS ecosystems and packages, and further explains the reasons behind the lower CPU clock:
These boards are brand-new and sourced directly from the Raspberry Pi, UK. During testing, these boards did not meet the peak 1.8GHz frequency specification. Instead, Raspberry Pi has validated and certified these specific units to run flawlessly at a maximum stable operating frequency of 1.25GHz.
So it’s an original Raspberry Pi 4, just not working at full speed. It’s pretty common in the industry, and Intel does it with its processor families, and Rockchip RK3399-T was offered at 1.5 GHz instead of 1.8 GHz for the RK3399.
The latest Raspberry Pi SBC price increases in April brought the Raspberry Pi 4B 4GB and 8GB prices to $100 and $165, respectively. Cytron sells the “Special Value Board” variants for $87.25 and $147 [Update July 9: and… it’s gone, 404 error], and you’d save around $23/$34 on each compared to standard 1.8 GHz models sold on Cytron. The company mentions this is a one-off, first-come, first-served opportunity, and I can see 258 pieces in stock for the 4GB model and 189 pieces for the 8GB variant at the time of publication. I was unable to find the 1.25 GHz Pi 4 in other stores for now.
Thanks to Feng for the tip.
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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