My impression is that the coming generation of chips are going to be completely integrated RiSCV chips with RAM integrated on one package. Akin to a microcontroller but that can run Linux.
I got an intel SBC for something that required non-ARM and I remember the power raw being surprising after having been spoiled by so many raspberry ARMs.
My understanding that as of a couple of years ago most of the “clones” had various issues from pcb layout bugs causing ddram access issues, to poor documentation and poor Linux kernel support. Also availability was often a challenge. Getting a product that just works and is well supported by a community is worth a lot imo. Especially for hobbyist, less so if it’s one’s full time job, but then why are you using these things?
I've been looking into alternatives to the Zero 2W because I need something in the same form factor with more (processing) power; something closer to the Pi 3B+ or better.
My conclusion is that although there is some nice hardware out there on paper, the poor circuit designs and atrocious software support mean anything I can get that meets my requirements will be an absolute nightmare; and I'm a software engineer of 1.5-decades with an Electronic Engineering degree, so the bar is high for something to be too-much-effort.
Take the Radxa Zero 3W[0] for example; the WiFi doesn't work properly, GPU acceleration doesn't always work, the OS images are out of date and don't always boot, when it does there are power issues, thermal issues, performance issues. No Debian 12 expected until H2 this year, if lucky; Android OS images are Android 9 (we're on what Android 14-15 now?).
